Join us at Sunset Farm to harvest fresh veggies, plant new Spring crops, and cultivate healthy soil through our volunteer program! We love to share the beauty and bounty of the farm with novice and seasoned gardeners alike, and no farming experience is necessary to be part of the Sunset Farm family. As the Spring season gains more momentum, our volunteers have the opportunity to follow crops from seed to harvest and experience our organically-based growing practices firsthand.

If you have a particular interest in learning more about fruit or flower production, Sunset Farm’s orchard and flower patch are beautiful spaces to grow your green thumb! Our pomegranate trees are now loaded with vibrant flowers and small fruits, which will be quickly followed by figs and jujubes! When caring for pomegranates, patience is key as the fruits take around five months to develop from pollination to full maturity!

Feel free to stop by our Farm Stand on Saturday morning from 9am - 12pm to inquire more about volunteer options, or reach out to jordanranch@agmenity.com! This week we have a tasty selection of fresh leafy greens, root veggies, and a limited variety of new Spring crops like summer squash! This Saturday you can also find herb seedlings for your home garden including rosemary, sage, and chives!

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

During the Spring season intentional planning and field time is devoted to trellising a variety of warm-season crops that need extra support to maintain quick growth and heavy fruit set. Plants like tomatoes and cucumbers grow as vines and enjoy climbing vertical structures like the trellis line pictured below. Peppers and eggplant tend to branch out and can be weighed down by heavy fruits, so placing wooden stakes with twine woven throughout the row can help keep them upright. If you’re a home gardener, simple bamboo stakes and metal tomato cages work great for these plants in small spaces!

Many of our Spring crops are beginning to produce their first fruits! We harvested a small flush of yellow squash and zucchini this week, and are looking forward to more once the plants recover from the recent cold snap. Crops in the high tunnel were protected from low temperatures and have continued flourishing in this warmer environment. We are patiently waiting for our cherry tomatoes to begin blushing - the first change of color for ripening fruits with an imminent harvest!

Although we are slowly phasing out wintertime plants, crops like carrots, leafy greens, and lettuce continue producing abundant harvests. This week we stocked the cooler with grapefruit-sized kohlrabi and multiple varieties of head lettuce to make delicious salads and slaws! Stop by the Farm Stand this Saturday from 9am - 12pm or visit the Grab-n-Go coolers open 24/7 for your convenience!

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

The warmth of a promising start to Spring has hastened the growth of our greenhouse seedlings, allowing us to plant our first Spring crop of summer squash in the field! We are hopeful for an earlier harvest of these fruits this season, which will be closely followed by cherry tomatoes. In the coming weeks, we will be making room in the field and high tunnel to plant our peppers, tomatoes, eggplant, and flowers! We are especially pleased with high germination yields of our flowers, as many varieties need very specific growing conditions like light exposure to the seed and precise soil temperature.

With the changing of seasons, our new seedlings aren’t the only thing eager to experience new life. Both cool and warm-season weeds are breaking through the ground in response to plentiful rain and sunshine. Our goal is to keep these weeds at bay before we settle into our true Spring and Summer season when weeds are even more keen to consume beautifully prepared bare soil. Though weeding can seem like a chore, it is a necessary part of growing food when the farmer chooses to work alongside nature rather than against it.

If you too are looking to enjoy the outdoors this weekend, please stop by our Farm Stand from 9am - 12pm. There will be an array of freshly harvested veggies, versatile enough to prepare a refreshing salad or a warm and hearty soup! Farmer Sarah will be there to answer any questions you may have about starting a Spring garden of your own too!

In Season: Carrots, Celery, Fennel, Green Onions, Green Cabbage, Parsley, Collard Greens, Curly Kale, Cilantro, and Dill

We planted several different warm season crops this week that will take us into late spring and early summer. This round includes the next succession of zucchini and cucumbers, basil, and the first successions of cantaloupe and butternut squashes. We expect to be able to start harvesting the basil within the next couple of weeks once it sizes up which should be right around the time tomatoes begin making their way to the Farm Stand! As for the cantaloupe and butternut squashes, you won’t see these for about 2 months as they have a much longer growing period until they are ready for harvesting. 

