Crumb Top Peach Pie

This week we put one last twist on the peach pie before switching flavors. This week we take our traditional peach pie and top it with a sweet and crunchy crumb topping, with hints of spice and the toffee notes of brown sugar. 

Bulk Peaches

Want to put up some peaches for the fall? Regardless of whether you are thinking ahead and want to make peach preserves for holiday gifts or just want to fill your pantry, peach season is coming to an end. This week we have half bushels of cling free peaches available.  

Other Notables this week:  Bulk Roma Tomatoes for canning

This week we are keeping it simple - discounts on items for your grill.  

Hot Dogs - Reg $8.5 Sale $7

Ground Beef Burger Patties - Reg $9. Sale $8

Steak Burgers Reg $13.75. Sale $12

Cheddar Jalapeno Brat Burgers - Reg $9. Sale $7

Italian Links Reg $9.25. Sale $8.25

Green Onion Brats Reg $9.25  Sale $8.50

Hot Dog and Burger Combo - 1 pack each - $14

Brats 3 Ways - Brat Burger, Italian Links, Green Onion Brats - Reg $27.50. Sale $23

Chicken Breast - Reg $10.50  Sale $9

Chicken Thighs - Reg $7.50.  Sale $6.50

Chips and Salsa Sale - 1 bag corn tortilla chips, 1 pint mild salsa - $8  

It's a harmless worm or douse it in chemicals

This week is the last of this year's sweet corn harvest. I'm actually surprised we haven't come across this more yet.

Corn is prone, particularly late season, to corn earworm. It's a caterpillar that starts at the tip of the corn and works its way down into the ear.

Often times in grocery stores you will find corn on a styrofoam tray wrapped in plastic. It has no husk and the ear is "squared up" with no tip. The reason why? 1) It's convenient for the customer. 2) It hides how dried out and old the corn husk is. 3) They cut off the wormy tip.

As an organic grower, we have few options for controlling the earworm. The best option is a product called Dipel, which is contains beneficial bacteria derived from soil and flowers. The bacteria (bacillus thuringiensis, aka bt) is effective against the larvae and prevents the worms from growing and becoming a pest. However, pesticides are not a guarantee – applying at the perfect time is everything, and hoping the rain doesn’t wash it away.

As a result, you may have a corn earworm. We have tried checking for it, but we can not open every tip of every corn. In general, the damage is limited to the tip and is harmless. Please just cut off the tip of the corn and say good bye to the earworm. Think of it as a sign that your corn is clean and healthy without harmful chemicals!

(photo right: dent corn stored in a corn crib to be ground as "ear corn" for livestock, including dairy cows, hogs, and chickens

Sweet Corn, Dent Corn, and Flint Corn

Most corn you see grown around Ohio is not intended for direct human consumption. It is field corn, a form of "dent corn," that is harvested when the ear is dried down and falls over. It's kind of cool how nature protects the cob. When it is mature, the cob falls forward and rain runs off of the ear allowing it to be dried down. When the kernel dries down, often to about 15% to 20% moisture, the kernels display a "dent."

Dent corn can be processed for human consumption, including cornmeal, cereals, popcorn, etc.

However, most dent corn is grown either for processing into animal feed or ethanol production. The byproducts of corn are then used in industry for countless uses from making plastics to carpet dies, among literally countless uses.  

Flint corn is more commonly referred to as Indian corn and is used as decorations in the fall.

Sweet corn is a species of corn where the cob can be harvested "fresh" and the sugars are still present (not converted to starch). Sweet corn plants are generally much smaller and harvest is done by hand. A very small percentage of roadside corn is sweet corn.