A window into the production path of your food.
Well, the grand majority of our vegetable population survived the second deep freeze of 2019. I am impressed again! I love a good snow day and this past week, we had a few and I was peak joy. We haven't had to do much clearing of snow this year from our hoops. In fact, the hoop houses usually take care of it themselves by heating right up with the sunshine and shedding the snow. This time, things were a little different. With lots of snow coming and the drift from the wind, we had a drifts 4 feet high piled against the northwest side of the houses! No need to risk bending a hoop on that! Jim and I, plus our loyal canines (don't worry we were careful with them in the low temps, headed out and cleared the weight off. After finishing that up, Exie and I head off into the woods to lay in the snow and marvel at the magical world. Getting cold makes the warmth all the much more wonderful.
To note:
Stockbridge Farm Members: No pick-up this coming week.
We will be in Shed five (inside!) at Eastern Market. Look for our expansive and joyous vegetable display. Don't forget to seek us out!!
Back at Ann Arbor Saturday this coming week! Following a roller coaster week of obsessive weather checking, Saturday morning temperatures have risen significantly! Thankfully our market hiatus was shorter than expected. Hope to see you in Ann Arbor tomorrow!
CSA Y'all! If you saw me last week, I likely pitched you our account-based farm membership. This is the time that signing up to be a member of our farm has the greatest positive effect on your farmers! CSA's help share the burden of cashflow variability and seasonal unpredictability with the farmer. For us, it makes a huge difference to know that people are committed to eating our vegetables and the early investments take some of the stress out of all the early season improvements that we are making. So what is the CSA? In short, members open an account with us, receive a bonus for their commitment, and then use their accounts at market just like cash. You can find more details here. And let me say, if this is something you are considering, now is the time! We won't let you down!
Recipe:
Get that oven going! Roast some sweet potatoes. I like the sweet and spicy combo.
Roasted sweet and spicy Sweet Potatoes: Preheat oven to 425. Cut large sweet potatoes into 1/2 pieces (or use a pile of small one whole!) and put in a bolw. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle in some salt, chili powder, cayenne, paprika, and black pepper. Add a little honey or a little brown sugar, then stir the mixture to to coat. Bake 'em for 15 minutes, stir, then bake about another 15-20 minutes. I like mine crispy and tend to leave them in for long enough to achieve maximum ideal crispiness.
Food for thought:
When I went out to check the state of the vegetables in the caterpillars on Wednesday it was negative 11 degrees. I was bundled. We spent a bit of the night (as I am sure other folk did) unfreezing pipes in our house and given that, I wasn't sure what to expect. I unfurled the makeshift plastic door and squirmed into the tunnel. The ground just inside the tunnel, but outside of the inner cover was hard to the touch, offering little give. I looked up and saw ice crystals like a science project. With trepidation, I lifted the frozen frost blanket and lo and behold , dripping water! Okay, well, that much moisture in a tunnel in the winter is not ideal however, it does tell me that the temperature is above freezing. I love it! I'll take it! And thawed kale leave! Alive chard! Everything is seeming good out there. Next week, the temperatures are briefly heading up to 40. That will be a change. We will uncover the crops, vent the sides and let everything breath. Hopefully it will move some of the condensation out and the plant will have more fuel for photosynthesis.
For my mindfulness notes? Snowdrifts like coolwhip. Until next week!
Helen writing for the Lake Dividers
- Looking to join our CSA or renew your membership? Find more details here. The basics? Open an account with us, get a bonus, and use your account to purchase produce with us at any of our markets. If you have any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to ask.
- We are hiring! We have 3 full-time and 3 part-time positions opening up for the 2019 season. You can find details about the jobs on our website here. If you or anyone you know may be interested, please send us an email or pass along the information.
- We are accepting workshares both on the farm and at market. Please email for details.
Fresh From the Field!
Greens: (Limited):Arugula (maybe)
Head lettuce!
Herbs:
Thyme
All manner of deliciousness:
Beets
Cabbage- running low
Carrots
Kohlrabi- kohlrabi and tender petite
Onions
Sweet potatoes! White and orange fleshed
Radishes: Classic (with greens! May be limited), White Daikon, Green Daikon, and Watermelon radish
Turnips: Purple top and golden roasting turnips
Markets, always rain or shine!All good things come to an end: The Wednesday Ann Arbor Farmers' market and the Saturday Chelsea market will return in May after a winter haitus.
Saturday: Ann Arbor and Detroit's Eastern Market
The Ann Arbor Market is located in the Kerrytown District at 315 Detroit St, Ann Arbor, MI. The market runs from May thru December, 7 am to 3 pm and January thru April from 8 am to 3 pm.
The Eastern Market in Detroit is located about a mile northeast of downtown. It covers about 43 acres, bounded by I-75 on the West and Gratiot Avenue on the South. It runs year round from 6am – 4pm