CHERRY OR ROMA TOMATOES (F)

SALSA PACKS (P)

GREEN BEANS (F) more oh-so-tender Rattlesnake pole beans

MELONS (P) Predominately ‘Peace’ watermelons, a yellow-flesh variety (handle with care – they pop open easily) along with a few of the red Sangria and Sugar Baby

SWEET PEPPERS (F) Two each this week as the patch starts to finally ripen

EGGPLANT (P)

BROCCOLI RAAB (RAPINI) (F) A super-tasty Italian cooking green, check out Tom’s blog for info.

LETTUCE (F) what was supposed to be enough for everyone of the summer lettuce varieties got swamped last week with the 4 inches of rain and is now barely enough for the full shares. So sorry, partials, we’ll get you next time. There’s much more lettuce coming soon.

SUMMER SQUASH OR OKRA (P)

CARROTS (F) ditto as with the lettuce above – half of this planting rotted in the ground.

GARLIC (F/P) according to the survey folks want more garlic, so here you go.

HERB CHOICE: Basil, Garlic Chives or Thyme (F)

ALSO THIS WEEK: Bread of Life Bakery

NEXT WEEK: More melons, beans, tomatoes, salsa packs and eggplant. Potatoes and onions.

THE FIELDS: This week’s farm report is going to be brief as I want to save time to give you all a heads-up on the travails of our dear friends and fellow farmers at the Bad Seed. Actually we had a pretty interesting week here. The Saturday crew dug our best potato crop ever in one of our no-till experimental plots. No-till is the method where you pile on the hay and/or other organic matter and plant into it. The soil stays loose and no tilling is necessary. Some crops (like the potatoes) seem to really enjoy the environment that results. Other crops, not so much. Here’s a photo of our little home garden next to our house which has been no-till for a few years. The gargantuan chard seems to be taunting the diminutive carrots. Carrots, it appears, prefer to be left alone to struggle through the hard, crusty soil. There must be some truth in that as our carrot harvests over the years have always done well with no coddling. Ah, if only we all could be so hardy.

Alright, enough about the darn carrots. There’s real trouble afoot in our local food community.

THE BADSEED GETS BADDER

The good folks at BADSEED FARM are under attack for growing food in their backyard at Bannister Road and State Line in KCMO. Due to complaints from the absentee homeowner next door, they have been forced to remove their goats and relocate their chickens. Additional citations threaten to force the shutdown of their farming operation completely. The KC Star magazine Ink covered their plight this week. I attended the hearing a few weeks ago where the farmers appealed the removal of their goats and it seemed to me that there is alot of education needed amongst the KCMO government on the importance of local food production. BADSEED FARM is a model sustainable farm practicing no-till, companion planting and integrated pest management. They provide an oasis of life amongst the suburban monocrop of Kentucky Bluegrass. And I can attest from personal experience, the farm is immaculate, beautifully manicured, without a weed in sight. The goats were healthy creatures that along with the chickens provided fertility and pest management to their operation.

Tom and I are grateful to be farming in the countryside on family land, but not everyone can be so lucky. Urban farms are a great alternative. Urban and suburban lawns should be re-purposed for a future where food and oil will be more precious. Please consider supporting the BADSEED in their efforts to create a new vision for suburban living.

Here’s how you can help:

1. 6th District Residents (anywhere south of 85th St., KCMO) Contact your District 6 Representatives: Cathy Jolly, City Hall, 24th Floor, 414 E. 12th St. KCMO 64106; John Sharp, City Hall, 22nd Floor, 414 E. 12th St. KCMO 64106

2. Others. Brooke and Dan are really focusing on their district representatives, but it wouldn’t hurt to contact others that you know or who represent you in the KCMO government. To find out who represents your district go here

3. Come down to the Friday nite BADSEED Market this Friday. Tom has written some great lyrics regarding the BadSeed plight to the tune of the Ballad of John and Yoko . Ernest James will be on hand to perform the song along with our own Lori Watley on percussion. We are currently working on getting the performance filmed so that we can post it on YouTube and spread the word. At this point we are looking a some time between 6 and 8 pm. We’ll post when we have a more definite time. The more, the merrier. Tell your friends. Let’s show our beleagured farmers some love with music from the heart.