Red Earth Farm CSA #1

Thursday, June 04, 2009

After surveying my barren refrigerator this morning I grabbed a pen and paper and started making a grocery list. Taking two small children to the supermarket on a rainy day is one of my least favorite activities, so when I remembered that today was the first vegetable pickup of the season I nearly jumped for joy.

Today’s partial share was farmer’s choice: one head each of green and red leaf lettuce, a bag of spinach, a baby basil plant, a bunch of Pac Choi, and a bunch of small red onions with green tops. Full shares also got arugula, kale, Swiss chard, and a specialty Asian green. A little heavy on the greens, but that’s to be expected this early in the season. (The good thing about composting is that I don’t feel quite as guilty when the greens wilt in the crisper.) This week was also an egg share week and a fruit share week. My kids were thrilled with the quart of strawberries and would have devoured the whole thing if I hadn’t moved it to the top shelf of the refrigerator. 

CSA Report: Blooming Glen Farm

Wednesday, June 03, 2009

More gorgeous greens and succulent strawberries from Blooming Glen Farm this week.  Life is good! 

There is a great African restaurant in the Q-Mart in Quakertown that makes the absolute best collard dish, and now all I want to do is figure out their recipe.  It’s ever-so-slightly sweet, with a bit of spice, and the fresh bitterness of the collards is perfectly preserved.  I think theirs is Kenya-based, but I found an Ethiopian-flavored one at here,  Ye’abesha Gomen.  Hopefully, that will be a good place to start—and please, feel free to share your favorite collard recipe!

Summer is coming!

Sunday, May 31, 2009

There are many signs pointing to the beginning of summer: first doctoral qualifying exam taken, seminar papers nearly written, allergies hopefully going away soon, LAST WINTER CSA SHARE FROM KEYSTONE FARM and HEALTHY HERB GARDEN ON THE ROOF.
Clearly, the last two items on that list are the most relevant to this post (either that or my cat stepped on the caps lock key—it happens). All winter I participated in the Keystone Farm organic CSA share, picking up a half vegetarian share every Saturday at Clark Park. Yesterday I picked up my last share for the season (pictured above). There was a densely packed bag of mixed salad greens, romaine lettuce, gigantic onion, asparagus (yum!), and the usual homemade granola, half-dozen free range eggs and a local cheese (sharp cheddar - my favorite!). I can only eat so much cheese, so I opt for two granolas and one cheese. There is some flexibility in this share.
Luckily, the summer share starts next week. I will again do the half vegetarian share. Each week you get 1/2 dozen eggs, cheese, granola and then a large assortment of fruit and vegetables—all organic. I signed up early and paid $275 (full price for 1/2 share would have been $300), which works out to be around $12 a week. For organic produce, plus cheese and granola for the week, this seems a great deal. Fits right in with my goal to eat green on a tiny budget. On top of all that, Phylann is a wonderful woman, running a great farm. It’s more than worth the money to support her and her organic farming. Check out their new website for more information.
I’ll be reporting on my share each week. However, next week is my father’s 70th birthday (!!!!!), so I’ll be in CT. I’ll pick up a double share (or a full share for that matter) on the 13th and show you my summer goods.
On another note. After a somewhat rocky attempt at roof gardening last year, I’ve decided to stick to herbs this year. I have a great space right outside my bedroom window/door, and I use wooden wine crates (with holes drilled in the bottom) as planters. This year I have three kinds of basil, sage, thyme, rosemary, two types of mint, dill and parsley. One planter has a couple of creepy (creeping, rather) flowering plants just for fun. Below are a couple of pictures from when I first planted early spring and from this morning. The sun is pretty bright, so you’ll have to use your imagination!

CSA Report: Blooming Glen Farm

Thursday, May 28, 2009

What a great way to start out the new Blooming Glen Farm CSA season!  We’ve been with Blooming Glen for three years (as long as they’ve been in production) and truly have not once been disappointed with a share.  Each week, they consistently provide great variety and quantity, making me feel super lucky that they’re “my” farm.  Here we are at the very beginning of the 2009 season, our fourth with Blooming Glen, and those luscious, bright strawberries are making me feel spoiled already! 

First Charlestown Farm CSA Pickup

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Yesterday was the first pick up for Charlestown Farm’s CSA. The ‘box’ included 1/4 lb Asian greens, 1/4 arugula, 1/2 lb mixed loose leaf lettuce, 1 head of butter lettuce, and 1 1/2 quarts of fresh strawberries.  The U-Pick items included mint (there’s two bunches of chocolate mint in the front of the photo), sage, oregano, rosemary, and thyme. I only picked mint as the sage, oregano, rosemary, and thyme in our garden are growing like crazy.  Behind the greens you can just barely see the half dozen Egyptian Walking Onions that I brought home as well. One of the farm’s neighbors dropped off a big box of them and the people at Charlestown were nice enough to share. 

