Helllooo 2023!!
I don’t know about you but it’s totally feeling like a superstar year ahead! Surely it must be - right!
January is always such a beautiful month, fresh new beginnings, eating lots of salad and fruit for summer nourishment, long days with lots of time to move and be outdoors = bliss!
While most people are still on summer holidays, we’re getting together as team over the coming weeks to really get a feel for what 2023 will look like for Good Harvest. It’s an opportunity to reflect on the year that was & lessons learned, and a way for us to reconnect with our why (more on that in next weeks blog post!).
Meanwhile, there’s still plenty of things to report for a seasonal update. Read on for all the news from our farm and from our other family of growers – remember, it takes a community to feed a community!
On our farm
I’ve never seen so much Cucumber and Zucchini being grown on our farm – it’s a lot!
We are literally picking every day (thank you so much to the team that gave up their boxing day and New Year’s Day to get into harvesting – you guys are rockstars).
If you’ve never tried to grow these at home, I highly recommend it, even for the kids to be amazed at how quickly they grow and how big they can get :O
We’re busy using up all sorts of excess of these through pickling, fermenting, making Tzatziki, summer smoothies and juices, as well as varied attempts at freezing them (mixed results!).
Other fun things coming off the farm are our summer Eggplant, mostly the long Ping Tung variety and some smaller Globe ones. I love the long ones because they are way too easy to slice and roast – I usually do a big tray bake of veg for the week and portion it for my lunchtime salads :)
We’re also producing some Summer Celery (I feel like if I call everything Summer something, it sounds way more fun!). Our celery is smaller in variety with a thinner stem, so the best way to store this is in a jar of water in the fridge. It will wilt quickly if not stored correctly. Remember, Celery is up to 90% water so loves to be stored in water for freshness.
We’re also harvesting some new patch Bok Choi this week; they have been a favourite for the bugs in the last few weeks though I’m assured this week they are looking top notch and ready for your stir fry for dinner.
Coriander is another surprising herb that loves the heat so we’re all loving this with some guacamole and taco night. It’s also a great detox when added to your morning green juice (100% farm juice: Celery, Cucumber, Choi, Coriander, Ginger!).
Our Salad Mix has been surviving well with the heat, although taking a short rest this week to recover from some germination and watering issues. We’ve also been adding some softer leaves to the mix in the form of Butter Lettuce and Cos. It’s a favourite mix of mine with the bite of texture of the Coral Lettuce, softness of the Butter leaf, and crisp Cos to finish.
There is also some Capsicum starting to mature on the farm, some yellow squash and….. our Watermelon is not too far away! As always we are very blessed to have a never ending supply of Ginger on the farm too, if you ever want to buy bulk, just sing out!
Well done farm team on feeding our community.
Veggies
We’re still seeing mixed availability in terms of veggies from our family of growers. Sweet Potato is limited, as is Cauliflower and some leafy greens. We are however enjoying Pumpkin (Tray bake!!), Beetroot, better quality Onions and the more consistent supply of Green Beans.
Our friends down south have had such a tricky season to start with a lot of rain, so we are hopeful that things will recover for them and a good supply of produce will be coming our way. I love the produce loop we have with farms direct across the state and further south. Our seasons complement each other well and it’s always a win-win.
December saw the end of supply from Noosa Reds for their Tomatoes due to the intense heat, such a shame for Peter, it’s the first year he hasn’t have Tomatoes for Christmas in a long while Thankfully we have access to some tomatoes from northern NSW, which are big and tasty, but just not quite as sweet as Noosa Reds.
Broccoli seems to be more steadily available and priced a little friendlier thankfully, although there still seems to be less available overall compared to previous seasons. A few surprises last month were the noticeable absence of Corn, Yellow Beetroot and Coloured Carrots – all which make great Christmas dinners :) Perhaps the late start to the season down south and heat locally means these will come into availability soon.
Fruit
How good are Organic Mangoes! It’s been a massive season, one we have not seen the likes of for many years. Interestingly though, the bumper season only applies to growers north, our local season isn’t so great. Usually we can source good quality spray free mangoes locally, but this year the fruit just isn’t on the trees (again!). So whilst we are in a bit of a glut with Mangoes, it will end soon, be sure to stock up for your freezer stash while you can.
Who else missed Organic Cherries in December. They appeared briefly and were priced astronomically higher than previous years, a reflection of the volume available and demand indeed. There really isn’t many organic Cherry growers, and when they get hit with unseasonal weather, it can wipe out their entire season in a region. The good news however it seems that South Australia’s Cherries are starting to come through so be sure to catch up on your Cherry consumption :)
Limited Stonefruit saw its way to us for the Christmas table, here’s hoping a January run of Plums, Apricots, Nectarines and Peaches will help us end the summer holidays with a sweet taste! Overall, we do predict less availability however so it may be priced accordingly.
Another surprise is local Lychees and the lack thereof. Here’s hoping they come through soon! Apples have been beautiful these last few weeks as we have shifted supply due to seasonality. Finally, let’s all keep our fingers crossed for a supply of Grapes to come through especially in time to start school for fruit break snacks!
Lastly, Watermelon – YUM! Whilst ours is almost ready we have been enjoying all sorts of varieties (seeded and seedless) – such a staple for the summer days!
Happy January all, may your days be filled with nourishing food from your local organic farmer 💚
