With several inches of snow covering our fields as of noon on Monday, and an uncertain forecast at hand, Mark and I have decided to CLOSE the Farmstand this week and CANCEL CSA pickup for February 12th and 13th, 2019.
There is an assumed level of risk involved in being part of a CSA, particularly a Winter CSA. However, Mark and I are very interested in minimizing that risk where we can, so in order to make up for the missed week of Winter Share pickup, we will defer and extend the Winter Share by one week into March, borrowing a week from Spring Share. It means we’ll have a week of lost revenue on the farm, but our Winter Share members will get their full value. So to recap, the revised CSA Calendar for the remainder of 2019 is as follows. As promised, I’ve adjusted and opened up registration for Spring & Summer online. Happy registering!
Winter Share - runs through March 6th
Spring Share - March 12- May 29th
Summer Share - June 4 - September 28th
Fall Share - October 1 - December 18th
Registration for Fall Share, and the Three-Season (Spring-Summer-Fall) Share will be up by the end of the day. I’ve got some desk time ahead of me. As I write, the fields and our driveway are still enrobed in several inches of snow, and the flakes continue to fall. We have witnessed some gorgeous scenes in the fields, but being a worrier as I am, I’m having a hard time with all of the fluctuations in forecasts and electricity. (On a scale of Holiday Inn to The Shining, I’m at about Groundhog Day). I’m extra grateful for Mark, Luis, Jade & Joshan (and Hazel too) who have spent all hours of the extended weekend looking after frost-prone pipes, puzzled hens and snow-laden greenhouses filled with tiny little plants that are hanging on for future harvesting and planting. The overwintering brassicas in the field look like they’re wearing snow helmets—we’ll check them out after things thaw.
Thank you for your understanding. I hope that this comes at somewhat of a relief to a handful of you out there. I know I’ll sleep better knowing that you’re not putting yourselves in harms way in the name of root vegetables!
Many Thanks,
Katie
Read moreWILD HARE WEEKLY WINTER #5/8
Today is a serious snow day at the farm. Okay, there have been snowball fights too, so not too serious. But for the past several hours, the temps have been in the twenties and flurries continue to fall in varying sizes. The guys have been shaking snow off of the greenhouses with some regularity, because if the snow gets too heavy, it could bend or break them. The snow that blankets the fields right now doesn’t appear to be going anywhere—it is breathtakingly gorgeous and a whole lot of fun to play in, but it presents some challenges for our day-to-day ops around here. Here’s what you need to know/what we’re keeping in mind at the start of week five
Read moreWILD HARE WEEKLY WINTER #4/8
Mondays aren’t always easy, but I’m thankful that this one is a little extra gorgeous. Our family just flew home from Tucson, AZ where we had the fortune of soaking up a bit of sun, warm visits with longtime friends, and yes, enjoying some amazing regional food, succulent flora and wildly fun fauna. As I unpack our bags and watch giant boxes of seeds arrive at our door today, I’m teasing out the ways in which our short time away has inspired and energized us. And this is a darn good thing, because as I mentioned, this is Monday in late January. The roots won’t dig themselves, and the payroll taxes aren’t going to file themselves either!
Mark is out digging carrots and assessing some holdout Celery Root in the field. Celery Root, aka Celeriac, is one of those vegetables that you pretty much have to know a farmer or be a farmer to get your hands on in the United States. In Europe, it is a standby; however, here it is somewhat of an oddity if not a delicacy. In fact, some of you newcomers to the Winter CSA may be enjoying it for the first time ever this week. I can still remember bringing my first Celery Root home from work more than ten years ago. I wish you could have seen the look on Mark’s face when I handed him something that looked like a pineapple gone wrong and told him it was celery’s weird cousin. After we got over the appearance, we cooked it up and fell hard for Celeriac. And to this day, it has a special place in our fields, on our tables and in our hearts. Double Celery Soup is the fan favorite as far as Celeriac recipes go, but there are plenty of other ways to enjoy Celery Root. I sneak it into all kinds of dishes throughout the cold months--chopped into soups, mashed with or without potatoes, grated into slaws, shaved into salads--even breakfast hash or "zoodles" for stroganoff. What a treat to enjoy the clean and crisp aroma from a root!
Best,
Katie
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