September at Odla Farm

After a summer of wondering if anything would actually grow, the garden finally gave us an answer. Even if the answer is a ridiculous carrot.

The baskets come in heavy with whatever is ready. Some things have done great, and we feel successful and fulfilled while ohers reminded us that farming can be unpredictable.

The kitchen has become a staging ground for preservation experiments. We tend to become overrun with abundance. Every square inch of surface space is taken up for a week until the next abundance becomes ready and we have to make room. Cabbage is shredded, carrots are grated, and enormous bowls of veggies begin their transformation into (insert cruciferous vegetable here)kraut that will last beyond the growing season. We have learned that brats are best with interesting krauts.

After all these years, September still feels like a strange combination of urgency and gratitude. We're ready for things to slow down, but not quite ready to see the garden go.

There's always more to do.