If you’re looking for more plants to fill out your home garden or just want to give gardening a try - these beautiful herb plants grown from seed at Sunset Farm are a perfect addition this Spring season! We will be selling herb starts at the Farm Stand this Saturday from 9am - 12pm, with varieties including Rosemary, Sage, Thyme, Chamomile, and Chives. When you stop by, we would love to share gardening tips and answer any questions about best growing practices for herbs!

In addition to seedlings, our Farm Stand is full of a beautiful variety of veggies with new Spring additions on their way! Highlights from our harvests this week include an abundance of yellow squash perfect for adding to any stir fry or pairing with a root veggie bake and this heat-tolerant leafy lettuce to savor as we near the end of salad season. A few vegetables in limited supply as we approach warmer weather include kohlrabi, fennel, and carrots!

Spring crops like tomatoes and zucchini are sizing up and will be ripe for harvest any day now! The first buds have also arrived in our flower patch and our crop of Borage has become a haven for bees, butterflies, and other pollinators as they feast on a buffet of blooms. Be sure to stop by for a scenic walk through the farm, and stay tuned as we share upcoming dates for Spring community activities on the farm!

In Season : Yellow Squash, Chard, Collards, Kale, Kohlrabi, Lettuce, Cilantro, Parsley, Green Onion, Fennel, Carrots (limited), and Celery (limited)

We are excited to share that we harvested the first cauliflower of the season this week! This member of the delicious brassica family is incredibly versatile and can be enjoyed both raw and cooked. If you want to snack on it raw, try pairing it with your favorite dip (we’re partial to a garlicky hummus!) or slicing it thinly and adding it to a salad with some of our arugula or lettuce. Our favorite way to enjoy it cooked is to give it a simple roast in the oven until it’s golden and caramelized around the edges. We have a limited amount this week so we recommend stopping by the Grab-and-Go coolers for some sooner rather than later!

We are looking forward to seeing everyone at the Merry Ranch Workshop on Saturday! The Jordan Ranch Lifestyle Team is hosting this festive event on the farm on Saturday (December 6th) from 12-3pm. There will be plenty of ways to celebrate the season including pictures with Santa, a hot cocoa bar, and a snow play area! Once you’ve had your fill of the festivities, make sure to pop by the Grab-and-Go coolers for some beautiful farm-fresh produce. For more information on this free event, head here. 

An abundant harvest of all of our Salanova lettuce varieties is just over the horizon! We’ll be harvesting Green Butter, Red Butter, and Green Crisp lettuce heads in the next 1-2 weeks. Though salad is often associated with warmer months, the cooler months are optimal in our growing climate for lettuce and other salad greens! These lettuce varieties are tender and perfect for salads and sandwich toppers. We’ll let you know as soon as they’re available at the Grab-and-Go coolers. 

In Season: Cilantro, Dill, Collard Greens, Cauliflower (limited), Curly Kale, Red Russian Kale, Tuscan Kale, Bok Choy, Lettuce Heads, Swiss Chard, Arugula, Hakurei Turnips, Amara Mustard Greens, Wasabina Mustard Greens, Radishes, Spring Onions, Lunchbox Peppers, and Bell Peppers

Salanova lettuce will be making its way into season very soon. Rather than harvesting the entire head, we harvest individual leaves in order to allow continued harvests. These leaves will be offered bagged similarly to our salad mix. Salanova lettuces (above) have a great crunch and hold up better to dressings more than a traditional salad mix. They pair well with a simple dressing made of lemon juice, olive oil, honey, salt, and pepper. Look for it in the coolers in the next week or two! 

The first succession of eggplants was planted in the field last week in preparation for late spring and early summer harvesting. This round includes three varieties that will suit different culinary needs. “Nigral” is an Italian type eggplant with a deep purplish black hue that is perfect for dishes like eggplant parmesan and caponata. “Aretussa” is an oblong white eggplant with thinner skin that makes it perfect for stir-frying and roasting. “Fairy Tale” is a purple and white miniature variety that works well in soups and curries. 

We are excited to share that our field and tunnel tomatoes are setting blooms and fruit! Tomato flowers are self-pollinating which means they contain both the male and female parts necessary for pollination. Even though the flowers are capable of self-pollination, factors like wind and insects can help this process along. Now that we’re starting to see the first fruits on our plants, we’ll be eagerly watching their progress as they swell and eventually mature. We expect to begin harvesting the first cherry tomatoes within the next 3-4 weeks.

