CSA Week 17 Newsletter

Welcome to Week 17! 

Well, finally the dreaded frost has arrived on farm.  Over the weekend we had our first frost of the season.  We were able to cover our green beans and a late season planting of peas.  However, we lost our outside basil and our small late season summer squash planting.  But, this first cold snap was not enough to rid us of the bug invasion!  The cooler temperatures are great for our greens.  You will notice the leafy greens taking on a sweeter flavor as the temperatures cool into fall.

Speaking of greens.  We are in a bit of a transition for lettuce right now.  Salad mix and head lettuce should make their way back onto our choice in larger numbers soon.  Our latest planting of salad greens is sizing up nicely in the field and we are trying to patiently wait for it to grow a bit before we start harvesting.  We have several succession plantings of arugula which look really good.  The arugula we are harvesting is young and tender - just beautiful!  Kale and chard are continuing to grow and be harvested.  We are also harvesting turnip greens right now.  Turnip greens have a flavor profile a bit like mustard greens and they are very high in calcium.

Speaking of greens, again.  Did you know that radish greens are edible?  They are a bit hairy, but cooking them tames the hairs.  Try them in stir frys, soups or add them raw to your smoothies.  We are harvesting some nice radishes right now, so if you get radishes in your box, don't toss those greens!

The sweet potatoes in boxes last week were our own.  This is a large milestone for Dancing Hen Farm.  After 7 years of production, this is our first successful crop of sweet potatoes.  Those of you who have been with us over the years, know that we generally buy in certified organic sweet potatoes from our friends at Landisdale Farm in Lebanon county.  We will again be purchasing sweets from these great folks, but for now we are enjoying a small harvest of our own.  And speaking of edible greens, did you know that sweet potato greens are edible?  Farmer Don read this after he had composted all the greens.  So, maybe next year we will try sweet potato greens as an item.

We are receiving a lot of calls and emails concerning our pastured pork.  Farmer Don is still working out our costs, but we should have pricing details to you soon.  In addition to freezer meat this year, we will also be selling individual cuts of pork.  Again, stay tuned for more details, including price per pound on the freezer meat. 

Did anyone happen to see the lunar eclipse this morning?  Rosie and I went out a bit before 6 and although the stars were shining brightly to the east, to the west clouds obscured the moon.  But about a half hour later, the clouds cleared for a bit and there the moon was obscured this time by the earth's shadow!  If you are interested, here is a link I found showing when eclipses will occur and where they will be visible.  http://www.timeanddate.com/eclipse/list.html

Another gentle reminder concerning share boxes.  Please treat your share boxes gently and return them to us for reuse.  You can return your box to your pick up site, left on your porch if you get home delivery, returned to the farm or handed to us at a farmer's market we attend.  We also reuse the berry boxes we use for packing and egg cartons.  Thank you for helping the farm be more sustainable!

The 2014 season is quickly winding down.  This Saturday is our last market at the Back Mountain Library.  That means our Winter Buying club will be starting up next Saturday.  This buying club runs independent of our CSA.  All buying club ordering is done online, so if you want to participate, you will need to register on our website and "purchase" a free winter buying club membership.  Watch your email for more details concerning this buying club.

Speaking of markets, rumor has it we will have some helpers at market this Saturday.  Our nephew Phil will be helping me at Forks Farm this week.   Phil and his family just relocated to the area and are excited to be getting settled into the community.  Lydia (and possibly Noah) will be at Back Mountain helping Farmer Don.  The weather looks beautiful, so come on out and catch the last couple markets of the season!  As always, if you are at market, please stop by our table and say hello.

The sun is up now, time to get the day's chores going.  Thanks to each of you for your continued support of our farm and local agriculture.  We could not do what we do without you!  And in Farmer Don's words: "be safe, be well, and enjoy those veggies".