Weekly Weeder

Olin-Fox Farms Volume No. 9 Issue No. 23 August 29, 2007

www.olinfoxfarms.com Summer Season Week 14

STANDARD REMINDER

Please be sure to wash your weekly share thoroughly before serving. To preserve freshness, it is NOT ‘table ready’ (i.e., pre-washed). We deliver your Olin-Fox Farms’ produce right from the fields to ensure highest quality.

Important Notice: 

The Alexandria Central Avenue location has sold out for the Fall, and the Alexandria Chowan Avenue location is filling up fast.  Due to the overwhelming interest in the Central Avenue location, we are looking for an additional distribution point in that area.  If you are interested or know someone who is, please contact us ASAP. 

Closer to home, we are pleased to announce that, starting with the Fall Program, there is a new distribution point in Middlesex County at Hartfield, VA, between Routes 3 and 33, convenient to both Deltaville and Gloucester.

Please notify us ASAP if you plan to participate in the Fall Program.  Letting us know soon would be a great help, not only for our planning and planting crops but also this will allow us to get a head start on memberships, so we can spend more time in the field.  Thank you for your belief in Community Supported Agriculture.

This Week's News From The Farms

Please note this is the last week of the Summer Program. We hope you all have enjoyed the bounty of produce the summer has offered. We have been very fortunate despite severe weather conditions. We are looking forward to another great Fall Season, and hope that you will join us. Our special thanks to all our contributing farmers and every volunteer whose combined efforts enable us to bring you wholesome, fresh produce loving grown and delivered with care.

Preparations and planting continue for our Fall/Winter Programs. We look forward to a break from the extreme temperatures with milder weather approaching, as we await the first of our fall harvests of radishes, Arugula, salad greens, sweet potatoes, and apples to name a few.

More details on the Locusville Music Festival (September 15) and the Olin-Fox Farms Garlic Roast (October 13) will be included in the first of the fall Weekly Weeders.

Thank you, CSA member Kathy for the following information:

Ever since I read Earth in the Balance, thanks to you, John, I have wanted to do more. So when I read about the upcoming vote in Congress on the Farm Bill I thought I would ask if you could put this information in the Weekly Weeder and ask members to contact their Congress-person. The information comes from Andrew Weil's Self Healing June newsletter and the October Eating Well magazine. In September lawmakers will be working on the Farm Bill, which will be in effect for 5 to 7 years. This determines how federal funds are allocated to programs that stipulate what foods are available, how much they cost, where and how they are grown and shapes school lunches. Two of the largest crops backed by the Farm Bill -corn and soybeans- are used to make high-fructose corn syrup and soy oil, cheap ingredients that contribute to obesity, diabetes and other chronic disease. 90 billion dollars per year are at stake. 20 billion taxpayer dollars were spent on crop subsidies in 2005. 92% of subsidies were spent on 5 crops(corn, cotton, rice, wheat and soybeans). 520 million bushels of corn were processed into high-fructose corn syrup in 2006. 33 lbs of sweeteners are derived fron one bushel of corn. 35 gallons of high-fructose sweetened soft drinks is the average an American consumes per year. There was a 25% decrease in the prices of soft drinks from 1985-2000. There was a 40% increase in the prices of fruits and vegetables from 1985-2000. 33million Americans cannot afford to eat balanced meals.  Dr. Weil suggests we ask lawmakers to use some of that money to encourage more small farms, affordable produce, and organic agriculture. Studies have found that when prices of fruits and vegetables are lower, people buy more of them, and that would improve the nation's health. This is an important point in Al Gore's book as well. The contact info for your Congress-person is house.gov/writerep.

Non sequitur aside:  Some of us are noticing dramatic shifts taking place in our lives of late, bizarre ups and downs that rival even the wildest roller coaster ride, with no end in sight.  Sound familiar?  If so, know that we can definitely relate.  The momentum seems to be building, so fasten your seat belts.  Looks like we’re in for a bumpy patch.

Crop Report

As the summer crops wind up with a few last summer goodies, first of the fall crops are starting to show up with such varieties as beets and potatoes, with acorn and butternut squash soon to follow. Here at Olin-Fox Farms, we got a preview of the Shitake mushrooms that were started last spring. There were only three, compliments of the high humidity over the last few days. In order for a sizable flush to erupt, the humidity needs to be high and the temperatures need to be lower, so we look forward to the advent of Autumn in hopes of a fulsome flush of flavorful mushrooms for our Fall Program.

In Your Produce Basket This Week

Potatoes, Tomatoes, Eggplant, Basil.

(See your site's distribution list for more details.)

For those with Fruit Shares: Naturally Grown Pears

*** Keep the pears in the bag for a few days, until they are ripe and juicy. ***

Please Note: With elements beyond our control such as the start or the end of a harvest, or extreme weather conditions that may limit the quantity of produce coming in, we systematically address each delivery and pick up group each week and do our very best to see that everyone receives some of everything.