Planting Peppers and Cucumbers
Spring planting continued in the high tunnel this week with a few different pepper varieties! We’ve had great success planting our peppers in the high tunnel over the past couple of years due to the protection it provides from excess moisture. And, our hope is that it allows us to extend pepper season well into the summer since we will be able to install a shade cloth over the top. This round of peppers focused mostly on sweet varieties like Escamillo and Lunch Box. We also planted Shishitos and Poblanos and will be adding a few hot varieties within the next few weeks.
We are getting incredibly close to our first zucchini harvest of the season! As you can see in the photo below, our plants are just starting to form buds which means it’s only a matter of time before we’re able to start harvesting. Did you know that zucchini, along with all of the other squash varieties that we grow, depend on pollinators in order to produce fruit? Pollinators help to transfer pollen from the male blossoms to the female ones. Once pollinated, the tiny zucchini at the base of the female blossom is able to grow.
In addition to peppers, we planted the first succession of cucumbers (below). This round is made up entirely of slicing varieties and is split between the field and the high tunnel. Since cucumbers are vining plants, we’ll be adding trellis support for them soon. The trellis will allow us to take advantage of the vertical growing space and will make it much easier to harvest once the time comes. Even though we just planted these last week, we’re already seeing the first buds emerge!
In Season at the Farm Stand: Spring Onions, Salad Mix, Arugula, Kale, Collards, Swiss Chard, Kohlrabi, Fennel, Dill, and Marigold Bouquets
Coming Soon: Cucumbers, Zucchini, and Summer Squashes
