2022-04-05 newsletter

Greetings,

We had a beautiful and much needed rain yesterday. The increased
cloud clover has also given the crops a break during these intensely hot
days.

The challenging heat of the fall and spring has resulted in many
experiments to find well suited heat tolerant crops. For example with
lettuce, we have trialed over 20 varieties to learn the best types
suited to our sandy soils and hot, humid climate. We have learned to
phase out romaine lettuce this time of the year as it does poorly in the
heat, often bolting at a young age. Bolting is a process, often due to
heat and/or water stress, where the lettuce plant undergoes stem
elongation and begins the flowering process. The leaves become more
bitter as energy is diverted away from leaves into developing flowers.
Now we are increasingly transitioning to Summercrisp (aka Batavia)
lettuce types. Summercrisp varieties like ‘Magenta’ and ‘Nevada’ do
excellent in the fall and spring here.

We repeat this procedure with almost all the other crops. We have
conducted many observation trials over multiple seasons to find crops
that perform well under our conditions and are delicious.
Experimentation on our farm is a critical step toward sustainability!
Finding well adapted crops means less waste of time and valuable
resources– all the while prioritizing those varieties that taste great.
We are picky about what we grow and want those varieties that really
showcase the goodness that is possible.

We still have good production and diversity on the farm, especially
with these cloudy days providing some relief from the heat; but if
something is out of stock, feel at liberty to request it in the customer
notes.

Our schedule remains the same:

** ** ** ** ** Thursday** : Please order by
8 pm tonight (Tuesday), April 5, for Thursday, April 7, farm pick up or
delivery to Bonita Springs, Naples, Ft. Myers Beach, Ft. Myers, N. Ft.
Myers, and Cape Coral.

Saturday: Bonita Springs Farmers’ Market at
Promenade Shops (8am- noon). You may also select a preorder option each
week (by Thursday 8 pm) and pick up your prepared orders at the Saturday
market, preferably after 10:30 am.

Tuesday : Farmers’ Market on Captiva
(9am-1pm at Starbuck’s Parking Lot, Captiva ) and
Sanibel/Captiva home deliveries on Tuesdays. Place order by Sunday, 8
pm. You may also select a pre-order option (order by Sunday 8pm) to pick
up at the market.

Place orders at 12seasonsfarm.com
We are currently harvesting:

• Cherry Tomatoes

• Heirloom/Specialty Tomatoes

• Red Beefsteak Tomatoes

• Summercrisp Lettuce

• Romaine Lettuce (limited)

• Large Leaf Butterhead Lettuce

• Arugula

• Curly kale

• Flat kale

• Mixed kale

• Broccoli

• Cabbage

• Cucumbers

• Zucchini

• Eggplant

• Sweet Peppers

• Round radish

• Daikon radish

• Green onions

• Italian Basil

• Dill

• Italian Flat Parsley

• Curly Parsley

• Valencia Oranges

• Grapefruit

• Papaya

• Strawberries

• Blueberries (certified organic from farm in Central
  Florida)

• Bananas

• Sunflowers

• Orange blossom Honey

Jane, Baby Selah, and Meredith transplanting curled parsley. This bed
is on its third transplanted crop. We do a lot of succession planting
and use a slow release organic fertilizer to accommodate for a long
season.

We have been harvesting more bananas on the farm these days!
Scrumptious!

The first batch of dried onions is ready. I have not added them to
the website yet, but plan to shortly. They are tasty. You can add them
to greek or regular yogurt for a French onion dip. They can be
rehydrated for use in soup. They are dried down from sweet onions.

This morning we planted the next flight of radishes. Usually every
Tuesday we seed the radishes.

Jack and Atlas removing the lower leaves on the tomato plants to
increase air movement, reduce disease and insect incidence, and make
harvesting easier.

Benjamin likes to help as well and has the important task of taking
the pruned leaves out of the greenhouse.

We had another enjoyable farm gathering! Great food and fellowship.
We have an amazing team here of dedicated and hard working
individuals.

As you see from this week’s photos, kids and young people are an
integral part of farm life. Not only do they remind us of the joy to be
found in the midst of hard work, they also make a great contribution to
the farm work. As workers start to move on for the season, the kids are
picking up more responsibility and they are rising to the challenge.

Thank you for your continued support! Have a great week!

Danny, Vicki, the kids, and the 12 Seasons Team