Wow, and just like that, we've entered the second half of the CSA season. It's week #10 and time to customize your box for pick up next week. We're starting to get those summertime staples (like cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers), but they're not quite in abundance yet, so you may see some in your box but we don't yet have enough that they will be available for everyone. We do have several items from other producers that we'd like to highlight:
- Edible Flowers and Summer Bouquets from Dragon's Breath Farm. Maybe you're not too sure about edible flowers? Well, farmer Megan would like you to know that you can add a little spice and color to your life (and your salads) with a bright mix of peppery Nasturtiums and colorful Pansies. They are both edible, flavorful, and colorful all while adding something a little special to any meal. We can concur that they are beautiful and add a lot to a plain old salad!
- Delicious Bread and Bagels from The Gracious Table. We'd be remiss if we didn't fess up to the fact that Bonnie would have a meltdown if she couldn't have her standard morning-after-market breakfast of a GT bagel and cream cheese (everything is her favorite).
- Honey from McLaury Apiaries. This one is a staple that we can't go without for even a day - we add honey to our tea and coffee every morning and it starts the day off right!
- And finally, we've got farm fresh eggs from happy hens at the Miller Farm, can't beat a good egg! Well, actually you can I suppose...they are good scrambled, lol.
Our new announcement this week is that you are all now getting certified organic produce in your boxes. Will you notice a difference? No, absolutely not - it's exactly the same as it's always been, but it is a big step for us to actually BE certified organic. We're excited to answer the age old question - are you organic - with a simple YES now rather than a long explanation!
The photo above is of our freshly seeded fall carrots. The photo area is presently covered with a tarp to hold in the moisture from watering while the carrot seeds germinate - carrots take a long time (around 10 days) to germinate. We're planning to take the tarp off mere days before the carrots come up so that we can do a quick flame weeding of the whole block so that the newly sprouted carrots are able to start their lives off in relatively weed-free beds.
Let us know if you have any questions while customizing your boxes!
Cheers, Rudy & Bonnie
PS. We have two email forms of communication. #1 is our Farm Happenings (like the one you're reading now) that goes out to our CSA members - this is updates on the farm, but also CSA specific information that only goes out to our members and those on our Farm Stand list for extra boxes when the harvest is plentiful. #2 is our Newsletter list that goes out to anyone that has an interest in our farm - this is not CSA specific and generally gives updates on the farm and specifics about what we'll be bringing to market (it always starts out 'Hoot Owl Farm Friends...'). If you find yourself in need of more Hoot Owl emails and are not already on our Newsletter list, you can sign up on our webpage here!
