The pea shoots are coming along. Next week, we'll me loving them for taste. Now we love them for green in our grayscape.
Our snap peas germinated! We use one of our shipping containers as a germination chamber this time of year. After the flats are seeded, we water them and stack them up in there with a space heater. It is amazing how warm a well insulated space can be with just a little heat.
It is dark in there though, so we have to be diligent. As soon as the roots break through the seed coat, we move them over to our greenhouse where there is lots of light. If we botch the timing of this critical step and the seedlings emerge before they are moved over to the greenhouse, we get long, spindle plants that will most likely perish.
So why do we do it? Why do we schlep all these flats around, making extra work and risking losing them to leggy-ness? Germination is very temperature sensitive. With temperatures too low, the seeds may just sit there waiting for favorable conditions, possibly rotting while they do. And because our little seedlings are already germinated before move them over to the greenhouse, we can dial the thermostat down a touch in there, saving on propane.
It is dark in there though, so we have to be diligent. As soon as the roots break through the seed coat, we move them over to our greenhouse where there is lots of light. If we botch the timing of this critical step and the seedlings emerge before they are moved over to the greenhouse, we get long, spindle plants that will most likely perish.
So why do we do it? Why do we schlep all these flats around, making extra work and risking losing them to leggy-ness? Germination is very temperature sensitive. With temperatures too low, the seeds may just sit there waiting for favorable conditions, possibly rotting while they do. And because our little seedlings are already germinated before move them over to the greenhouse, we can dial the thermostat down a touch in there, saving on propane.
Is Carla getting bigger? I can't tell. She is definitely getting scrappier. Boomer and I are now tired parents at the end of the day together. By the time eight o'clock rolls around, he is begging me to let him upstairs to bed. What cuties.
Our exciting news is that we launched the GoFundMe for our Stockbridge Community Outreach Project. We are planning to grow vegetables for our local food pantry and are asking for donations to cover our overhead. I appreciate any support you have to offer, even if it is sharing it with a friend or on your social media, so please, share with abandon!
And we have even more exciting news, if you can handle it. We hired someone! And we have had a few more promising interviews. Things are looking possible, if not a little overstuffed, from this vantage point, and that feels great.
I get the honor of heading to Eastern this week, so please come out and see me. I am sure I will have plenty of caffeine coursing through my veins and either a chipper song and dance or thousand-yard stare, either of which have their own entertainment value.
Cheers,
Helen
she/her/hers
In this email:
Greens:
Spinach
All Manner of Deliciousness
Apples: Evercrips, Gala, Pinata, Modi, and Ida Red. From Almar Orchard
Napa Cabbage from Jacob's Fresh Farm
Cabbage
Carrots by Yoder
Eggs from Hilltop Greenhouses and Farms
Kohlrabi
Potatoes! Yum!
Daikon
Watermelon Radish
Rutabaga!
Sweet Potatoes from Yoder Farms
Purple Top Turnips
Fall Squash: delicata, long pie, butternut, autumn frost, black futsu
Coming Soon
Arugula
Kale
Pea shoots
Tatsoi
Farms we are collaborating with:
When something sold by us is grown by another farm, we will always label both to support them and so that you can make informed decisions.
Not all the farms we are working with are certified organic. If they aren't, you better bet we know them well enough to trust their growing practices. This is both because we have asked them about how they care for their land and what materials they use, but also because we are friends. We have asked each other questions and shared information and resources over the years. We know most of them well enough to have had dinner together and to call to share family news. This collection of family farms are our community and our colleagues. We are proud to know them and to work with them.
Almar Orchard, Flushing, Certified Organic
Cinzori Farm, Ceresco, Certified Organic
HillTop Greenhouse and Farms, Ann Arbor. They supply the eggs from free range, happy chickens.
Jacob's Fresh Farm, Dexter
Sunnyside Produce, Homer, Certified Organic
Titus Farms, Leslie
Yoder Farms, Leslie
And we have even more exciting news, if you can handle it. We hired someone! And we have had a few more promising interviews. Things are looking possible, if not a little overstuffed, from this vantage point, and that feels great.
I get the honor of heading to Eastern this week, so please come out and see me. I am sure I will have plenty of caffeine coursing through my veins and either a chipper song and dance or thousand-yard stare, either of which have their own entertainment value.
Cheers,
Helen
she/her/hers
In this email:
- Generally important notes
- WE ARE HIRING! Visit our Work With Us page for more info. Please share it with people you think fit the bill.
- A link to our Stockbridge Community Outreach Project
- Notes for members (or potential members!):
- Find a copy of the 2025 membership agreement here.
- Now offering $100 CSA memberships with a $10 bonus. Please email for more info.
- If you shop with us regularly, consider signing up for our CSA. This is the perfect time to do it as it offers maximum support to us and the most opportunities to use your balance over the course of the year.
- If you love our produce, consider giving the gift of food to someone in your family or friend. We are an especially good match for people that want to eat local fresh food but don't know how to get started. I love talking recipes, environmentalism, telling animal stories, and eating raw vegetables on the spot.
- Here is link to our Social Justice page on our website. It is a list of resources to keep active in effecting positive social change.
Greens:
Spinach
All Manner of Deliciousness
Apples: Evercrips, Gala, Pinata, Modi, and Ida Red. From Almar Orchard
Napa Cabbage from Jacob's Fresh Farm
Cabbage
Carrots by Yoder
Eggs from Hilltop Greenhouses and Farms
Kohlrabi
Potatoes! Yum!
Daikon
Watermelon Radish
Rutabaga!
Sweet Potatoes from Yoder Farms
Purple Top Turnips
Fall Squash: delicata, long pie, butternut, autumn frost, black futsu
Coming Soon
Arugula
Kale
Pea shoots
Tatsoi
Farms we are collaborating with:
When something sold by us is grown by another farm, we will always label both to support them and so that you can make informed decisions.
Not all the farms we are working with are certified organic. If they aren't, you better bet we know them well enough to trust their growing practices. This is both because we have asked them about how they care for their land and what materials they use, but also because we are friends. We have asked each other questions and shared information and resources over the years. We know most of them well enough to have had dinner together and to call to share family news. This collection of family farms are our community and our colleagues. We are proud to know them and to work with them.
Almar Orchard, Flushing, Certified Organic
Cinzori Farm, Ceresco, Certified Organic
HillTop Greenhouse and Farms, Ann Arbor. They supply the eggs from free range, happy chickens.
Jacob's Fresh Farm, Dexter
Sunnyside Produce, Homer, Certified Organic
Titus Farms, Leslie
Yoder Farms, Leslie
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