Our first Farm Tour of the fall season is this Saturday, October 12th, at 10:30am! This tour will be an exciting one as it coincides with the first harvest of our fall crops. You’ll have the opportunity to see (and taste!) the new crops we’re harvesting and get a sneak peek at all of the delicious varieties that will be making their way to the Farm Stand this season. And, you’ll get the opportunity to see how our fall tomatoes are doing! Our Farm Tours are open to the public, free of charge, and suitable for the whole family. We would love to see you there! 

We’ll have a few new veggies for you at the Farm Stand this weekend! Whether you choose our grab-and-go option or come see us on Saturday morning, you’ll be able to try the first komatsuna, Amara mustard greens, and collard greens of the season. Komatsuna (above), sometimes called “Asian spinach” has a fresh and mildly sweet cabbage flavor with tender leaves and crunchy stems. It’s great for sautéing, stir-frying, and adding to soups. Amara mustard greens (below), sometimes called Ethiopian kale or Highland kale, have tender leaves with a rich, savory flavor. Try mixing them with your favorite salads green or making a simple sauté seasoned with garlic, salt, and pepper.

No planting is complete without a lovely layer of compost! Compost is an essential part of our bed preparation process throughout every season. Before planting new crops, we apply a thin layer of compost to the top of each bed (below). The biology-rich matter in compost recharges the life in the soil and gives our crops a good start. The compost we applied this week will carry us through winter, keeping the soil healthy and active.  

In Season at the Farm Stand: Komatsuna, Collard Greens, Amara Mustard Greens, Baby Butternuts, Korean Melons, Asian Eggplant, Roselle Greens, Okra, and Long Beans.

Coming Soon: Arugula, Radishes, Salad Mix, and Hakurei Turnips

Do you want a sneak peek of our newly-germinated carrots or baby cauliflower? If the answer is yes, you should join us for our next Farm Tour this Saturday, November 18th at 10:30am! In addition to an exclusive sneak peek at our upcoming fall crops, you’ll be able to sample our incredibly delicious Hakurei turnips. Feel free to bring any questions you might have about year-round farming and make sure to wear shoes you don’t mind getting a little muddy. Our Farm Tours are open to the public and free of charge. Come join us!

Collard Greens have made their way back into season! These leafy green members of the brassica family are perfect for holiday meals. We love that they’re just as delicious after a long braise as they are in a quick stir-fry. Farmer Anna loves using collards in her coleslaw and highly recommends giving it a try. You can find collard greens and many other fall veggies at the Farm Stand. 

In addition to collard greens, Napa cabbages have returned to the Farm Stand! Napa is a Chinese cabbage with an oblong shape and crinkly leaves. It has a mild, sweet flavor and can be enjoyed both raw and cooked. Farmer Anna loves using it to make a grilled Caesar salad or a batch of kimchi. The leaves are also perfect for making cabbage rolls! Make sure to pick up a head of Napa cabbage at the Farm Stand this weekend and let us know your favorite way to enjoy it.

In Season at the Farm Stand: Collard Greens, Napa Cabbage, Mustard Greens, Curly Kale, Dino Kale, Swiss Chard, Tokyo Bekana, Hakurei Turnips, Green Beans, and Dill

Coming Soon: Bok Choy, Radishes, and Lettuce Heads

More fall crops are making their way to the farm stand this week as we harvest the first collard greens and Swiss chard of the season! These leafy green crops are what we call “cut-and-come-again” since we’re able to remove just the older outer leaves rather than the entire plant each time we make a harvest. That means that we should have them in season over the next several weeks! Collard greens (pictured above) are great for braising, adding to soups, and as a wrap for sandwiches and burgers. Swiss chard (pictured below) has soft-textured leaves and crunchy stems are great for sautéeing and adding to soups and pastas.

Fall planting continued this week as we direct-seeded the section you see in the photo below. This section is planted with quicker-growing crops like arugula, radishes, and Hakurei turnips and something completely new to the farm: rutabaga! Rutabagas are root vegetables that are members of the vast Brassica family along with radishes, turnips, broccoli, and kale. They have a mildly sweet and peppery flavor similar to turnips. We’re excited to grow this new-to-us crop and can’t wait to share them with you!

Remember the Autumn Frost squashes that we planted back in August? We were able to finally harvest a small amount of these beauties! Autumn Frost (pictured below) is a specialty butternut with sweet and earthy tasting flesh. The prolonged drought followed by an excessively wet couple of weeks this summer led to a much smaller harvest than we were anticipating. But, we’re excited to be able to offer you some nonetheless! Due to their limited availability, we will only have Autumn Frost squashes at our Saturday farm stands from 9am-noon. Make sure to pop by then if you’d like to try one!

