Welcome back, everyone!
We are so excited to begin a new season. In some ways it has felt like a long winter, and in other ways feels like it flew by. We are sure you can agree!
So much has happened here over the winter. We converted our hardening house into a second greenhouse, and we are thrilled that we did. 10 days ago we had some super cold temps at night and we had to completely empty out the greenhouse and transfer all of the plants over to greenhouse #1 since it has a heat source. Other than that it's been an incredible second space to keep transplants and to grow some (hopefully!) early tomatoes. Here's a peek inside.
One of the things hanging there are our Mother's Day flower baskets. We are growing 12 different varieties this year. If you'd like to order one (available for pickup this Tuesday 5/4 and Wednesday 5/5), here is the link. This will ensure that you get first dibs on what we've got. https://www.laurelglenfarm.com/flower-baskets
We also have a few more potted scilla litardierei available, which honestly might be the best smelling flowers I have ever smelled in my life. They are the essence of spring. They aren't blooming yet, but they're close, so we encourage you to pick them up and plant them ASAP $8 each or 2 for $15). If you plant them in your yard, they'll bloom every year. Here's a photo of what they'll look like, courtesy of John Scheepers (where we sourced our bulbs).
Have you seen our new greens cutter? All of our bagged greens - arugula, Asian mix, spinach, or salad mix - used to be cut by hand with kitchen scissors! It would take literally all day for multiple people. We finally made the investment into this greens cutter, which we were skeptical about and afraid to waste our money on. It certainly delivered! This will be a huge time saver, allowing us to invest more time into important tasks every day.
Speaking of greens, some of the items that will be in your share during the early portion of the Extended Season program were overwintered. This means that they were planted last year and left in the field to regrow this season. They're not true perennials, but we can get an early harvest off of them. These are things like your kale, collard greens, and even your leeks and scallions. Being frozen makes the greens sweet and tender - you'll actually notice the difference if you've had them before. You'll also notice that they are smaller because they did have to regrow from an older plant, but they can be used in exactly the same way.
Have you seen our new Library of Resources?! If you participated in our program last year I've decided to do away with the former uncrating videos, and instead I hope that the library of resources will guide you in IDing, storing, and cooking with your items at a glance so you don't have to sit through a whole video to get information. Please check it out to meet with the most success this year. We want you to know exactly what something is, how to keep it fresh, or preserve it for later, and all of the amazing things you can cook with it.
Our planting marathon will continue through the end of June, with some of the later fall crops heading into the ground in July. Here our incredible crew members transplanted 5 beds of lettuce last week.
Our seeding marathon continues, too. We literally plant hundreds of thousands of seeds every year. Can you guess how many watermelon plants we seeded last week?
1500! We can't wait to enjoy these this summer (red and yellow).
This week you're receiving Tokyo bekana in your share. Thank you to our Early Registration members who came out to help seed; this is already the fruit of your labor! Tokyo bekana is a mild, tender leaf cabbage with a wonderful crunch. You can eat it raw or cooked. Check out the Library of Resources for more info!
Save the date for our garden seedling sale one Saturday, May 22nd from 9 to 4. We'll have lots of items out for purchase in our barnyard. If you ordered a garden kit, that is also the pickup day.
ENTER OUR FIRST CONTEST OF THE SEASON! To celebrate the first week, send us a photo of you with your veggies! This can be of you holding your veggies at pickup (we'll have a photo op area) or even you at home. We'd love to share submissions on our social media and website. You can email the photos to us or tag us on Facebook or Instagram @laurelglenfarmllc. One submission will be chosen at random and the member will win a prize! The deadline is May 9th.
A very happy birthday to our son Peter, who turns 2 on Monday, May 3rd. We love spending time with our little buddy on the farm - he's given this dream a whole new meaning.
We look forward to seeing you all soon!
