Farm Update
This is how we manage to clean and sort hundreds of pounds of potatoes each week for the CSA, as well as the stores, restaurants, and other programs we contribute to. This is our very old but very useful potato washer, which washes and brushes the dirt off of the potatoes, and then sends them to the rotating table. Then we sort the potatoes by size and take out any that aren't great quality, and put them in the black crates. After that, we pack them into little plastic bags and bring them to you!
Hi everyone! This part of the season always feels very transitional, and this year is no different. Many of our schedules are transitioning as our kids go back to school, and all of the educators out there are starting classes again as well. And out in the fields, we're seeing the shift from our summer veggies (like zucchini and cucumbers) to our fall veggies (like winter squash). The weather is getting cooler, which means that the crops that struggle in the extreme heat (I'm looking at you, spring mix!) are going to be returning with more consistency soon, as are the rest of our leafy greens. Last week we brought our signature cooking greens mix to the CSA for the first time this year, and it will be back again this week if you didn't get to try it! It's a mix of several kinds of kale (including our green curly, red curly, and lacinato kales), Swiss chard, and Brussels sprout leaves. It's really fantastic if you sauté it in olive oil or bacon as a side dish, or add it to a stir fry. We also just started harvesting the first of our winter squashes over the last few days, and we are so excited to bring some to the CSA this week! We've eaten the first delicata squash and the first acorn squash of the season, and they were both fantastic! If you've never tried a delicata squash before, you're in for a treat. Out of all of the squashes we grow, it's definitely my favorite, and its thin skin makes it easy to slice up and add to a bunch of different types of recipes without even having to take the skin off! We're definitely into tomato season, and we've got plenty of really nice tomatoes coming out of our hoophouses (unheated greenhouses) right now! The tomatoes we planted out in the area of the farm known as the new back field didn't do as well, however.
The new back field got its name in the same way many places around farms do, haphazardly and without much thought. But also in the grand tradition of farms, it would be nearly impossible to start calling it something else now. It wasn't actually part of the original farm during the early years when we rented our land from some family friends, but when we bought the land in 2018, we added six more acres onto the original 14-acre parcel. Before we added the new acreage, we had the front field (where we have all of our greenhouses, and which you've likely seen from the road if you've driven by the farm), and the back field (which is a little bit of a hike to get to, but is the most peaceful place I know). We had surrounded the farm with our 8-foot tall deer fence the year before we bought the land, but this new area is outside of the fenced in area, and we haven't gotten around to fencing it in yet. (Mostly because the process of acquiring enough untreated lumber to enclose six acres, digging post holes, and putting up a really tall fence is a huge hassle, and by the time things slow down enough in the late fall to think about taking on such a project, the weather is such that we really can't.) We started calling it "the new back field" because it's adjacent to the old back field, and the name stuck. Normally we mostly plant onions out there because they are one of the few things the deer will leave alone, but we tried planting some field tomatoes out there this year too. Well, between the deer bumping up against the tomatoes, the exposure to the damp weather, and some sort of disease that seems to have taken off as a result of said damp weather, those tomatoes didn't do too well. So we just have the beautiful healthy ones that have been growing up in the hoophouses, and that should be enough to bring you all several weeks of delicious tomatoes. It makes me grumble a little bit because if we could bring you all of the tomatoes we planted, there would be a lot more variety in the shares this week, and I always like to give you guys a whole bunch of choices. But we really do have a lot of great stuff in the shares, so I shouldn't let the perfect be the enemy of the good, and I should just make like Elsa and let it go.
And in other news, next weekend is Labor Day weekend! Our Monday drop-off in Alma on September 5th is still happening as normal, but if you have plans and can't make it, we completely understand! Just let me know if you won't be able to make it, and you can either pick up a double share the following week, or you could pick up your share at one of our other drop-offs that week (like our Mt. Pleasant drop-off on Tuesday). If you can't make it to the Alma drop-off on Monday, September 5th, just let me know by Sunday the 4th so I can adjust the harvest list and make plans to get you your share at a different time. Thanks so much, and I'll see you at the drop-off!
Potatoes, potatoes everywhere! We've had potatoes available in the shares most weeks this season, so if you're starting to get a buildup of potatoes in your fridge, here are 51 Potato Side Dishes that Might Just Steal the Show! There are so many creative, fun, and delicious potato recipes in here, you'll be sure to find a several new ideas you want to try with this old favorite!
What to Expect in the Shares this Week
If you pick up at our Alma, Mt. Pleasant, or Midland drop-off, here are the options for your shares! If you have a half share, you’ll choose one item from each choice category, and if you have a full share, you’ll choose two. And if there is something you don’t like or can’t eat, you can bring it to the trading station at the end and trade it for something you like better.
- Carrots
- Potatoes
- Cherry tomatoes
- Kale, fennel, a bag of small onions, or cooking greens mix (mix of different types of kale, chard, and other greens great for sautéing)
- Basil, microgreens, parsley, or 2 garlic bulbs
- Tomatoes, beets, or winter squash
- Green pepper or onion
If you pick up at our Lansing, Okemos, St. Johns, Midland hospital, or Alma hospital drop-off, or if you have home or workplace delivery, here are your options! We have three different prepacked shares, and you can let me know which one you want by filling out this quick form by lunchtime the day before your drop-off. If you have a half share, you can choose one of these options, and if you have a full share, you’ll choose two.
Share A:
- Carrots
- Potatoes
- Yellow cherry tomatoes
- Kale
- Basil
- Beets
- Green pepper
Share B:
- Carrots
- Potatoes
- Mixed cherry tomatoes
- Cooking greens mix
- Microgreens
- Tomatoes
- Onion
Share C:
- Carrots
- Potatoes
- Mixed cherry tomatoes
- Bag of small onions
- 2 garlic bulbs
- Acorn or delicata squash
- Green pepper
Recipes
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