Our peppers are beginning to flower and set fruit! Peppers are in the same family as tomatoes so it should be no surprise that they also have self-pollinating flowers (below). Once pollinated, the flowers will wilt and eventually drop as the small pepper fruits begin to develop and grow. Depending on the weather and the pepper variety, it can take anywhere from 3-5 weeks for the pepper to reach harvesting size once it is successfully pollinated. Since we are just starting to see the first fruits, you can expect to see peppers make their way to the Farm Stand within the next month. 

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

Coming Soon: Zucchini, Tomatoes, Cucumbers, and Peppers

There will not be volunteer hours this Saturday so that we can give our full attention to our Gardening Class! Come celebrate spring by learning to plant and care for your home garden this Saturday, March 22nd from 10:30-11:30am with Farmer Matt. We will discuss various spring season crops, when to begin planting staple vegetable varieties that grow well in our climate, and how to prep your gardening space to welcome an abundant harvest. Each attendee will get to choose some of our potted tomato plants to take home in order to kick start their own garden. This class is open to the public but there is a special discount for Jordan Ranch residents (email us for the code at JordanRanch@Agmenity.com). Purchase your tickets here.

The high tunnel is filling up swiftly with warm season crops! This week we planted both a slicing and pickling cucumber variety in the high tunnel and will be planting additional successions in the field in the coming weeks. The slicing variety we planted is called “Diva” and it produces seedless, thin-skinned cucumbers with a distinctly crisp texture and subtly sweet flavor. The pickling variety is called “Cool Customer” and it produces smaller cucumbers with a great crunchy texture that are perfect for pickling. 

We’re entering what we like to call a “shoulder season” on the farm. As the weather warms, many of our winter crops are being phased out while spring ones are being transplanted in their place. We’ll have leaner offerings over the next few weeks as we wait for some of our newer crop plantings to begin producing. While the number of offerings is smaller, we still have some delicious spring favorites like fennel, carrots, and scallions available at the Farm Stand. 

In Season at the Farm Stand: Carrots, Scallions, Dino Kale, Curly Kale, Collard Greens, Fennel, and Cilantro

The flowers that we started earlier this month in the greenhouse are germinating! Since we planted a lot of new varieties, we’ve been taking stock of how well each has germinated. Farmer Anne is especially excited about the spring flower patch and can’t wait to see them make their way into bouquets. She is most looking forward to sweet peas and agrostemma. The sweet pea mix we planted is full of vibrant colors like salmon, burgundy, lavender, and blue while the agrostemma varieties will range from pale pink to purple.

We will be doing a huge spring planting next week so there will be plenty of tasks for our volunteers to help us tackle this Saturday! In case you missed the announcement last week, the relaunch of our Farm Volunteer Program is this Saturday, March 1st. Volunteers are invited to work on various farm tasks with us from 8:30-11am. We ask that each volunteer be able to arrive promptly by 8:30am and stay throughout the duration of the shift until 11am. Can’t make it this Saturday? You can join us the following Saturday! If you’re interested and would like more information, please reach out to our Farm Team at JordanRanch@Agmenity.com.

In Season at the Farm Stand: Napa Cabbage, Kale, Collard Greens, Asian Spinach, Romaine Lettuce, Green Butter Lettuce, Red Romaine Lettuce, Salad Mix, Carrots, Beets, Fennel, Cauliflower, Scallions, Kohlrabi, Cilantro, and Broccoli (limited)

We are pleased to announce that tomatoes are officially in season at the Farm Stand! We’re currently harvesting two cherry varieties (Sun Gold and Cherry Bomb) and one cocktail variety (Clementine). If you look at the tomatoes below, you’ll see a mix of cherries on the right and our orange Clementine cocktail tomatoes on the left. Clementine is slightly larger than our cherries and has a sweet-tart flavor. Since tomatoes are just making their way into season, we will have limited quantities available over the next week or two but then there should be a more consistent abundance throughout May and early June. You can find our tomatoes on the shelf next to the coolers at the Farm Stand. 

The farm is looking really colorful these days thanks to all of our blooming flowers! Now that we’re consistently seeing more blooms, we’ll be offering fresh cut flower bouquets during our in-person Farm Stand on Saturdays from 9am-noon. We’re currently harvesting a mix of snapdragons (below), zinnias, and cosmos with sunflowers coming soon. Since we will have limited quantities each week, we’ll only be offering our bouquets on Saturdays for the time being. Make sure to get to the Farm Stand early if you want one!

