Hello CSA and Friends of Shalom Orchard,

I can’t believe I am writing 8/31!!! This summer has flown by. We hope all of you came through Irene with no mishap. I haven’t checked the apple trees yet this morning, which were my biggest worry. We wish everyone a happy Labor Day weekend! We are going to visit the grandkids.

We welcome Liz Peters to our crew. She is our new apprentice and comes from California. We sadly say goodbye to Heather Main, who has been WWOOFing with us as she is returning to college in Toronto. She has been a great help and we will miss her!

The sheep got out last week and ate all the broccoli and half of the cabbage! We thought seriously about lamb dinner that day! So broccoli is off the list for this week. I am hoping they will put out some side shoots from the parts of the plants that are left.

I am adding peppers and summer squash this week. The squash is coming along slowly, but we have some available, mostly zukes, of course.

Be sure to place your orders for bulk frozen blueberries. They are $3.25/# and come in 5# bags. We are raking for frozen berries in earnest now, so we will be calling you to come pick up your orders soon.

CSA will be picking up on Wednesdays from 3:00 to 5:30 PM. We are promoting more sales from the farm this year, so for those of you who might just like to come by and pick up something that looks interesting, please come anytime. John Pierce of Harmony Mill Dairy in Waltham is willing to fill orders on his delicious products and deliver them here, so please email me if you want me to order from him any week. You don’t have to be in the CSA to order. Please reply to this email with your order.

So here goes: blueberries (if we are able to rake due to weather) 6.00/ quart summer squash 2.50/# green peppers 3.50/# cukes 2.00/# French Haricot beans 4.00/# Cherry tomatoes 3.50/pint new dug potatoes 3:00/ # swiss chard 2.50/bunch baby carrots 2.50/bunc bunching onions 2.00/bunch leeks 3.00/bunch garlic scapes 2.00/bunch (these are the lovely curved flower of the garlic plant – it is milder than bulb garlic and great to cook with) fresh garlic 8.00/# dill 2,00/bunch cilantro 2.00/bunch parsley 2.00/bunch basil 2.00/bag mint 1.00/bunch blueberry jam 5.00/jar pesto (frozen in 4 or 5 oz containers) 1.00/oz

Chicken: whole and leg quarters $4.00/# breast quarters 5.00/#

Eggs 4/doz

Harmony Mill Dairy: whole milk 2.50/ half gallon skim milk 2.50/ half gallon bottle deposit 2.75 cream 2.00/ half pint ricotta 4.00/half #, 2.25/half # cheddar (mild or sharp) 8.50/# ricotta-salada 2.50/half #, 5.00/# marscapone (unsweetened) 6.50/#, 3.50/half # smoked ricotta-salada 5.50/#, 2.75/half #

We look forward to hearing from you soon, Charlotte and Jim