June 28th, 2023
What’s in your share?
Spring Cabbage*
Beets*
Sugar Snap Peas
Parsley*
Cucumber*
Garlic Scapes
Salad Mix
Our household on the night we signed the closing documents. Left to right (top): Chicken, Sara, Ali, Orlee, Fanny, (bottom): Sam, Levon, Case
Before I go into detail about this week’s crops, we wanted to share some pretty huge news with you all. After renting for 5+ years, we finally bought our land! You all have helped us accomplish this dream by supporting our farm. Be it help on the farm, help with construction projects, financial advice, financial assistance, legal advice, someone to chill with at the end of the day, the list goes on; we’ve had a ton of support from people we’ve known for a lifetime and people who have become new friends over the years. We will talk more about our living situation in another newsletter, as we live in a housing cooperative that is bigger than just Village Farmstead, but we wanted to keep you up to date as we celebrate this milestone!
Workshare, Matt, cleaning up after cabbage harvest
*Spring Cabbage - is so tender and delicate, great for eating raw! This variety, “Fara0”, has been our go-to spring cabbage variety because it matures before the pests emerge, reducing the need to cover it at all times. This cabbage is tender and sweet; perfect for slaws. We usually cut our cabbage into manageable wedges, using a quarter at a time as needed. Keeping the core intact will make prep easier! (Martha will show you how)
STORAGE: You don’t have to keep your cabbage in a bag if it’s whole (just peel any outer layers off that get wilty), but definitely keep it in a bag if you’ve cut into it and want to store the rest for later. The delicate leaves grow into a head that is looser than a storage cabbage, making its ideal storage time about a month before it starts to lose nutritional value.
Workshare, Amelia, harvesting beets!
*Beets - are an awesome way to add some vibrant color to meals. People often think beets taste like dirt, but we’ve found that the “dirty” taste comes from the skin. Use a paring knife or a vegetable peeler to peel them. Roasting beets is the surest way to reduce the “dirty” taste and enhance the sweetness. This is a great tutorial for roasting beets. If you don’t want to mess around with foil and have a dutch oven, I always use this method and it works just the same with minimal clean up. If you’re still unsure about their flavor, try shredding them and adding them to a slaw. The greens can be used in salads, stir fries, or can be wilted on top of any dish.
STORAGE: Remove greens. The root is the energy source of the whole plant, and even though we like to include the greens attached, the greens draw nutrients from the roots as they store. Keep roots in a closed container or plastic bag in the fridge. Roots like a humid environment and will keep for 4-6 months if stored correctly.
*Parsley - is one of our favorite herbs. We try not to do too many herbs in too big of bunches because we know it can be hard to use them all. But it’s pasta salad and slaw and salad dressing season and parsley is just the best so here’s a little taste.
Cheesin’ with the cukes. Harvested one of these everyday since Sunday.
*Cucumbers!!!!! - If you’ve been with us for a few years, you know that cucumbers have never been our specialty. This is because there’s this cute little beetle, called the “cucumber beetle”, which rapidly infests any crop in the cucurbit family (winter and summer squash, watermelon, and cucumbers). The larvae feed on the stem of the plant near the ground and can kill the plant that way. What’s worse, is that they spread a disease called “bacterial wilt”, which causes a completely healthy and vibrant plant to wilt to its death overnight. Cucumbers are particularly susceptible to this disease, and we’ve been struggling with this the entire time we’ve farmed here. Our cucumber crops never last long, if they even make it past seedling stage.
This year, we tried a new method - that of exclusion. We lined an entire high tunnel with insect netting, hoping that the plants could get established long enough to get a harvest before the inevitable beetle infestation. This method is not without controversy; excluding pests means also excluding beneficials, but we were willing to take a chance because we’d like you all to enjoy some cucumbers in this CSA you’ve so bravely dived into.
As our cucumber saga continues, we have our first harvest! I have been in full helicopter parent mode; tending to their every need, fussing about blemishes and discolorations, making sure there are no cracks for beetles to sneak in, and making sure to prune them with the gentlest touch. The most hilarious thing about this season is that I just saw the first cucumber beetle this Monday, which is way late compared to other seasons. Perhaps the weather and other factors are on our side - but at the moment - we have cucumbers and the plants are loaded, so enjoy them while they last and let’s hope for a fruitful season.
STORAGE: Because these are a special greenhouse variety, they have thin skins and small seed cavities. This means they lose their moisture quickly, so keep them in a bag. Most grocers and bigger farms will shrink wrap them, but that seems a little much for us. Additionally, we’ve noticed that our walk-in cooler (43 degrees F) is too cold for the cucumbers. Cucumbers like to be stored between 50 and 60 degrees, which is a pretty non-existent temperature state for most of us during this time of year. That said, we’ve noticed better results outside the fridge than inside. You’re only getting one cucumber this week, so storage won’t likely be an issue, but we’re hoping to keep them coming so remember this info!
RECIPEs to try
Roasted Beet Salad with Goat Cheese
Pasta Salad with Peas and Parmesan (no need to blanch peas - eat them raw but chop them into thirds)
Simple Healthy Coleslaw Recipe