CSA Week 4

This Week’s Harvest

Red or Golden Beets

Carrots

Hakurei Salad Turnips

Broccoli

Lacinato Kale

Sugar Snap Peas

Cauliflower

Summer Squash and/or Zucchini

Romaine Lettuce

Red Leaf Lettuce

 

Farm News

Last week we had our 7th annual inspection for our organic certification with a third party inspector coming out to the farm to go over our input records, seed orders, traceability, etc. and tour the farm and fields.  We were always going to run a organic farm and getting certified or not was never in question. We interned on 2 certified organic farms and think of the farmers who ran them as our mentors and we have a huge amount of respect for the work that the farmers who started organic certification have done to establish concrete standards for ecologically sound vegetable production.

Our 3 hour long inspection was a great visit with a long time organic inspector and champion of the movement who really seemed to enjoy seeing our operation for the first time.  It reaffirmed our farming practices and our continued desire to remain a certified organic farm. We sincerely feel that we are stewards of the land and what we are doing is good for our health and, perhaps even more so, the health of the planet– and each year we learn and get better at it!

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Mowing down the cover crop. All this green matter will breakdown back into the soil and is an excellent source for building organic matter
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Introducing 18,000 lady bugs to the farm! They eat aphids, leaf hoppers and other soft bodied pests.
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Applying compost is a common organic practice.
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Sprinkling lacewing eggs on the potato plants at night–when it is cool and moist. They will keep the leaf hoppers, who are vectors for disease, in check.

 

Recipes

Roasted Beets, carrots and turnips

Green Diva Casserole 

Broccoli and Kale with Sautéed Garlic Butter