Week 1 of 6

Hi Reader,

Welcome to Week 1 of Spring CSA!

We’re excited to officially kick off the spring season with you. Spring shares are a little different from summer shares, as the season starts with tender greens, storage roots, herbs, and early hoophouse crops, then builds from there as the fields wake up and our chance of frost lessens.

A Few Spring CSA Reminders

• Be sure to double-check your pickup location and times (see our email yesterday).
• Customizing Your Share:
  • The store opens on Monday and closes on Wednesday at 8:00 pm. If this window feels too tight, we may adjust it.
  • Check your email to confirm you received a copy of your order when you checked out. This confirmation is our final copy of what you receive (not a combination of previous selections).
• Eggs are the only Add-On Share for Spring CSA (no bread shares, lettuce shares, microgreens shares, etc.). Eggs will not show up in your customization email.
  • If you order eggs from the store ahead of time, you’ll save a little compared to the market price. Extra eggs may also be available to purchase at the market for the regular market price.
• During planting season, we may not always be able to respond quickly to last-minute schedule changes, so earlier communication is always appreciated.

Thank you again for joining us this spring! We’re looking forward to another season of good food, muddy boots, planting chaos, and hopefully some decent weather along the way.

Around the Farm

Spring finally feels like it’s moving forward at the farm, even if the fields haven’t always cooperated. Way back in early April, we had enough rain that a lake (basically) formed in one of the fields for a while. Of course, this was one of the fields we needed to clean up and replant.

Since then, we’ve spent a lot of time waiting for the ground to dry enough to safely drive tractors over it without causing compaction or getting equipment stuck. This week, though, things are finally starting to open up.

We’re wrapping up planting the onion family crops by getting the leeks in, and we’re hoping to finally plant our spring brassicas on Tuesday now that those fields are drying out. Carrot planting is also on the schedule this week, which thankfully goes pretty quickly once the tractor can actually get moving.

The greenhouse is still packed wall-to-wall.

We’re at that funny point in spring where summer crops are ready, but we still need to clear out space before things like melons can move into the seeding area. The ranunculus is finishing up, too, which means one beautiful season quietly gives way to the next, and we prepare to flip a hoophouse into the next crop.

We also planted our first paper pot sunflowers this week! If all goes well, these might be the earliest sunflowers we’ve had in years. Sunflowers are one of those crops that always feel hopeful to us. No matter what’s happening in the world, planting something bright and cheerful always seems worthwhile.

The Menu

Spring CSA menus are more weather-dependent than summer menus, especially in the first couple of weeks. We’ll do our best to give you a good mix, but early spring naturally leans toward greens, storage roots, and cool-season items.

Please customize your share by the deadline if you want to choose your items. If you don’t customize, we’ll pack a Farmer’s Choice share for you.

Items in red with an asterisk* are the Farmer's Choice for this week.

Choose up to 25 credits for Spring Veggie Shares.

Items marked “storage” were harvested last fall and held in our coolers for winter and spring shares. This is a normal part of seasonal eating in Michigan, and it helps bridge the gap until more fresh field crops are ready.

Available for this Week:

• Arugula* from our hoophouse
• Asparagus* from Felzke Farms in DeWitt
• Beets, Red (storage)
• Bok Choy from Green Wagon Farm near Grand Rapids
• Celeriac (storage): tiny but mighty in flavor!
• Daikon Radish Blend (storage)
• Dried Beans and Goods from Ferris Organic Farm
  • Pintos only, currently- more on the way!
• Gilfeather Turnip (storage)
• Green garlic: The immature garlic plant, aka garlic scallions. Use just like a scallion, but think strong garlic flavor.
• Herbs:
  • Cilantro from Green Wagon
  • Chives* from our herb patch
  • Flat-Leaf Parsley from Green Wagon
  • Wild Catnip for your favorite feline!
• Kale: both from Green Wagon near Grand Rapids
  • Curly*- the classic kale
  • Dinosaur/Lacinato- an Italian favorite
• Rainbow Chard from Green Wagon Farm. Tender, small bunches of chard.
• Ramps, Wild Harvested from our friends at Monroe Family Organics
• Rutabaga (storage)*
• Scallions/Green Onions from Monroe Family Organics
• Spinach* from Monroe Family Organics
• Sweet Potatoes (storage)! 2 kinds available:
  • Orange: the traditional flavor
  • 'Murasaki': creamy white on the inside with a light purple skin and a delicate, sweet flavor.
• Watermelon Radishes (storage): white outside with a beautiful, crispy red interior.
• Winter Squash, Tetsukabuto (storage): a kabocha-like squash that has a deep squash flavor.

For Sale:

• Dorothy's Homemade Granola! $7.50 per bag
• Eggs! $6.50/dozen
• Homemade Jam:
  • Raspberry, Strawberry, and Blueberry

Pic of the Week