In Season at the Farm Stand: Collard Greens, Swiss Chard, Arugula, Radishes, Winter Squashes (only available at the Saturday farm stand), Cucumbers, Okra, Eggplants, Sweet Peppers, Roselle Greens, and Zinnia and Marigold Bouquets.

Upcoming Events: Harvest Market on Saturday, November 5th from 9am-noon at the farm

November 18th, 2021

We’re adding three more leafy greens to our verdant lineup this week: curly kale, Lacinato kale, and rainbow chard. And, we hope to harvest the first Napa cabbages next week! We’ve been working hard to increase the diversity of crops on the farm so it feels great to be able to harvest twelve different varieties of greens. Each leafy green variety differs in terms of taste and texture. We hope you’ll try them all so that you can expand your palate and perhaps find a new favorite! Here’s a handy guide featuring all of the varieties we’re currently harvesting:

• Kales (Lacinato, Curly, & Red Russian) -- earthy and vegetal taste; baby leaves are tender and perfect for salads; adult leaves are sturdier and perfect for sautéeing.
• Rainbow Chard -- mildly sweet and earthy taste; the soft-textured leaves and crunchy stems are great for sautéeing and adding to soups.
• Tokyo Bekana -- mild cabbage-like flavor; the buttery soft leaves can be used as a salad green or added to soups and stir-fries
• Arugula -- mild peppery flavor; the tender leaves are great for adding to salads, sandwiches, or a batch of pesto.
• Lettuces -- mild vegetal flavor; the tender leaves are great for adding to salads and sandwiches.
• Gai Lan -- earthy and sweet taste; both the leaves and stems are great for adding to stir-fries and soups. 
• Tatsoi -- mild spinach-like flavor; the tender leaves can be added to a salad mix or sautéed.
• Bok Choy -- fresh and grassy flavor; the leaves and stems can be added to stir-fries, soups, or used for a batch of kimchi.
• Collard Greens -- earthy and alkaline flavor; the leaves and stems are great for braising, adding to soups, and as a wrap for sandwiches and burgers. 
• Mustard Greens -- sharp and peppery flavor (this mellows when cooked); the leaves are great for braising, sautéeing, and adding to soups. 

It’s hard to tell who likes our flower rows more, us or the pollinators! These flowers serve a dual purpose: they provide a source of food for our local pollinators and they bring a bit of farm beauty to your home in the form of cut flower bouquets. In addition to all of the delicious veggies we’ll have at the farm stand this weekend (list below), we’ll also have the following cut flowers for you to craft your own bouquets: marigolds, zinnias, and sunflowers.

As a reminder, our farm stand takes place on the farm every Saturday from 10am-noon and every Wednesday from 4-6pm. We’re the perfect option for your holiday meal-planning and shopping and would love to see you there!

Currently In Season: Cherry Tomatoes, Slicer Tomatoes, Kale, Rainbow Chard, Tokyo Bekana, Arugula, Lettuce Mix, Tatsoi, Baby Bok Choy, Collard Greens, Mustard Greens, Gai Lan, Hakurei Turnips, White Icicle Radishes, Shishito Peppers, and Eggplant.

November 11th, 2021

‘Tis the season for all things green on the farm! We currently have 9 different leafy greens in season at the moment, including the newest on our harvesting list, gai lan (pictured below). Gai lan, also called Chinese broccoli or Chinese kale, yields thick bluish-green leaves with thick stems. If you look at the image above, you’ll see all of these leafy greens laid out. Here are the varieties from left to right: collard greens, arugula, Tokyo bekana, gai lan, kale, tatsoi, baby bok choy, mustard greens, and lettuce.

Our slicing tomato varieties are just starting to yield mature fruits which means both slicing and cherry varieties are in season. Tomatoes can easily be preserved for enjoyment during the winter months through canning or the more simple route, freezing. When preparing them for freezing, you can either cook them down into a paste or sauce first, or roast them until caramelized. We highly recommend picking up extras at the next farm stand because they won’t be in season for much longer depending on how low our overnight temperatures get!

Our fall succession of snap peas is coming right along. Snap peas are yet another crop we can plant in both spring and fall in our growing climate. As you can see in the photo, the snap pea plants have just reached the bottom of the trellis. At this point, they’ll continue their vertical climb up the trellis using their tendrils. We expect them to start flowering within the next week or two!

Currently In Season: Cherry Tomatoes, Slicer Tomatoes, Kale, Tokyo Bekana, Arugula, Lettuce Mix, Tatsoi, Baby Bok Choy, Collard Greens, Mustard Greens, Gai Lan, Hakurei Turnips, Shishito Peppers, Eggplant, Yellow Squash, and White Icicle Radishes