The time has finally come to start the process of putting the garden to rest. The last two months have presented some unique challenges from pest pressure to a lack or rain, and general burnout as we try to get every task done. This time of year is incredibly busy since seed picking in the prairie tends to take priority. Luckily, the end is in sight and we are feeling particularly inspired by all of the great memories and progress we made this year!

Our first taste of frost arrived and it is bittersweet. It immediately knocked out our squash and pumpkin vines and stopped them in their tracks. Another freeze is on its way, which means sadly we will not have any winter squash to share this year. We really appreciate all of you that made it out to celebrate with us at our harvest bonfire. You guys bought up all of the pumpkins that were ready and we had a blast snacking, laughing, and enjoying the beautiful weather. Thankfully we still have some sweet potatoes for the final box, but the end is near friends.

We got a much needed break with a few weeks off from pickups and deliveries. Looking forward to cooler temps, bonfires, and leaves changing this fall. As the seasons shift, we are excited to share some new items in the coming weeks including pumpkins and winter squash!

The end is finally here! We are so thankful to all of our supporters throughout this growing season. It has been a challenge but incredibly rewarding to know that we are feeding so many people we love and care about nourishing, organic produce and showering them with pesticide-free bouquets!

We are thrilled to offer a wide variety in this box. Harvest season is here! While many things are slowing down in production, a few things just won’t quit. Many of our plants are starting to finish, and we have plenty of squash and pumpkins becoming more and more visible as they change color and the vines die back. It’s always fun to see what lurks beneath the green, lush foliage as things give way.

The seasons are certainly shifting. However, yesterday was a perfect beach day in Chicago so we are eternally grateful to everyone who accommodated an earlier or later delivery than usual. We greatly enjoyed our Labor Day relaxing in the sun. Although it might be slipping into fall, this is actually one of the busiest times of the year for us. Seed collecting takes up a good chunk of time, along with harvesting, and planting the last of the fall crops and garlic for next year. It’s a race to the first frost in October. We still have two bountiful boxes of produce coming after this one!

It’s more than halfway through the growing season and we are pretty happy with how things have gone. We are endlessly pulling weeds and behind on planting fall cover crops that will regenerate our soil. It is a nonstop to-do list and a race to the first frost at this point. It’s crazy to think in just a couple short weeks we will begin putting the garden to rest. Feeling a bit of the farmer’s fatigue but pushing through to bring ya’ll some tasty produce and lush bouquets.

Can you believe it’s August? We can’t! The summer is flying by and we are already starting to plan for fall crops, end-of-year harvests, and next year’s seed purchases and garden plans. This box is a delight due to such a wide variety of items being available and ripe for picking. We were also blessed with milder weather for the days that we were harvesting.

Summer is in full swing and we are grateful for the little amount of rain we have seen. The fact that we are able to pull produce that is anything close to the quality of a grocery store is pretty amazing in these conditions. Many of the spring crops we intended to have finished earlier are just being pulled, but they still look great. As things are harvested, space is opening up for the planting of cold-weather crops that will be ready this fall. It is a great time to see the garden; things are really starting to take off.

It’s Week #3 and July is here! Though summer storms have been tearing through the Midwest lately, we have been missed with most of that much-needed water. Things are growing, blooming, and flourishing nonetheless. We are getting ready to harvest and cure our garlic and onions, and the dahlias have started to form flowers!