We’re attempting to grow Egyptian walking onions in our garden this year, but the squirrels apparently really like the bulbs and they dug up and ate the vast majority of what we planted.  So I wasn’t expecting to get to try them at all until next year!

We’ll be adding the Asian greens and lettuce to our own greens for salads this week, and I’m planning on trying a variation of tabbouleh with arugula instead of parsley.  The strawberries will get eaten long before they’d have a chance to make it into any recipe.

Farm to City CSA shares available

Monday, March 09, 2009

This email arrived in my inbox today. If you haven’t already chosen a CSA, now is your chance.

FARM TO CITY ANNOUNCES THE OPENING OF ITS CSA MEMBERSHIP DRIVE FOR THE 2009 SEASON

Please forward this announcement to others you know who may be interested. This is the best way to spread the word about these CSA farms.

This year Farm to City is assisting 5 farms to find members for their CSAs:

  * Lancaster Farm Fresh - certified organic, 200 shares available, ready for sign-ups

  * Wimer’s Organics - certified organic, 200 shares available, ready for sign-ups

  * Pheasant Hill Farm - no synthetic chemicals, uses organic methods, 50 shares available, ready for sign-ups

  * Red Earth Farm - no synthetic chemicals, uses organic methods, 70 shares available, ready on April 1 for sign-ups

  * Dancing Hen Farm - no synthetic chemicals, uses organic methods, 50 shares available, ready on March 23 for sign-ups

Go to our website and select the CSA you are interested in; pay with PayPal or check:

http://farmtocity.org/MarketList.asp?view=csa

Each CSA delivers to different locations in and around Philadelphia as well as at the farm or close by. They differ in products offered and cost. The first three are farmer choice CSAs; Red Earth Farm offers member choice. Details on our website.

Wimer’s Organics CSA is looking for hosts for the locations listed below. Site hosts get a free share, provided their site has at least 15 members, good security, shade, and access for delivery and members. Contact info at farmtocity.org if you are interested.

· Ardmore
· Bryn Mawr
· Center City, Philadelphia
· Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia
· Eagle/Downingtown area
· Fairmount, Philadelphia
· Havertown
· Morgantown area
· Mt. Airy, Philadelphia
· Northern Liberties, Philadelphia
· Phoenixville/Kimberton area
· Pottstown/Limerick area
· Radnor/Wayne
· Reading
· Society Hill-Queen Village, Philadelphia
· South Philadelphia
· Villanova
· West Philadelphia
· Wynnewood

Bob Pierson
Farm to City

Brief CSA Notes

Monday, January 05, 2009

For those currently trying to decide which CSA to join, I can offer a quick eval of the two we belong to.

Charlestown Cooperative Farm - We’ve been members for three years now, and are very, very happy.  The shares are supposedly designed for two adults and two children, and they give us (two veggie loving adults) all our veggies from June - November and a substantial portion of the rest of the year (canned and frozen).  The share lasts from the first strawberries (Memorial Day ish) until Thanksgiving.  Like many other CSAs, there tends to be a surfeit of greens - we attempt to eat them all but usually some lettuce and bok choy end up in the compost.  We freeze a lot of kale and chard.  The share provides a bit of fruit (strawberries, raspberries, and melons) but is mainly veggie focused. There are also opportunities to buy meats, eggs, and other items at the farm.  They do not deliver - you have to go to Phoenixville to pick up the shares once a week (Tues and Thurs) - which I like for two reasons; one it’s fun to go to the farm, and two Saturdays are usually way to busy to fit in a trip to the farm every week - that would never work for us as we have several volunteer events which are on Saturdays. Unfortuntately (at least for those wanting a share), I believe their wait list is booked for two or three years.

North Star Orchard - We’ve been members of the fruit share for two years now. This year they are expanding and offering both a 12 week (historical) and 15 week share.  We’re going to try the 15 week as we ordered several extensions this year.  The fruit is a good variety and good quality.  It is only enough for regular eating though, not preserving. (At least for us - but we eat 2 - 4 pieces of fruit a day, or more). They deliver to several CSAs (including Charlestown) and local Farmers’ Markets. They also offer a veggie, share which we have not tried - but I have purchased their veggies from the Phoenixville Farmers’ Market and they are good. I’m just not sure of the size/variety of the actual share.

