This Week
We have a great farm share for you this week! There are a few salad greens that we are beginning harvesting this week, so we will have a salad mix with a mix of Asian greens and shoots (no lettuce), plus fresh arugula. This will absolutely be the last week for Thompson's peaches. I picked up an extra box, so there are plenty of extras of you want to add some to your share. A huge shout goes out to Mr. Louis for all of the incredible peaches he provided for the farm shares. Every time I see him, he always says he is ready to retire in a few years. I know that I'm going to have to plant some peach trees, because there aren't many folks who are as good at growing tasty peaches as Mr. Louis. Since May, we have offered his peaches nearly every week, and we are really grateful for them! Like all things, peach season has finally come to an end.
Next Week
We should have the first harvest of radishes, plus even more salad! We have found a new farm to supply eggs for our farm shares! Free range eggs will now come from 3 Board Farm in Downsville, LA. They are a family farm raising some cows, meat chickens, and pigs, plus a bunch of happy laying hens with access to lots of grass and forage areas. These are eggs of the highest quality and remind me so much of our ranching days when we started our farm in 2017. I hope you try the eggs and notice the difference in taste and color of the yolks compared to grocery store options.
Chef Katy Aker's Farm Share Recipes
Spicy Mayhaw Glazed Shrimp
Farm Update
We survived the rains this past week. All of our beds are "raised" above the ground 3-6 inches from applications of deep compost. Most of our field blocks have been irrigated or cover cropped. Since the heavy rains fell on soil that was not arid, we absorbed much of it. Our beds slope downhill so the walkways will drain excess water, so there was not a single wash out. The rain was a good opportunity to start seeds for a large second succession of fall crops, clean out some covered tunnels, and get some much-needed work done on the computer.
Last week, we opened our online jam store on currentfarms.com! We can now ship the flavors of north Louisiana fruit all over the United States! We had a great first week of orders, so help us keep the momentum by sharing our website with your out of state friends and family! I've been dreaming about shipping our jam for nearly two years, and the rain last week was the perfect excuse to get it done.
I was also on the computer a lot of last week completing the paperwork (so many hours on hold with the IRS too) so Emi and I can close on our new house! This Saturday, we are moving from the Garden District in Monroe to the small community, Antioch, in Union Parish. It's only a twenty-minute, one way commute to the farm, instead of the fifty minutes I now drive six days a week. I grew up in the country, so I loved living sociably in Monroe. However, Emi and I decided that we wanted more privacy, a shorter commute, and a place we felt like we could start a family. I thought that selling our house would be stressful, but quickly learned that finding the right one, and going through the closing process as the owner of a new, small business, would be the truly stressful part. However, it was a chance to dig into all of our finances since we started farming in 2020 and I really saw how our farm has grown.
Starting off, we could only afford $400 in weekly payroll that was split between us. Some weeks, if the market was bad, no one got paid. Every dollar was either invested back into the farm or covered operational costs. Without Emi's good job at Louisiana Tech, I really would have been in a very bad situation. She helped me live my dreams, and sacrificed a lot, all because of her faith in the importance of local food and belief that our work is important. We steadily increased our wages over the next two years as we built a larger customer base. Presently, we pay ourselves a living wage every week, even between farm share seasons. Steadily enough so that the banks approved Kaden's home loan, as well as mine and Emi's. It was a moment that I felt really proud of what we have accomplished since we started farming. It's also a really humbling experience to know that success has all been thanks to you, our farm share members, and every other customer who has supported our farm. It really means a lot that we have such a solid community of people who care about local food- so much so that Kaden and I can farm for a living. Even better, so many of you aren't just supporting Current Farms season to season, you are helping us grow by bringing in new farm share members. Lots of new members have been brought aboard via your recommendations, and that is so meaningful. Keep it up!
The farm family and friends at the inaugural fish fry at Tuna's new abode.
Community
Next to our family and friends, former educators of mine are a big demographic of our farm shares. These folks, who taught me throughout different periods of my life, are a big reason why I am farming today! I know a lot of our farm shares members are educators, so I just wanted to give all of you a shout-out and say thanks for what you do! I know you are busy, and possibly stressed out, with school starting, so I hope that you can relax by making some time for yourself in the kitchen. Cooking a meaningful and healthy meal is great therapy, and we are glad to provide you with a few of the ingredients.