In Season at the Farm Stand: Scallions, Swiss Chard, Curly Kale, Dino Kale, Carrots, Beets, Salad Mix, and Green Butter Lettuce

It’s been an interesting winter thus far on the farm! While last year was fairly mild, this year brought more snow, days below freezing, and quite a bit of rain over the past couple of weeks. Due to all of the recent rain, we’ve decided to push the relaunch of our Farm Volunteer Program back to Saturday, March 1st. Beginning March 1st, volunteers are invited to come work with us on various farm tasks on Saturday mornings from 8:30-11am. Depending on our particular needs for the week, tasks can range from planting to harvesting to weed maintenance. If you’re interested and would like more details, please reach out to our Farm Team at JordanRanch@Agmenity.com. 

Have you had a chance to try any of our salad mix over the past few weeks? This colorful lettuce mix has quickly become a Farm Team favorite due to its crisp and crunchy texture, how well it holds up to dressing, and its longer shelf life in the fridge. It’s made up of a mixture of green and red butter lettuce and oak leaf lettuce. The mild taste makes it the perfect base for a salad, lending itself to an infinite number of combinations. We recommend pairing it with some of our carrots and fennel and a homemade ranch style dressing flavored with dill and some of our scallions. Make sure to pick up a bag or two of salad mix at the Grab-and-go coolers this weekend! 

In Season at the Farm Stand: Napa Cabbage, Kale, Collard Greens, Asian Spinach, Swiss Chard, Romaine Lettuce, Green Butter Lettuce, Salad Mix, Carrots, Beets, Fennel, Cauliflower, Scallions, and Cilantro

We are pleased to share that carrots are back in season at the Farm Stand just in time for holiday cooking! These vibrant orange carrots are sweet, tender, and crisp. They’re just as delicious raw as they are cooked and can be enjoyed in a multitude of ways. Once you bring your carrots home from the Farm Stand, we recommend trimming off the leafy green tops as this will keep your carrots nice and crisp. You can use the carrot tops in a batch of pesto or chimichurri. 

We are harvesting a delicious variety of winter lettuces at the moment! You can currently find Romaine lettuce, Little Gem lettuce, and salad mix at the Farm Stand with green butter and red leaf lettuce coming in the next couple of weeks. Romaine lettuce produces large heads with leaves that are crisp, juicy, and mildly sweet. Little Gem lettuce (below) is like a mini-Romaine with a buttery texture and sweet flavor. Try pairing any of these lettuce varieties with our carrots, tomatoes, radishes, and scallions for a farm-to-table salad!

Have you had a chance to try any of our broccoli rabe? Also called rapini, broccoli rabe (below) is a nutty and somewhat bitter leafy green with a flavor that is a cross between mustards and broccoli. It’s popular in Italian cuisine, especially as a side dish. It pairs well with sausage, caramelized onions, lemon, white beans, and garlic. We recommend trying broccoli rabe in a frittata or omelet (recipe here). 

In Season at the Farm Stand: Kale, Collards, Komatsuna (Asian Spinach), Bok Choy, Swiss Chard, Mustard Greens, Napa Cabbage, Cone Cabbage, Broccoli, Cauliflower, Scallions, Romaine Lettuce, Broccoli Rabe, Cilantro, Carrots, Beets, Turnips, Radishes, Salad Mix, Arugula, Little Gem Lettuce, Cherry Tomatoes, Early Girl Tomatoes, Eggplant, and Roselle Pods

There are two new veggies that are coming soon to the farm stand: Hakurei turnips (pictured above) and head lettuce (pictured below). Hakureis, often referred to as “salad turnips”, can be eaten raw or cooked. They have a crisp and tender texture with a mild sweet flavor. Try adding thinly sliced Hakurei to a salad made with our chopped head lettuce and dill. Or, you can create a simple side dish by braising them in a flavorful stock like in this recipe.

We planted the first spinach of the season (pictured below)! Spinach is a cool season crop due to its ability to withstand temperatures in the upper 20s. It’s also one of the few crops that we grow during this time of the year that is not in the Brassica family. Spinach is a member of the Amaranth family along with Swiss chard, beets, and quinoa. Though it can be enjoyed in its baby stage, we’ll be harvesting it once it has matured a bit more.

It’s always an exciting moment when we plant something for the very first time on the farm. Last week, we planted celery (pictured below)! This will be the first celery grown on the farm so we are looking forward to seeing how it does. Celery is a slow grower so it will be a couple of months before we’re able to make the first harvest. We’ll make sure to keep you updated in the meantime!

