It’s our pleasure to tend this plot of land and welcome you to enjoy the harvest. As the 2022 season begins we are reminded how unpredictable the weather can be. In a single week, we experienced nearly freezing temperatures, multiple 85+ degree days and several inches of rain. In these weekly updates we’ll do our best to communicate about how the crops are doing and if anything particularly good or challenging is happening. Late May is a busy time for planting. We direct seed when the weather is clear and we transplant when it’s cloudy or rainy, which reduces the transplant shock for the young plants. Pictured above are flats of scallions, cilantro and head lettuce on their way to the fields to be planted.
May has started slowly, but there’s tasty herbs and greens available. As soon as new crops become available, we’ll add them to the whiteboard in the wash stand area and include them in the list at the end of these weekly emails.
As you enter the farm, Front Range field is on your right. Currently there is arugula, spinach and radishes available in that field.
You are invited to a Garden Morning and Potluck Saturday the 28th! This summer there will be Garden Mornings on the last Saturday of every month. From 10am-noon there will be several field activities happening, available for all ages and abilities, at noon we’ll enjoy a potluck lunch. These events are relaxed yet productive. Attendance is optional, many find them to be a new, fun way to better know the farm and their fellow shareholders. Pre-2020 we held dozens of Garden Mornings, and attendance ranged from 8 people to over 30! We supply the tools, all you need is a water bottle, hat, clothing appropriate for the weather and some food to share. If this Saturday isn’t good but you’d like to get involved, we are also planting this Wednesday, 5/25 and folks are welcome to come over anytime 9am-1pm.
The freezer is stocked and ready for self-serve pickup. 8 O’clock Ranch of De Kalb manages the freezer, re-stocking it each week with beef, pork, chicken, and sausages. Payment methods accepted include exact cash, check to 8 O’clock Ranch, Venmo, or Paypal.
Tips for Success
- The health of the entire group is important to us. It’s required to wash or sanitize your hands at the start of every farm visit and refrain from going into the wash stand area if you are sick.
- Remember to find your name on the sign-in sheet and write the date of each visit. While we don’t need to know which items you are harvesting, it’s important to our planning to have an accurate sense of the total volume of farm visits.
- We have lots of harvest tools and supplies here, but bring bags or containers to bring home your produce.
- Spotlight on Sorrel: This plant springs forth early each year, making it’s lemony tangy leaves available for dishes as early as April. We often cut them into slivers to add sparingly to salads. Shareholder Jess mentioned yesterday she had good success with a sorrel pesto. I’ve also eaten them in rhubarb crisps and added just before serving with a spring soup. Apparently folks in the United Kingdom are fond seasoning cream sauces with this herb. My next experiment will be a garlicky sorrel sauce with a base of yogurt, as a riff on Raita (with yogurt and dill).
Salad season! Just about anything can go into a hearty salad. The last of the carrots from the 2021 season were shredded and added to this year’s spinach, chives, sorrel and pea shoots. A dose of protein from pecans, feta and hard boiled eggs added texture.
Crops Available
This list and availability are subject to change, check the share whiteboard at the start of every visit. If you are unsure about how to harvest: ask us! In person, via text or email.
Cell phone numbers, Flip: 315-854-5399 and Bob 315-854-5395.
- Arugula
- Green garlic (immature garlic, entire plant is edible)
- Radish
- Rhubarb
- Spinach
Culinary and Medicinal Herbs
- Chives
- Lemon Balm
- Lovage
- Mint
- Oregano
- Sorrel
- Tarragon
- Winter Savory
The lunar eclipse last Sunday was incredible to see. We’re lucky to have had a clear night to enjoy the drastic show, as the full moon turned deep red, the sky went dark and then fabulously light again.