Tough Decisons

I’m trying to decide on a CSA for this year. I’m torn between Red Earth Farm CSA which I’ve used and been happy with for the last two years and Lancaster Farm Fresh which is delivering in my neighborhood for the first time this year. As a family of four with two adults and two small children who eat a lot of fruit but only specific vegetables we’re only interested in a partial share. Here’s some info about the two CSAs. Some of the information is factual, some is opinion.

Red Earth Farm:

• One farm provides all the herbs and vegetables     crops are limited to what’s grown on the farm (no corn, not a big variety of squash, the list of vegetables doesn’t really vary that much from week to week)
• I like the idea of supporting a single farm
• I love the weekly newsletters
• 26 week season.
• partial shares (6 items) come weekly
• boxes are packed for you
• you can pick your own veggies each week (don’t like turnips, don’t order them)
• fruit, herb, egg and yogurt shares are available
• you can join the buying club for supplemental items like veggies, yogurt, cheese and herbal tonics
• you don’t get any fruit in a regular share
• fruit isn’t available through the buying club
• I was unhappy with the fruit share the year we bought one
• a partial share is more expensive than LFF, but the season is slightly longer and I’m eligible for an 8% discount
• shares for the 2010 season are available at the current prices to finance a land purchase

Lancaster farm Fresh

• A cooperative of farms
• lots of variety in produce, though I’ve heard there’s entirely too much lettuce for a good part of the season
• I like the idea of supporting a cooperative of farms
• 25 week season
• partial shares (a full box) comes biweekly- that’s a lot of vegetables every other week
• items are chosen for you (if you don’t like turnips, you’re getting them anyway)
• fruit shares available
• special orders (meat, cheese, eggs and yogurt) available
• slightly less expensive than Red Earth Farm

I’d appreciate any input about Lancaster Farm Fresh to help me make my decision. I’m drawn to LFF because it’s the unknown and some fruit is included in addition to to the fruit share. But I’m worried about getting a ton of food all at once that I’ll immediately have to prep for storage, instead of getting a smaller amount of produce each week. I’m also worried about the amount of lettuce included in the shares. My kids won’t (and in the case of the baby can’t) eat it and we’re not huge salad eaters.I don’t want my compost bin overflowing with unused and unwanted produce. But the variety. Oh, the variety. I’m drawn to the idea of corn and heirloom tomatoes and melon and lots of different squashes.

Then there’s Red Earth Farm. It’s treated me well, and aside from the fruit share which was not worth my while, it’s been fantastic.

Isn’t it nice to have choices?

Catching up

Friday, January 02, 2009

Phillyist has posted their 2009 resolutions - eating locally grown produce and gardening has made the cut.  They’ll also be talking about how to join a CSA program.  I’m wondering who they’ll recommend.

There are a few CSA programs that I can think of that deliver within Philadelphia city limits (and probably a bunch more that I don’t know of or haven’t thought of)....

Landisdale Farm - Clark Park
Dancing Hen Farm - TBD
Emerson Farm - 6th & Lehigh
Greensgrow Farm - Kensington
Lancaster Farm Fresh - Reading Terminal & just about everywhere else in the city

And there are dozens more that have pick up and drop off locations in the burbs.  Just take a trip to Local Harvest, plug in your zip code, and you’ll find more than you know what to do with.

Finding a CSA join isn’t too difficult, but I’ve always wondered if there was an easy way to find community gardens in Philadelphia.  Years ago I used to live right down the street from a large garden, but aside from stalking the gardeners and asking for information I didn’t have a clue how to join.  The Philadelphia Lands Trust does have an online map of their community garden locations, although it doesn’t tell you how to become part of their gardens.  The site does contain valuable information, though - how to start your own community garden.  There is also a list of Philadelphia area garden associations at the at the American Community Gardening Association.  Rough Terrain is also a good online resource for community gardens. 

Still, none of them really talk about how to become a member of a particular garden.  I know from talking to people involved in community garden plots that there are sign ups and waiting lists and all sorts of things.  It would be a useful resource to have online - it’s where most people start their searches.

Landisdale Farm CSA report, last week!