We spotted the very first artichokes this week! As we shared in this post back in February, we decided to experiment with growing artichokes again this year. It would appear that our strategy of getting them in the ground earlier worked because we’re starting to see artichokes forming. Artichokes are a variety of thistle that is grown for its edible flower head (below). The unopened flower heads are harvested so that their base (the artichoke heart) can be enjoyed. We’ll let you know as soon as this exciting new crop makes its way to the Farm Stand! 

In Season at the Farm Stand: Cherry Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Zucchini, Yellow Squash, Beets, Salad Mix, Kale, Swiss Chard, Spring Onions, Dill, Cilantro, and Basil. 

Coming Soon: Slicing Tomatoes, Peppers, and Eggplants

We are pleased to announce that we will be offering an 8-week Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Farm Share Program this spring exclusively for Jordan Ranch residents! This program is a great way to support the farm while experiencing our unique seasonal shifts through farm-fresh produce delivered directly to your home. If you’re interested and would like to hear more about our inaugural CSA Farm Share Program, we invite you to join us on Friday, April 19th from 4-6pm on the farm porch for our Spring CSA Farm Share Happy Hour! This event is for current Jordan Ranch residents only. Make sure to secure your spot here so we have plenty of refreshments available! 

If you’re curious what is making its way into season over the next month, we would love to show you during our next Farm Tour this Saturday, April 13th, at 10:30am. You’ll have the opportunity to see our blushing cherry tomatoes in the high tunnel, our blooming flowers in the field, and a new weed control method we’re trying. Plus, you’ll get to sample some refreshing cucumbers! Our tours are open to the public and all ages are welcome to attend. We hope to see you there!

One of our favorite farm snacks is back in season: cucumbers! We’re harvesting slicing cucumbers that are perfect for enjoying raw. Farmer Reuben loves to keep it simple and pair sliced cucumbers with tajín for a quick snack. They’re also great in salads, sandwiches, smoothies, and juices. This year, we’re focusing solely on slicing varieties due to their reliability in past seasons. We have successions planted in both the high tunnel and the field in order to keep us in steady supply for the next several weeks. 

In Season at the Farm Stand: Cucumbers, Zucchini, Yellow Squash, Beets, Cutting Celery, Spring Onions, Scallions, Salad Mix, Kale, Collards, Swiss Chard, Cilantro, and Basil. 

Coming Soon: Tomatoes

We have so many crops about to make their way into season and we would love to share a sneak peek with you at our next Farm Tour! Come join us on Saturday, April 13th at 10:30am for a spring stroll around the farm as we explore the new crops in the high tunnel and the field. You’ll get to see our baby tomatoes and cucumbers in addition to our beautiful blooming flowers. And, you’ll get to sample some first-of-the-season summer squashes including our stunning yellow zucchini. Our tours are open to the public and suitable for all ages. We can’t wait to see you! 

We are thrilled to announce that zucchini has made its way into season at the Farm Stand! This first wave of zucchini is a dark green variety called Dunja. It has a nutty and mildly sweet flavor and can be enjoyed both raw and cooked. If you want something refreshing for these warm spring days, we recommend trying a zucchini carpaccio (recipe here). For a simple and flavorful side dish, Farmer Anna recommends cutting zucchini in half lengthwise, grilling it, and pairing it with an herb butter. 

Beets have also made their way into season this week! This root veggie has a distinct earthiness that pairs well with citrus, fresh herbs, goat cheese, and nuts. Beets are incredibly versatile and can be enjoyed in sweet recipes (like this beet, apple, and carrot cake) as well as savory ones. Farmer Anna recommends roasting or steaming beets and adding them to a batch of hummus. Or, you could try pickling them and adding them to salads and sandwiches. You can find beets at the Farm Stand beginning this weekend!

In Season at the Farm Stand: Zucchini, Beets, Cucumbers, Cutting Celery, Spring Onions, Salad Mix, Kale, Collards, Swiss Chard, Kohlrabi, and Cilantro. 

Coming Soon: Summer Squashes and Tomatoes

We have a special treat for you this week: a limited run of cauliflower! This round of cauliflower is particularly special because it survived the hard freeze in January and those very warm days in February. Since this is a limited run, we will only have it available at the Farm Stand for the next week, or until it sells out. If you love cauliflower, we highly recommend popping by for a head or two! Farmer Anna recommends steaming it until tender then mashing it with some garlic, salt, smoked paprika, and onion powder for an easy side dish.

