radicchio
This radicchio has been in the ground since early April, yet for some reason it won’t head up. It’s had time, water, fertilizer, you name it. Won’t budge. Maybe because it’s an Italian heirloom, and I’m not doing something right. Maybe because it isn’t so cool outside anymore.
The thing is, I don’t even like radicchio. I do bitter, but I have my limits.
But it’s beautiful, isn’t it? I can’t bring myself to rip it out. It’s a great weakness of mine, as a farmer, an inability to just cut my losses and move on.
Will somebody come and take it away? Lie to me, say you’ll eat it, throw it in the compost. Just smile and take it away.
My name is Emily, and these are my stories, about being a young farmer, growing food and flowers and thinking of a someday farm to call my own.
1 comment
Hey Emily! Your stuff looks beautiful. Just give the radiccio more time. It needs a long time and specific temps sometimes, to head up. It definitely depends on what variety you planted, so you do have to pick carefully - a quick heading variety. Sometimes it starts to head up just as the hot temps come (i.e. July), then it rots inside itself in the field. Fun! Maybe you can pull it now and call it chicory, no one will know it was supposed to be a head. Not that there’s a huge chicory-loving crowd out there…
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