CSA Newsletter June 13, 2023

We appreciate your patience as we work through weather and supply challenges. We so badly need rain! Dean and his crew are getting things rolling in the gardens with lots of planting while keeping everything watered, shaded, weeded, and happy. 

We had a great time with a student Ag Tour group from Florida last Friday. They spent an hour with us as one stop on their week-long farm tour. We shared a little about small scale market gardens and soil health, indoor vertical growing and then we offered microgreen and wacky salad tasting samples. Some loved them and wanted more, others were, polite. They took lots of photos and notes, asked good questions. Then proceeded to nearly buy out our remaining T-shirts. 

This week will again be slim offerings. But delicious and nutritious! Many have enjoyed the fresh greens, steaming, braising, stir frying and trying new combos in their menus. We love receiving your feedback and recipes. Keep it coming! 

This is what to expect on June 13:

Wacky Salad
Microgreens
Asparagus
Flowers!

Kale 
Chard
Pickle Creek Herbs – samples

This week’s Share Value: Full share: $28 ~ Small Share $25 ~ Mini Share $23
Greens are sourced from Prairie Hollow Farm in Elgin, MN.
Flowers from The Little Flower Farm in Pine Island

Not sure what to do with your produce?

Avocado Toast with Microgreens
Amp up this popular favorite

Try this simple, quick breakfast. Healthy fats and lots of flavor.

2 slices favorite bread

1 medium avocado

Favorite Microgreens

1/4 teaspoon favorite Infused Olive Oil

1/4 teaspoon favorite Balsamic Infused Vinegar

Freshly grated parmesan cheese

Freshly chopped herb – i.e. dill or chives

Sea salt and pepper to taste

Toast bread to preferred doneness
Halve and remove pit from avocado
Scoop out flesh, in slices or mash slightly; stir in sea salt if using.
Spread salted avocado onto toasted bread..
Drizzle infused olive oil on avocado.
Top with generous portion of your favorite The Greensted microgreens and grated cheese.
Drizzle with balsamic vinegar.
The best ever!

Around The Farm

Product Highlight

Pickle Creek Herb Farm

Owned by Jocelyn and her husband, Tim, located in Fairfield, IA. About 15 years ago they gave up their Chicagoland chemistry jobs to do the crazy thing of thriving on a 100-acre family farm. They grow herbs, berries, tomatoes, and garlic that they use to create herb-infused olive oils and vinegars, soaps, deodorants and lip balms (visit the Farm Store to find these!). Their mission: to show how amazing herbs can be when they are grown by passionate farmers who love their plants, soil and community. They also want to demonstrate how small sustainable farm can thrive in today’s industrialized world. We hope you enjoy the small samples included in your share this week. Get creative!

Meet the Team

My name is Keith Dobyns and I live in Rochester. About a year ago, my mom, sister and myself moved to Rochester from Texas. I attend Century High School (senior next year) and took college classes at RCTC part time this past year.

My mom was shopping at The Greensted and learned they were looking for summer help. I enjoy being outdoors – hunting, fishing, etc. So I applied. I started work in early May three mornings a week (RCTC was done for the year) helping with microgreens and salad greens harvest. I like operating the greens harvester! I’m working five days a week for the summer. 

So far I’ve enjoyed learning about producing healthy, fresh food. We hope you enjoy all the fresh garden foods coming! 

On the Farm

Now that the crew is all on board, they are all very busy bees. The cooler weather Monday afforded the perfect opportunity to clean out the large high tunnel which housed a winter’s worth of microgreen soil. We have found some eating treasures (beets and pea pods) and a family of furry creatures. We are using the microgreen soil as compost for planting, and the bunnies – they were humanely moved to the nearby alfalfa field. We expect they will be returning to help themselves to the newly planted beet greens soon. 🙁 We’ll get to catch and release elsewhere yet again.

This week more clean-up, more planting more tending. We are harvesting a small portion of outdoor fresh salad greens added to The Wacky Salad the last few weeks. Beds of salad greens are started. The beans and peas are up, melons have been planted, beets, carrots are sewn, onions planted and the potatoes are growing well, planted within the alfalfa in front of the garden. The alfalfa is shading the new potato plants keeping them cool and moist, and feeding the soil nicely. It may look messy for now – but there is happy soil building and plant growing happening. Tomatoes and cucumbers are next up. The garlic is looking spectacular!