After weeks and weeks of our delicious spring greens it's time for some real excitement this week. We're very excited to offer some new items like our New Girl/Early Girl tomatoes. They are a mid-size slicing tomatoes and they've ripened on the vine for maximum sweetness and full flavor. In the attached image, one of my favorite summer time veggies, are lemon cucumbers. Don't let the name fool you though, they do not taste like lemons they only look like them :) For those who aren't the biggest cucumber fans, these are a delight with very thin skin and minimal bitterness in the aftertaste. We are also offering some pickling cucumbers that are absolutely thriving in our North Field. We have some culinary herbs offered this week as well: fennel, thyme and sage. Our basil had a little set back a few weeks ago but we have plenty of Genovese Basil on the way. Yaya carrots make their debut this week as we've been growing successions in our high tunnel which I've noticed quickly, produces more uniform roots than our field with our insane amount of rocks. This was my first time growing Daikon radishes and I think they look amazing. I tasted one and in my opinion, they pack a subtle but refreshing heat that some are definitely going to love!
I wanted to take this moment to thank all of our CSA customers for hanging in there through the sea of green over the past month. I've grown a lot as a farmer in the past few months learning the nuances to the Northeast's weather patterns, our particular soil type, animal and weed pressures and I'm feeling great about the summer and into the fall, which both feels like a million years away and also, right around the corner (farmers rarely kick back and enjoy a season, but that's the job :) When you join a CSA you are investing in not only the farm, but food security at the most important level: locally! 2020 has shown us just how fragile the global food network can be and so, now more than ever perhaps, it is a critical time to put your money where you truly believe it can have the greatest impact. For me, it's always been about growing community through the necessity of growing food. It's one of the common denominators we all share. So be proud of your decision to support Cropsey Community Farm - with your support you are ensuring food security into the future!
Farmer Al
