Hello CSA members! Week five is on the way with higher temps but still no rain for us. The national weather service says we are in a moderate drought in our area of wisconsin and i’m hoping that doesn’t keep trending towards severe. The strawberries have not been producing i’m guessing due to drought three years in a row now and could be some winter damage that occurred also. Its very frustrating considering i’ve spent many hours and around a thousand dollars planting them mulching them and keeping them weeded but we only have so much water available and the beets, greens and things have been soaking it up. We should have some more beets, and kale coming in soon but due to the drought all the animals are eating our crops also looking for food and water, all in all, this is one of the worst season starts i’ve ever had. Unfortunately this is part of the risk of CSA and there was no way to know that ahead of time we would have a third year of drought in a row and have animals of all types looking to drink and eat from our fields. There is no way to explain how hard this year has been, I’m trying my best to keep up but having issues with my foot just after recovering from surgery so I’m in rough shape also. Please do enjoy what i’ve been able to provide as the shares have been very full and overpriced so far believe it or not as I push towards mid season here 5 weeks in out of 18, we could be facing some slim weeks ahead due to the effects of these things this spring. Thanks for hanging with me through the tough times and not just the good ones,
Swiss Chard: Chard is a bunching green in the beet family, good for sautéing like you would spinach and used anywhere as a spinach substitute it tastes fairly similar with more mineral undertones of earthy beet like flavors.
Curly Kale: This frilly kale is tender and rich, great for salads or sautéed. One of our favorites at home is kale chips but the kale also goes well with rice or beans in many dishes.
Radish Micro Greens( Large Shares Only): These will be an extra for large shares again this week. great for salads sandwiches or tacos.
Micro Mix or Broccoli Micros: Small shares will have these along with large shares. These are the two favorite micros at market.
Green Onions: These sweet green onions are great with anything really, much better flavor then the store ones. I gave them a cool down just need a rinse one more time.
Lettuce Heads: These heads were bought in due to the animal damage we had on ours, trying to help supplement but its costing me double. These crispy heads are great for salads or even grilling a tad to sear them if you split them in half.
The last of our spring lettuce was completely decimated by animals since there has been no rain they have been invading the gardens for food and water more frequently than ever. unfortunately this means a crop loss for us. Thats it for this week everyone. This is the last week of spring on the farm but it def feels like summer is here with the terrible drought conditions and higher temperatures and humidity. I hope everyone had a great weekend and thank you for being CSA members and I hope you enjoy the veggies we were able to provide unfortunate that we are dealing with drought again but that is part of the risk of farming!