UPDATE: Yes, the heads of lettuce are small. We were able to buy the lettuce and spinach from Rodale's organic farm which obviously grows them in greenhouses. The shorter days and less light from the sun limits the size to which they can grow. Enjoy local lettuce, even though it's little.
Onion Update: Leroy Sauder, farmer of Sauder Organics, grew the fantastic onions that we've been sending you this fall. Unfortunately, the last 600 pounds he had in storage for us spoiled. This is the challenge of providing local vegetables during the winter but it is not unexpected. Nature has trained farmers to expect failure. What does this mean for you? You won't see onions in your farm share CSA boxes unless we can find another local grower to provide them. Leroy is going to look out for them for us. If we do find a source, we'll let you know - they'll probably be a much higher value/price as well.
The rest of the box: we've "front loaded" a lot of value for you in the first 5 - 6 deliveries. You'll notice that only 8 veggies were offered this week and only four of them have any extra available. Each week the variety and amount will get tighter and you'll see many of the same veggies repeated in the last four weeks of delivery. That's why we only offer the Winter CSA to 100 hard core members who understand the challenge and are ready to be creative with repeat veggies. Let me know if you need more ideas.
Now about Winter Storm Gail. About twelve inches of beautiful snow fell, turning the farm into a wonderland for the kids and a challenge for the animals. We prepared ahead of time by moving animals to shelters and moving hay and feed closer to the animals.
Because our road doesn't get plowed right away we couldn't use our vehicles to transport the daily milk from the milking barn to the milk tank next to the cheese room. At least the route is down hill and sleds could be used. It just took a few extra people to keep all the cans balanced on their way down the hill.
Remember that all our milk is made into amazing artisan cheese by Vince and Steve. Haven Farmstead has a full line up of cheese for the holidays, gifts or a treat for yourself. Shop here and arrange delivery directly with Steve. (To have your Haven Farmstead cheese order included in your farm share csa delivery you must order by Monday 5 pm. Orders received later need separate arrangements with Steve.)
Now that everything is plowed, the milking routine is mostly back to normal. We have paths shoveled to every area of the farm that we need to use and the vehicles have four wheel drive.
We hope that you stayed warm and plan to enjoy the beauty of a rare PA White Christmas!
We'll keep farming for you!
Reuben and Tessa
Willow Haven Farm