In Season at the Farm Stand: Hakurei Turnips, Beets, Salad Radishes, Watermelon Radishes, Broccoli, Cauliflower (limited), Dragon’s Tongue Beans (limited), Scallions, Roselle, Head Lettuce, Bok Choy, Kale, Cabbage, Napa Cabbage, Collard Greens, Salad Mix, Arugula, Sweet Peppers, Eggplant, Cilantro, and Dill.

December 9th, 2021

The farm is looking mighty green this week especially with the addition of the Little Gem lettuces and Barese chard that we planted! Little Gem (pictured here) produces heads of lettuce with a sweet flavor and buttery texture. We’ll be harvesting this lettuce variety as mature heads rather than younger leaves like we do with our salad mixes. Barese is a variety of Swiss chard that produces glossy dark green leaves and thick white stalks. The leaves are smaller than standard Swiss chard.

We planted a couple of different kale varieties this week that we plan on overwintering. When it comes to plants, overwintering simply means to live through the winter. Since our overwintered kale will be in the ground longer than our earlier plantings (ideally until spring), we space each plant slightly farther apart to provide more space for each to grow. Here’s to plenty of delicious kale this winter!

Our next succession of broccoli is coming right along! This variety is Green Magic and as you can see it has already begun forming heads. As for our cauliflower, the first succession is nearly ready for harvest. We might be able to get away with harvesting the first heads just in time for the farm stand this Saturday but we should definitely have some for you next week! To make sure we can provide a relatively steady supply of both of these crops, we’ll be regularly planting successions of them throughout the winter.

Currently In Season: Carrots (limited), Slicer Tomatoes, Eggplant, Dill, Cilantro, Fennel, Kale, Green Leaf Lettuce Heads, Salad Mix, Arugula, Swiss Chard, Mustard Greens, Napa Cabbage, Turnips, Icicle Radishes, and Fresh Cut Flower Bouquets

September 30th, 2021

Who’s ready for some fall vegetables?! Several different fall crops were transplanted over the last week to join our Monty broccoli. Song cauliflower, a more heat-tolerant variety, was planted in addition to White Russian kale, Green Glaze collard greens, and Jericho lettuce. Though there’s still a bit of a wait when it comes to the broccoli and cauliflower, the leafy greens will be ready before you know it. We plan on harvesting some of the kale in the baby stage for you to enjoy.

The melons we direct-seeded in the high tunnel are doing very well. They’re currently taking up the back half of the high tunnel and will be using every bit of that space as their vines begin to grow and sprawl. The front half of the high tunnel was cleared and renovated in preparation for planting more fall tomatoes and Bai Bu Lao pole beans. We grew these beans during the summer and loved them so much that we decided to plant one more succession this year.

We’ll have a new leafy green for you at the farm stand this Saturday: Tatsoi! This leafy green resembles spinach in appearance but is actually a member of the vast Brassica family. The leaves of Tatsoi have a buttery soft texture and a mild flavor that is both sweet and mustardy. It’s incredibly versatile in the kitchen as it can be eaten raw in salads or substituted in any recipe calling for spinach. If you’d like to try some, come see us at the farm stand on Saturdays from 10am-noon or on Wednesdays from 4-6pm.

April 21st, 2021

Our cucumbers were trellised this week to give them space to sprawl vertically while they produce fruit. Like our snap peas, cucumbers produce specialized leaves called tendrils that can wrap around solid objects (like our trellis) to provide support for the plant as it grows. The trellising for the summer doesn’t stop there as we’ll eventually be adding support for our climbing beans, peppers, and eggplant. Since the farm is prone to strong winds, this will help all of our vining and upright crops have a better support system. And in the case of our vining and climbing crops, it will make it much easier to harvest!

The green beans are just about ready for the first harvest. Though we’re starting to see the first beans of harvesting size this week, we’ll most likely be making our first official harvest next week as more beans mature. This first succession of green beans is a variety called “Jade”. It is a classic green bean with long, slender pods that are tender and sweet. We plan on having multiple successions of beans throughout the spring and summer so once our green beans are done for the season we’ll have Bai Bu Lao pole beans ready for harvest followed by Chinese noodle beans.

New to the harvesting lineup this week is our lettuce mix and bulb onions. Our lettuce mix, made up of a few different leaf and head lettuces, will be available in bags making it salad-ready. As for our onions, they are a yellow onion variety called “Madalyn”. These onions are relatively mild and sweet and they make the perfect base for a multitude of recipes. Or, if you want to enjoy them on their own, you can make a batch of French onion soup or caramelize them for burgers, tacos, or salads.

