Here is Dave Trout helping with the cleaning of the totes we will be using for this year's deliveries!
Welcome to the new season!
Harvie review: For new members, here's how the weekly deliveries are organized. On Monday (or occasionally Sunday or Tuesday) you will receive an e-mail with a list of contents of your upcoming box. That list will be generated by the software that uses as its intake both your ratings of the assorted vegetables which will be available that week, along with the quantities of vegetables that we enter that will be harvestable from the field and greenhouses. At that point, you will have from 24-48 hours to make any changes to that list that you might want to make, either swapping any of the items on the list with other available items, or simply purchasing any items listed in addition to what you will be receiving in your tote. If you do not make any changes, then we will complete your order using the original list. And then your tote will be delivered to your pick-up time at the agreed upon time. If you want to make any changes to your pick-up site location, or skip a week, etc., then you can make that switch at your Harvie account. If you have any questions how to access your account, send us an e-mail, and we will explain that to you.
Pick-up reminders: We all appreciate our pick-up site hosts -- please come according to the times listed, and leave the plastic tote at the site for us to pick up and re-use the following week. If an emergency arises, and you are unable to pick up your tote during the pick-up times, if you let your pick-up site host know that ahead of time, they might be willing to keep your tote available for somewhat longer, but without prior warning that you will not be coming, they are probably unlikely to do so. (You should contact your pick-up site host directly, and that information is also available at your Harvie account.) If there are specific instructions about your particular site, you will receive an additional e-mail as well with those guidelines.
Spring planting: Lots of crops planted! And growing nicely! As usual, the first boxes are on the lighter side, but that will change as the season gets into full swing!
This week's veggies: Among the veggies that are starting out the season are some greens, (including chard, salad mix, pea shoots, and spinach), some herbs (basil, dill, and cilantro), some fruiting crops (zucchini and cucumbers from the greenhouse), some assorted other crops (kohlrabi and scallions), and syrup (from the Drewry's just down the road from us). What exactly will go into your tote depends, of course, on the size share (and the consequent value of that share) that you have chosen to pay for, along with the ratings that you have given of the produce. One new crop that we are sending out this week is garlic greens. Garlic greens is a new one for us, and so is not actually listed as a crop that we offer, (and so you didn't get the chance to rate it), but we had enough volunteer garlic (from last year's crop that we missed when harvesting) come up, it seemed worth it to still send it along, and not just plow it under to become food for our teaming microorganisms in the soil. The main part that is used as 'garlic greens' are the whitish stalk. (It would look almost like a leek; see picture). There might also be a small bulb of garlic on the bottom, as well as a small scape on the top of the plant, both of which are certainly edible and usable as well!
Coming soon in the upcoming weeks: peas, beets, garlic scapes, carrots, fennel, and head lettuce
We look forward to a great season, and as always, feel free to contact us by e-mail, or come visit the farm!
Peter & Bernadette