Remember the experimental round of cutting celery we started back in December? It has officially made its way into season on the farm! You’ll notice if you look at the photo below that cutting celery has a different appearance than the stalk celery you are familiar with seeing at the grocery store. Cutting celery produces much thinner stalks and more leafy green growth. The leaves can be used like parsley and are great for adding to soups, stews, and sauces. Since the stalks can be a bit more fibrous than conventional celery, we recommend cooking them rather than eating them raw. They make a great base for a variety of different recipes along with diced onions and carrots.

We seeded the first round of butternuts in the greenhouse last week! Though butternuts are a variety of winter squash, they are grown during the warmer spring and summer months. This particular variety is called Butterbaby and it yields miniature butternut squashes. Since these butternuts have a vining growth habit and are sensitive to moisture, we’ll be planting them in rows covered with a weed fabric. We’ll share more on this process later so stay tuned!

In Season at the Farm Stand: Cauliflower, Cutting Celery, Spring Onions, Salad Mix, Kale, Collards, Swiss Chard, and Kohlrabi.

Coming Soon: Beets, Cucumbers, Zucchini, and Summer Squashes

Come join us this Saturday, March 16th, at 10:30am for our next Farm Tour! We are so excited to share what we’ve been planting over the past couple of weeks for the spring season. One of the highlights of our tour this month will be our high tunnel (above). In addition to our cheery row of marigolds, you’ll be able to see newly planted crops like scallions, peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, and basil. As always, our tours are open to the public, free of charge, and suitable for all ages. We hope to see you there!

We are pleased to report that all of our tomatoes have been planted! We have them split between the field and the high tunnel as we’ve done in years past. While checking our trellis system in the high tunnel this week, we spotted the very first baby tomatoes (below)! Here’s a closer look at the varieties we’ll be growing this year: Sun Gold (super sweet orange cherry tomato), Cherry Bomb (classic red cherry tomato), Valencia (orange slicing tomato), Clementine (sweet-tart orange cocktail tomato), and Galahad (red beefsteak tomato).

Tender and sweet spring onions are back in season at the Farm Stand. Spring onions (below) are an immature bulb onion with a sweet, mellow flavor and tender texture. They’re harvested in the process of thinning our bulb onions which allows space for the remaining bulbs to develop and grow. These onions can be enjoyed raw as a garnish or cooked. We recommend trying them with some of our chard and dill in an omelet or frittata this weekend!

In Season at the Farm Stand: Spring Onions, Salad Mix, Arugula, Kale, Collards, Swiss Chard, Kohlrabi, Fennel, Dill, and Marigold Bouquets

Coming Soon: Cucumbers, Zucchini, and Summer Squashes

Come celebrate the arrival of spring during our next Farm Tour on Saturday, March 16th at 10:30am! We’ve been busy planting crops for the upcoming season and are so excited to share a preview of what we’ll be growing over the next few months. As always, this tour will include a sampling of veggies that are in season at the Farm Stand like our peppery arugula. Our tours are open to the public and free of charge. We look forward to seeing you there!

Can you believe it’s already time to plant tomatoes?! Now that we’re past our last frost date for the season, it’s time to get them in the ground. As you can see in the photo below, our tomatoes are verdant, lush, and ready to be planted! We’ll be growing a mix of cherry and slicing varieties and will be splitting them between the high tunnel and the field. Here are the varieties you can expect to see this spring: Sun Gold, Cherry Bomb, Valencia, Clementine, and Galahad. 

Though our first succession of cucumbers, zucchinis, and summer squashes just went in the ground, they will start trickling into season before you know it. All of these warm season favorites are in the cucurbit family and are quick growers, especially when the soil is warm! Since they grow fairly quickly, we typically plant multiple successions throughout the season in order to ensure a steady supply. You can expect to see the first zucchini, summer squashes, and cucumbers arrive at the Farm Stand in about a month.

In Season at the Farm Stand: Arugula, Lettuce, Carrots, Fennel, Collard Greens, Kale, Spring Onions, Dill, and Marigold Bouquets 

Coming Soon: Cucumbers, Zucchini, and Summer Squashes