If you’re out and about and want to support restaurants that are using our produce, check out Better Luck Tomorrow and Squable.

March 10th, 2021

The first summer squashes were transplanted this week! So far we’ve planted a yellow patty pan squash and a Korean summer squash called King Ka Ae. Similar to a zucchini in appearance, King Ka Ae is a straight green summer squash that is harvested when it is about five to six inches in length. The flesh is dense but has a soft texture. We’re excited to see how this variety performs and eager to test it out in the kitchen.

Remember the Iceberg lettuce we transplanted back in January? It’s just beginning to reach harvesting size which means it will make its debut at the farm stand on Saturday! Iceberg is a type of head lettuce which means it forms a tight head as it grows. The heads are a lovely glossy green and the interior leaves are particularly tender and juicy. You can slice the heads into quarters for a classic wedge salad topped with a creamy dressing or use several of the large leaves in place of a bun for your next burger or sandwich.

We’ve decided to incorporate more flowers on the farm this year. We’ll be planting them in a couple of beds dedicated mostly to perennial herbs and flowers interplanted with some annuals. We’ve seeded a mix of flowering plants with the aim of growing some that are edible, some that will be for cut flowers, and others that will attract and feed pollinators. Here’s what we hope to grow this year: zinnias, nasturtium, sunflowers, cosmos, marigolds, celosia, and calendula.

If you’re out and about and want to support a restaurant that is using our produce, check out newly opened Yelo! They will be using our leaf lettuce in their spring rolls and vermicelli bowls.

February 3rd, 2021

The first row of tomatoes has been transplanted in the high tunnel! Since the high tunnel provides a warmer, temperature-controlled environment than the rest of the farm, we’ll be using it to get a jump-start on some of our summer crops. The first tomato variety planted in the high tunnel is Edox, a red cherry tomato that performed well for us last summer.

Outside of the high tunnel, Swiss Chard was transplanted in anticipation of spring. You might notice in the photos that we’re implementing a straw layer on top of these beds. The straw acts as a natural weed deterrent and will naturally biodegrade into the soil over time. Swiss Chard is a tender green with stems that come in a rainbow of different colors depending on the specific variety (which is why it’s often referred to as “Rainbow Chard”). Swiss Chard is closely related to beets so you might notice that their leaves look and taste similar. Both the leaves and stems of chard are edible and can be subbed in place of spinach in recipes.

Our lettuce has been very popular at the farmstand over the past couple of weeks! Joining the lettuce harvest this week will be our Coastal Star romaine. The leaves of this lettuce variety are crisp and sweet and make the perfect salad base. Since romaine lettuce is not quite as tender as butter or leaf lettuces, it can withstand being grilled. Farmer Josh’s favorite way to eat this romaine is to grill wedges of it or to create a simple chopped salad topped with a creamy dressing. If you’d like to try some, make sure to stop by the farm on Saturday from 10am-noon so that you can pick some up from our farm stand.

January 20th, 2021

The dry weather over the past week allowed us to continue transplanting vegetables into our beds in preparation for spring. This time of year is characterized by a predominance of leafy greens as they prefer the cooler weather. Several varieties of lettuce are currently in the ground along with radicchio, cabbage, kale, and Asian greens like Yu Choy Sum. Our most recent planting session consisted of iceberg lettuce, a nostalgic variety that has been frequently requested by local chefs.

This week will mark the first lettuce harvest of the season for the farm! Both our Salanova and Coastal Star lettuces have just started to reach the optimal harvesting size. Salanova (pictured above) is a green butter lettuce variety that grows in a dense rosette and has a delicate, buttery flavor. Coastal Star is a romaine variety that forms heavy, oblong heads with a crisp, sweet flavor. Both of these will be available at the farm stand located on the farm on Saturday from 10am-noon.

Have you had a chance to pick up any of our Badger Flame beets from the farm stand? This variety was bred for flavor, yielding a deliciously sweet and tender beet without the earthiness. As you can see below, the interior of these beets is striking with vibrant golden hues. We prefer to leave the greens attached to our beets when harvesting so that both the root and greens can be enjoyed. The greens have a similar flavor and texture to Swiss chard and can be prepared in the same way. As for the roots, this variety was bred to be enjoyed both raw and cooked. Farmer Josh likes to keep it simple when it comes to their preparation, opting to thinly slice the raw beets, season them with salt and pepper, and finish with fresh lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil.