We hope you had a lovely New Year! As we look forward into 2026, one of our biggest goals for the farm is to increase community engagement through events as well as volunteer opportunities. We’re currently hammering out the details for our spring events so stay tuned! Though we plan on having more volunteer events like we did with our orchard in the fall, we also welcome volunteers that would like to help us with farm tasks every week! If you’re interested in volunteering with us and would like more details, please reach out to our Farm Team at JordanRanch@Agmenity.com

Celery is officially in season! We’ve been harvesting bunches of it over the past couple of weeks for the Grab-and-Go coolers and it’s really hitting its stride. Our celery is incredibly flavorful and makes a great addition to a multitude of recipes from salads to soups and beyond. You can use the leafy green tops like an herb and the slim stalks in any recipe that calls for celery. While celery is often used as a base ingredient, this celery salad with blood oranges, dates, and walnuts puts it front and center.

The arrival of January means it’s already time to start our tomato seeds! We planted the first round of tomato seeds this week that will eventually be transplanted into the high tunnel. Since the high tunnel offers protection from the elements as well as a warmer environment, we always plant seeds for these varieties before those that will be planted in the field. Here’s what we planted: Black Cherry, Cherry Bomb, Sun Gold, and Cherokee Purple tomatoes. 

In Season: Baby Carrots (limited), Spinach, Celery, Fennel, Green Onions, Green Cabbage, Parsley, Cilantro, Dill, Collard Greens, Curly Kale, Red Russian Kale, Tuscan Kale, Romaine Lettuce Heads, Swiss Chard, Arugula, Hakurei Turnips, and Radishes

We are harvesting the very first bunches of Swiss chard this week and will have a limited amount available in the Grab-and-Go coolers! This leafy green is in the same family as beets and spinach and has a flavor that tastes like a blend of the two. The variety we’re harvesting has vibrant red stems and veins which makes for a very colorful addition to your plate! Swiss chard can be enjoyed on its own as a side dish with a little garlic or added to soups, stews, and pasta dishes. We recommend trying it in this white bean chicken soup or this lemon Swiss chard pasta. 

Have you had a chance to try any of our Hakurei turnips yet? This beloved root vegetable is a farmer favorite due to its succulent crunchy texture and mild, sweet flavor with fruity notes. Unlike the larger turnips you often see at the grocery store, Hakurei turnips can be enjoyed raw. They work really really well in salads and slaws, especially with our arugula. When cooked, Hakurei turnips become incredibly tender. If you want an easy and flavorful side dish, try these braised Hakurei turnips with maple, miso, and ginger. 

In order to make sure you have plenty of variety on your plate this fall, we’ve been seeding new varieties in the greenhouse every week. This week we planted mizuna and Tokyo bekana. Mizuna is a Japanese mustard green with a mild flavor that works well in both salads and stir-fries. Tokyo bekana is a loose leaf cabbage variety with super tender leaves that make a great salad green.

Last but not least, we want to extend a big thank you to the volunteers that showed up for our Orchard Beautification Day this past Saturday! With your help we were able to plant thornless blackberries and perennials for our native pollinator bed. Keep an eye out for more events like this in the future! 

In Season at the Farm Stand: Swiss Chard (limited), Arugula, Hakurei Turnips, Baby Mustard Greens, Radishes, Scallions, Okra, Lunchbox Peppers, Jalapenos, Bell Peppers, Shishito Peppers, Poblano Peppers, Basil (Italian, Lemon, Thai, and Tulsi), and Flower Bouquets

We are honored to introduce you to one of our hardworking volunteers, Dafne! She plays a large part in harvesting and making the bouquets you see at the Farm Stand. After setting a goal at the beginning of the year to be outside more and slow down, Dafne discovered that we were part of her local community and started volunteering with us. During her time with us, she has gained a lot of flower growing knowledge that she has been able to apply in her own garden. Dafne believes flowers bring a lot of joy so she loves seeing customers get excited about them at the Farm Stand. If you’re interested in volunteering with us, we encourage you to send us an email at JordanRanch@Agmenity.com!

Like Dafne says, flowers do indeed bring a lot of joy but they also provide a source of food for our local pollinators! While some crops like leafy greens and root vegetables don’t require pollination in order to produce, many of our warm season crops do. Varietals like cucumbers and zucchini produce both male and female flowers on the same plant. In order to successfully pollinate the female flowers and yield fruit, we need the help of our pollinators! Our common pollinators include several different types of bees, wasps, and butterflies.

In Season at the Farm Stand: Cantaloupe, Watermelon, Cucumber, Long Beans, Okra, Eggplant, Tomatoes, Zucchini, Jalapenos, Bell Peppers, Shishito Peppers, Poblano Peppers, Cornito Peppers, Lunchbox Peppers, Carrots, Basil, and Flower Bouquets and Stems

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)

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

It’s already time to pot up our tomato transplants in the greenhouse! The “potting up” process involves removing the small seedlings from their trays and replanting them into larger pots. We try to plant them as deep as possible since the buried part of the tomato stem is able to grow additional roots. The larger pots allow for the development of a deeper and stronger root system which allows our tomato plants to be healthier and stronger. Our tomatoes will remain in the greenhouse until they are ready for transplanting in just a few short weeks.

The field dried out enough for us to do some bed prep for a late winter planting. Once all of the old crops and weeds are cleared out, we use the broadfork (below) to assist in aerating and breaking up any compactions in the soil. This makes it easier for the roots of our crops to grow and access vital water and nutrients. This next round of planting will include a variety of crops we have waiting in the greenhouse including scallions, broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbages. 

After a winter break, our Volunteer Program will start back up on the 22nd of this month! Every Saturday from 8:30-11am beginning on February 22nd, volunteers are invited to work with us on various farm tasks. These tasks will vary each week depending on the farm’s needs and can range from weeding to planting to harvesting. Since we are a working production farm, we ask that any volunteers that would like to attend are able to commit to the entire time slot and can arrive promptly by 8:30am. For additional details, please reach out to our Farm Team at JordanRanch@Agmenity.com.

In Season at the Farm Stand: Carrots, Beets, Salad Mix, Butter Lettuce, Romaine Lettuce, Komatsuna, Swiss Chard, Cone Cabbage, Bok Choy, Kale, Collard Greens, Cilantro, Scallions, Fennel, Kohlrabi, and Broccoli (limited)

Happy New Year! As we gear up for another year on the farm, we wanted to take a moment to share some of our favorite highlights from 2024. We hope they were as memorable for you as they were for us!

We hosted several free Farm Tours throughout the year. We loved the opportunity to interact with our community and share our love and knowledge of farming!

We successfully launched our first Fall Community Vegetable Share! Over the course of the six-week share we were able to offer 25 different produce items. We received great feedback from our share members and are looking forward to offering another share this spring with more variety and offerings.

We had a productive fall including a great succession of fall tomatoes! Our cherry tomatoes and slicers are still going strong and have excellent flavor.

A productive fall meant we could offer tons of delicious variety at the Farm Stand. Your top 5 favorites were tomatoes, carrots, broccoli, scallions, and salad mix. The Farm Stand is open every Saturday from 9am - Noon and the Grab-and-Go cooler is available 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. Please come on by and enjoy these delicious, sustainable and super fresh veggies!

We relaunched our Volunteer Program and were able to tackle several projects with the help of our hardworking volunteers. Our volunteer program takes place every Saturday from 8:30-11am and is a great way to help keep Sunset Farm a thriving part of the Jordan Ranch community. If you’re interested, we encourage you to reach out to our Farm Team at JordanRanch@Agmenity.com!

There are plenty of exciting things in the works for 2025 and we can’t wait to share them with you. Make sure to stay tuned in the meantime! 

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, Butter Lettuce, Broccoli Rabe, Cilantro, Carrots, Beets, Turnips, Radishes, Salad Mix, Arugula, Little Gem Lettuce, Cherry Tomatoes, and Early Girl Tomatoes

Our first volunteer weekend was super productive! The crew helped us set up for our weekly in-person Farm Stand in addition to installing hoops and frost cover for some of our field crops. There was also some weeding and general farm tidying involved. Our volunteer program takes place every Saturday from 8:30-11am and is a great way to help keep Sunset Farm a thriving part of the Jordan Ranch community. If you’re interested, we encourage you to reach out to our Farm Team at JordanRanch@Agmenity.com! 

Cone cabbage is in season at the Farm Stand! As you can see in the photo above, this cabbage variety has a unique conical shape. It has a more mild taste than standard round-headed cabbages with a more pronounced sweetness. The sweetness of cone cabbage makes it perfect for enjoying raw in salads or slaws but it’s also equally delicious roasted or grilled. We recommend trying this grilled cone cabbage with miso sauce for a delicious side dish! 

Several weeks ago we started an experimental round of celery in the greenhouse (below). We are happy to report that our celery seedlings are doing really well! Celery is a slower growing crop that prefers cooler temperatures in addition to consistently moist soil. It doesn’t tolerate high temperatures well which can make it a challenge to grow in our climate. Our plan is to transplant our celery seedlings in January in order to yield a springtime harvest.

In Season at the Farm Stand: Romaine Lettuce, Kale, Collard Greens, Komatsuna, Bok Choy, Swiss Chard, Mustard Greens, Napa Cabbage, Cone Cabbage, Broccoli Rabe, Broccoli, Cauliflower, Scallions, Beets, Hakurei Turnips, Radishes, Salad Mix, Arugula, Little Gem Lettuce, Tomatoes, Eggplant, and Roselle Pods. 

We are excited to relaunch our volunteer program on the farm this month! Every Saturday from 8:30-11am beginning December 7th, volunteers will be able to work with us on various tasks to help keep Sunset Farm an enjoyable and thriving part of the Jordan Ranch community. Volunteer activities will align with our farm team’s needs each week and can range from weeding to planting to harvesting. Since we are a working production farm, we ask that volunteers are able to commit to the entirety of the time slot and arrive promptly by 8:30am. If you are interested in volunteering with us and would like more details, please reach out to our Farm Team at JordanRanch@Agmenity.com. 

Cauliflower is back in season at the Farm Stand! This member of the vast and delicious brassica family can be eaten both raw and cooked. If you’d like to enjoy it raw, try slicing the florets thinly with a mandoline then toss them with sliced celery, pickled onions, capers, and an herb-forward creamy dressing. If you’re craving something warm, our favorite way to enjoy cauliflower is to give it a simple roast in the oven until tender and beginning to caramelize around the edges. 

Our carrots are coming along nicely but they’re not ready for harvesting quite yet. We have successions planted in the high tunnel as well as in the field. Our hope is that both of these successions will allow us to lengthen the amount of time they’re available for you at the Farm Stand once we are able to begin harvesting. Based on their current size, we’ll most likely be able to harvest the first round of carrots in about 2-3 weeks which means they should be available just in time for Christmas! 

In Season at the Farm Stand: Kale, Collard Greens, Komatsuna, Bok Choy, Swiss Chard, Mustard Greens, Napa Cabbage, Cone Cabbage, Broccoli Rabe, Broccoli, Cauliflower, Scallions, Beets, Hakurei Turnips, Radishes, Salad Mix, Arugula, Little Gem Lettuce, Tomatoes, Eggplant, Roselle Greens, and Roselle Pods. 

Remember the beds we were preparing for fall crops last week? We’re beginning to plant them this week! Our very first crop to be transplanted in these beds is our fall succession of bush beans (pictured above). This variety is called Desperado and it produces green beans with a mildly sweet flavor and beautiful snap. Once they germinate, these beans take about 55 days until the first harvest. Since we started these in the greenhouse and they are already about two weeks old, we hope to be able to share them with you in early November! 

