Summer is fading fast and we'll be into a more fall mix soon. Meanwhile a few summer favorites hang on a little longer.

Hi everyone!  Slowly but surely we are making this thing look like a finished building.  This is the closest we've ever been!  We've got a guy on the inside working to install the floor in the atrium and retail spaces while Isaac, Oscar, and I tackle finishing up the wood siding that wraps around the outside of the atrium.  We've been busy going back and forth between cutting and attaching the wooden panels, and running up to the old barn on the other side of the property so we can rip some more out of the floor and walls.  The stuff is really nice looking, and it's been fun mixing and matching colors to try and find the best boards to go up and really make the building look great. 

This is a view of the back of the building and as you can see the A/C units are installed up there, and really there are fewer and fewer things like that that need to be finished to get this place up and running.  The floors and the siding are our big priority for the next couple weeks.  The plan is to have all the wood finished up by tomorrow and then we can get cracking right away on the upper metal siding first thing next week. 

While we were pulling off barn siding to get to the boards underneath I found this little guy on the side of the barn at the back of one of Paul's flower gardens.  While most other blooms nearby were finishing up it was hard to miss the purple beacon in the back against that beautiful red. 

Well, I hope you're all enjoying the onset of Fall and the first of the Fall shares for all you CSA'ers out there!
Have a terrific weekend, and I'll talk to you next week.

Til' next time,
Louis

The last of the summer vegetables mix here with the return of greens in the form of Chard. It's been a hot summer and it feels like we might have a warm fall to keep the bounty going. Welcome to the first week of fall, folks.

Hi Everyone!  I'm Back!!  After what felt like a brief journey back to my home states of Wisconsin and Iowa (which was actually 2 and a half weeks worth of journey), I have returned to a familiar yet slightly different scene of gettin' stuff done on the farm stand.  And, I was happy to see that the jokers I left behind got a lot done while I was gone too.  All of the metal siding on the lower half of the building is finished, and they've/we've started on the wooden board and batten siding on the atrium that uses reclaimed boards from an old barn on the property (Oscar and I demolished the second floor of the barn today and took out all the floor boards so we can clean them up and slap 'em up as siding). 

Here's what the boards look like without the batten.  It's going to look so good!

Here are some of those floor boards that Oscar and I tore out, and after we power washed them.  The nails that were holding these things down were the square, hand-made kind probably made over a century ago.  Pretty awesome stuff to see, though I'm glad I'm not the one who has to make them AND drive them all in by hand.

The interior spaces are really starting to change too.  Most of the tile is up in the kitchen, and the sinks and other appliances are starting to be brought in and hooked up.  The walls around the timber frame in the atrium are also almost finished.  They're painted and waxed and look amazing, but there's still a bunch of trim and other fine details that need to go in there so I'm holding off on pictures.  And then there's the store, which is basically a finished room with the only thing left being the floor...

...And here it is, it got dropped off today.  Oscar and I spent the better part of the afternoon moving it from outside into the retail space.  They're really beautiful pieces of wood and I can't wait to see them laid out, finished it, and walked on.

Well, I hope this was an easy transition back into Thursday blog times with Our Table, it's like I was never even gone.  Maybe I'll see you out at the open house this Sunday from 1:30pm to 3:30pm!  Otherwise have a great weekend and I'll talk to you next week.

Til' next time,
Louis

A lovely end to summer on a very hot afternoon. Fall CSA starts next week and most pick up sites still have space so make sure you're signed up. Looks like it's going to be a great one.

We got a little carried away this week and decided to give out two one time items, potatoes and shallots. These will both keep, but they're delicious so I'm not sure why you'd hang on to them for long.

Unfortunately the deer have found the lettuce so we may have to switch to kale or chard for greens next week. We still have heads sizing up so I'm hoping we can cover those and that they'll be ready for the early fall shares.

Still lots of great summer vegetables coming out of the fields and the fields are looking good for fall too.

Cecil Denney is the first Consumer Member of Our Table Cooperative. Hear about what led him to become an owner of his local food system.

What will the future be like for my grandson and his grandchildren? Will climate change make life on this planet difficult? Will economic inequality continue? Will meaningful work become impossible to find? Will the world's resources be depleted? Will there be enough food to go around in an ever increasing population? Is there anything I can do about it? It was with these questions in mind that last year I purchased a subscription for an Our Table CSA share. As I learned more, I realized Our Table spoke to many of my concerns.

By being a part of Our Table, I am sourcing locally produced food which in turn reduces the use of fossil fuels. As a land trust, Our Table protects true wealth, specifically healthy, productive soil for future generations. Their commitment to sustainable farming works to preserve essential resources. As a cooperative, they support relationships in production and consumption undermining inequality and thereby honoring both the work and the worker. Good healthy food enables healthy, productive and thoughtful people to address the future. Aware of these things, I became an investor and Consumer Member of Our Table Cooperative.

I am not a person who camps out with the Occupiers or joins in massive protests against coal trains. But in league with others, I have found a way to address my concerns. In the process, I am receiving the immediate rewards of good, fresh, and Organic year-round produce as well as the fellowship of a team that shares a vision of a better current and future world.

-Cecil Denney

Really it's just a new look for the photo, same great share we've had the past few weeks.

Cippolini onions are unique to this week so enjoy them while they're here. They do keep well but I'm guessing they're exciting enough that they won't last long in most kitchens. Roasting wedges is a nice way to feature them.

The dill probably won't come around again for a while. It's a big bunch so if you want to save some I recommend hanging it to dry inside a paper bag with holes poked for A little air circulation.

Enjoy!