Sunday, November 09, 2008

CSA season for me is officially over.  Yesterday was the last week for Landisdale Farms’ CSA program.  This is what was in the share:

one bunch of lacinato kale one bunch of swiss chard eight apples two Kuri squash three white sweet potatoes six bulbs of garlic one dozen small turnips eight carrots two bags of spinach

Clark Park is one of the year-round farmer’s markets in Philly, but with a smaller number of vendors.  The owner of BT Brownies told me yesterday that he will only be at the market for a few more weeks - but he’s working on getting those fabulous brownies into more retail markets around the area.  And those of us who need our weekly fix can always order directly through the website.

I’m not sure we’ll join a CSA program for 2009.  It will really depend on if I can find a CSA share that picks up at Headhouse Square on Sundays. 

Landisdale Farm CSA report, weeks 20 and 21

Saturday, November 01, 2008

With one week left in the CSA season at Landisdale Farm, I have two shares here to catch up on: today’s and last Saturday’s.  I was in the Bay Area over the last weekend - it really has to be one of the easiest places to eat local: everywhere you look is locally grown produce, plus they have locally made olive oil and all sorts of other goodies.  There was also a pit stop in Omaha, Nebraska.  I expected to be able to find locally grown meat there easier than anything else, but I spoke to someone who had to have his organic, grassfed turkey flown in from another state.  It definitely makes you appreciate the easy access we have here in Philadelphia not only to locally grown produce, but to locally grown meat.

Last week’s CSA share included: 2 heads of lettuce, 3 small heads of broccoli, six yams, two onions, seven carrots, eight pears, five bell peppers, and five hot peppers.  Oh, and one bunch of kale - I’m told it was thrown in because people are sick to death of lettuce.  This week’s share includes:

• 2 giant heads of lettuce
• 2 bunches of kale
• 3 miniature butternut squash
• 3 miniature Romenesco cauliflower
• 3 onions
• 2 medium cabbage
• 8 apples
• 13 carrots

As usual, the lettuce will go right into the compost heap.  No one in my house is overly fond of salads…and no one outside my house seems to want it.  And I’ll add this kale to all the other bunches of kale we’ve been getting (blanches, frozen).  The cabbage will probably get frozen, as well.

I will likely use the cauliflower to test out a new recipe as a possibility for this year’s Thanksgiving extravaganza.

Since soup weather is finally upon us, some of the carrots and cabbage might end up being soup.

CSA Report: Blooming Glen Farm

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Despite a day of frigid temperatures and snow (?!), I didn’t hesitate when it was time to head out to Blooming Glen Farm for the CSA pickup.  And thank goodness I didn’t, otherwise I would’ve missed out on daikon radish!  I think I’m going to stir fry the radish along with the bok choy, garlic and leeks I received this week and some of Ray’s famous seitan.  Only one more pickup left this year—I can’t believe it!

CSA Report: Blooming Glen Farm

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

When I discovered that I deleted this week’s share photo, Blooming Glen Farm’s very own farmer, Tricia Borneman, took this photo for me.  What a gal   I’m loving all these hardy, late season veggies—celeriac, leeks, butternut squash and, of course, SWEET POTATOES! 

Landisdale Farm CSA, week 19

Saturday, October 18, 2008

Just three more weeks left in the CSA season with Landisdale Farm, and this is what was in this week’s share:

• Two bunches of kale
• Four medium heads of broccoli
• Five tomatoes
• About a dozen small purple carrots
• Nine pears
• Two kuri squash
• Seven white sweet potatoes

I’m leaving for a business trip in a few days, so it’s now or never for some of this stuff.  The pears are already cored and peeled, ready to be made into pearsauce.  The broccoli will made into a dairy-less broccoli soup and canned.  The kale will get a similar treatment.  The tomatoes will be chopped and canned.  I’m a woman on a mission.

The carrots, sweet potatoes, and squash will all keep until I come back.  I must say that I was thrilled to see the carrots included in the share - it’s something we haven’t had yet.  While I like sweet potatoes, I am getting a little sweet potatoed-out - I think we’ve had sweet potatoes in the last five shares.  I’m amassing quite a collection of sweet spuds.

CSA Report: Blooming Glen Farm

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Broccoli—sweet!  Also new this week, celeriac, leeks, butternut squash and purple cabbage.  The sweet and bell peppers are still coming, as are tomatoes (wow!), herbs and garlic. 

Also this week, Blooming Glen Farm had a harvest festival.  We went and checked out some cool vendors, entered a raffle, watched little monsters make scarecrows and decorate pumpkins, took a hayride and then enjoyed a fantastic potluck.  It was such a wonderful way to wrap up the season, and gave us a really great opportunity to meet other members of the farm.  The event is pretty much volunteer organized and operated, and I do hope it’s something we can continue to enjoy!