The second fall crop we’ll be transplanting in the field this week is Napa cabbage. We have both a standard green variety (pictured above) along with a beautiful purple one. Since this variety of cabbage has a higher heat tolerance than a lot of our other fall crops, we’re able to get it in the field a bit earlier. Farmer Anna is incredibly excited to plant Napa cabbage because she absolutely loves making kimchi! Since Napa cabbage has a similar amount of days to maturity as our bush beans, you can expect to see them around the same time. 

Have you been able to enjoy any of our late summer veggies from the Farm Stand? Our volunteer Shanaz absolutely loves the okra! Her favorite dish to make with it is bamia, an Iranian okra stew that often includes lamb and tomatoes. If you’d like to make some, try this recipe. For a quick and tasty snack, Shanaz recommends seasoning okra simply with olive oil, salt, and pepper, then cooking it in an air fryer. If you’d like to try either of these delicious recipes, make sure to pop by the Farm Stand this weekend for some okra!

In Season at the Farm Stand: Long Beans, Malabar Spinach, Armenian Cucumbers, Eggplants, and Okra. 

We’re just beginning to sow seeds for fall in the greenhouse! So far we’ve planted two different winter squashes: Waltham butternut and a smooth-skinned personal pie pumpkin. As you can see in the photo above, the butternuts are already beginning to germinate. This butternut variety takes around 90-100 days to mature so our hope is to have them ready for you by Thanksgiving. We’ll make sure to keep you updated on their progress!

Volunteer Spotlight

Meet one of our hardworking volunteers, Shanaz! Every week Shanaz braves the heat with us, helping with various farm tasks as well as the Saturday Farm Stand. After retiring and longing to spend more time outdoors, she found her way to the farm to volunteer. Shanaz has her own garden at home, growing various veggies and herbs. Her favorite crop in season right now is eggplant. She loves cooking with it and even snacking on it raw! If you’re interested in volunteering with us, send us an email at JordanRanch@Agmenity.com. 

Zucchini is making its way back into season! This variety is called “Dunja” and it’s a standard dark-green zucchini with a nutty flavor. Since we’re just beginning to harvest from our plants, we will have a limited amount of zucchini for you at the Farm Stand this weekend. One of our favorite things about zucchini is that it can be used in both sweet and savory recipes! If you’re longing for fall, we recommend whipping up a batch of zucchini muffins or bread spiced with cinnamon and ginger. 

In Season at the Farm Stand: Zucchini (limited), Malabar Spinach, Armenian Cucumbers, Eggplants, Okra, Sweet Peppers, Serrano Peppers, Jalapeno Peppers (limited), and Cut Flower Bouquets (limited and only on Saturdays).

Don’t forget to come join us this Saturday (August 12th) at 10:30am for our next Farm Tour! Attendees will be able to see all of the varietals that are thriving in the summer heat followed by plenty of taste testing. This tour will also include an exclusive sneak peek and discussion of our early preparations for the upcoming Fall season. Grab your favorite sun hat, some cold water, and come join us! As always, our tours are open to the public and free of charge.

Volunteer Spotlight

Meet one of our newest farm volunteers, Ava! She is a high school student that is interested in learning more about plants and gardening, especially vegetables. Ava is eager to experience the farm to table process and has already helped us harvest and weed. She had a large part in harvesting the Malabar spinach you’ll see at the Farm Stand this weekend so we hope you enjoy it! If you’re interested in volunteering with us, send us an email at JordanRanch@Agmenity.com. 

Remember the Malabar spinach we planted a few weeks ago? You’ll have access to the very first harvest at the Farm Stand this weekend! The succulent leaves of Malabar spinach have a mild flavor and can be eaten both raw and cooked. One of our favorite ways we enjoyed it last summer was to use the larger leaves like a lettuce wrap! You can also enjoy it in salads and stir-fries. Or, you can combine it with some of our okra and eggplant in a flavorful curry like this one. 

In Season at the Farm Stand: Malabar Spinach, Armenian Cucumbers, Eggplants, Okra, Sweet Peppers, Serrano Peppers, Jalapeno Peppers (limited), and Cut Flower Bouquets (limited and only on Saturdays).