In Your Share (Remember that there is only ONE SIZE for the early portion of the Extended Season share)
1 bunch of Tokyo bekana
1/2 lb. of Asian greens mix
1 bunch of scallions
1 bunch of collard greens
1 bunch of pea tendrils
1 bunch of sage
Caring For Your Share (All of this information, plus long-term storage info, can also be found in our Vegetable Library of Resources
Store Asian mix, Tokyo bekana, collard greens, and pea tendrils in separate plastic bags in the fridge. When ready to use, wash in cold water and spin out in a salad spinner. Use within the week.
Wrap sage in a paper towel and store in a plastic bag in the fridge.
Store scallions roots-down in a glass of water in the fridge, like a bouquet. Cover the greens with a plastic bag. Or, store in a plastic bag in the fridge and use within the week.
The LGF Cooking Club (Recipes to try in addition to those in the Library of Resources!)
Green Onion, Thyme, and Sage Rolls (try our new Farmer Ground Flour if you love to bake your own bread; if not, use Bisquick and mix onions and herbs in for a shortcut. https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/green-onion-thyme-and-sage-rolls-5465590
Simple Asian Greens Salad (features Asian mix and pea tendrils; add in scallions) https://somethingnewfordinner.com/recipe/simple-asian-green-salad/
Pork and Cabbage Spring Rolls (substitute in Tokyo bekana for the Napa cabbage; use Shaggy Coos Farm ground pork!) https://www.thehungryhutch.com/pork-cabbage-spring-rolls/
A Guide on How to Stir Fry (use pea tendrils, Asian mix, Tokyo bekana, scallions) https://www.cooksmarts.com/articles/guide-to-stir-frying/
Pork, Ricotta, and Sage Meatballs https://culinaryginger.com/pork-ricotta-and-sage-meatballs/
Pasta with Collard Greens and Onions https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/12465-pasta-with-collard-greens-and-onions
6 Ways to Cut Scallions for Chinese Cooking (Video) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XldX5mZ2G0
Housekeeping:
Follow us on Facebook and Instagram @laurelglenfarmllc. We are always sharing quizzes, polls, and interactive features to go along with our posts, and most of the updates you see here in the newsletter are posted daily first to our social media accounts.
Please remember to bring a bag with you and to wear a mask in the store. You'll be parking in the lot in front of our store and entering into the farm store (the stone and white building). We'll check off your name and bag up your share. If you owe a balance on your subscription, it is due at the time of pickup. If you can't remember if you owe a balance, please send us an email. If you can't remember which day you signed up for, please email us.
Join our private Facebook group! Here's how to join:
Find our page @laurelglenfarmllc
Click on the Community tab
Find the group called 2021 Subscription Members
Request access, and we will approve you!
What if I forget to pick up my share?
Life happens! If you forget to pick up, we always hold your share for 24 hours, so you can come to the store the next day to pick it up. The only exception to this is for Saturday pickup members. Since we are closed on Sundays, we can hold it for you until Monday. After that, it will be forfeited and donated.
I know I can't pick up my share or receive my delivered share on an upcoming date. What are my options?
If you know you'll be unavailable on a particular date, we can schedule your share to be packed for another day. You must email 48 hours in advance of the day of the change to be accommodated.
The only exception is if you receive a delivery on a given day. We can't deliver on another day because of our routes, but you do have other options. See below.
Some examples:
You usually pick up on Tuesdays, but you have somewhere else to be and won't make it. You are free on Saturday, though. Email the farm by SUNDAY (48 hours in advance of your pickup day) and we will pack your share for pickup on Saturday instead of Tuesday.
You will be on vacation for an entire week and won't be available at all. We can skip your pickup or delivery for that week and double up for your following scheduled pickup or delivery date. (Biweekly pickup members, your "off" week can be an option).
You usually get a delivery on Wednesdays, but you will be away. You have 2 options. We can either skip your share this week and double you up for the following delivery. Or, you can email the farm to switch to another pickup day that week. Come to the farm to pick up and we can give you additional vegetables in place of your delivery fee.
We always harvest and pack shares the day before they are scheduled to be delivered or picked up. Therefore, we can't accommodate any changes the day before. Once your share has been packed, there are no opportunities to reschedule. Sorry!