September is the Time of Harvesting and Preserving

By Ron Eichner

September is what I call the third harvest month, even though we lose about 2½ minutes of precious daylight each day. Farmers always hope and pray for a frost-free September so that we can get into October with farm-fresh crops.

September 7 is Labor Day, which honors the contributions and achievements of American workers. The labor movement created it in the late 19^th century. It became a federal holiday in 1894.

September 22 marks the arrival of autumn, a time of year when local farms harvest what we farmers call our late-season crops. Succession planting of most vegetables in our farm fields makes September a true month of preserving the harvest either by canning or freezing.

September 26 is the Harvest Moon. The moon rises earlier in the evening for several consecutive nights, providing bright moonlight right after sunset as long as the night is clear. This phenomenon historically helps farmers to gather crops late into the evening. It’s hard to pick green beans at night, but yellow beans stand out against the green plants and are a snap to pick.

For decades and generations, sweet corn sold through the end of the season, which can run into October. However, over the past ten years or so, sweet corn sales have dropped by over 60% because of a whole host of modern thinking. Sweet corn is one of the easiest vegetables to prepare for a meal. Sweet corn has great nutritional value. A medium ear or one-cup serving provides high fiber, plant-based protein, essential minerals, and vitamins like C and B, plus antioxidants that support eye health. Minerals are essential for your muscles and heart, and they help the body use the vitamins in foods or supplements.

If your yard needs a little color after a long, hot summer, hardy fall mums are an excellent choice. Our cousin, Matt King, raises the mums we sell; they are huge, and we sell them at an affordable price for their large size. Look for them, because they’re available in September.

The annual Harvest Home Dinner on September 13 at Saint Aidan Parish, Saint Alphonsus Church, on Church Road in Wexford celebrates its 137^th year. This is a hardy dinner that you should attend, and take-out is available as well.

We have a fantastic greeting card selection called Cori’s Card Corner, featuring cards personally selected to reflect themes like farming, pets, birthdays, and more. Cori is our newest farm family member and helps contribute to the success of our family farm. Michelle’s buckeyes are hard to resist, along with other homemade candy. Homemade cookies are available in dozen packs.

Our farm market also offers our high-energy eggs, bacon, six types of homemade pork sausage, kielbasa, lean ground beef and lamb by the pound, and roasting chicken, all ready for your grills.

We are nestled in a valley, and our farm market and greenhouses are open seven days a week. Bring your kids to see the chickens, turkeys, Dexter cows, and kunekune pigs. You are welcome to make our family farm a destination to visit Eichner’s Whole Farm and Greenhouses at 285 Richard Road in Wexford and discover “the rest of the story.”