CSA Week 22, October 29-November 1

CSA Week 22 – last week – October 29, 31 and November 2

Dear friends,

I write this as I listen to Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. This is a great book that today is reminding me of the value of the local economy, particularly the local food economy. I want to thank all of you for being a part of our CSA. Besides the best food you can get, and I realize that this is the bottom line – quality, you are supporting a local farm economy. In this time in our country where there is very little that is manufactured or grown locally, this is an act of real patriotism. Thank you.

I will miss all of you, and wonder how you are meeting your vegetable needs for the next half year. I encourage you to come back next year so we can partake of this experiment in good food and good health again. Please send along your comments of evaluation for the CSA – suggest ways we could have served you better, things that you liked and didn’t like, observations for how we can be a more consumer-friendly farm.

Now is a good time to sign up for the fall share

It runs the 4 Mondays in November and you can pick up here in Barre or at Living Earth or at Teresa Wolcott’s at 51 Boyden Road in Holden. The share costs $120 with an $8 delivery fee for the out of towners. More of the good stuff for another month. You can sign up here – https://mhof.net/2018-csa-share-options/  We have been saving up stuff for this share and will also have some nice things coming from our unheated hoop houses. I look forward to filling your refrigerators and pantries for one more moth. We have about 27 members but could take as many as 10 more. We start next Monday, November 5. For those of you who have joined the fall CSA, look for an email from me mid to late week with all of the details.

 

This week we will plant garlic as our main work. Last week Brent and Jack finished a new pig house when our old one self-destructed. Our beautiful orange porcines will be around for one more week. Our old layers met their maker yesterday. For those of you who are egg customers we hope to eke out enough eggs as our young ladies take their time, but if not, there will be a refund check in your bag. All in all it looks to be a warmer week next week, if not just as wet as it has been.

Food this week

  • CSA
    • Lettuce – we have some beauties out there. Here and there will be a little spot of freezer burn, but just cut around it
    • Potatoes – from a very delightful crop this year. Have you noticed that they are mostly of yellow flesh – my favorite
    • Kale – we finally realize that there will be an end to the kale, but it has born up under the several frosts and hasn’t run out yet
    • Leeks – still hanging out there and doing well
    • Tomatoes –at least one more week of these beauties from the basement floor!
    • Brussels sprouts –I am over-proud of these this year
    • Winter squash – from our massive supply residing in the basement
    • Arugula – this is from a very late planting in the garden – you might see a little freezer burn here and there
    • Garlic – from the root cellar
    • Onions- from the root cellar – I am particularly happy with the soundness of this crop this year; they chink like pool balls

 

Getting your bags back to us!

We do reuse share bags as long as we can, so please bring them back to the church, to Living Earth, to the farm. We will launder those that can hold up and use them again.

 Other things for sale at MHOF right now

Frozen whole chickens – $6.50/lb.

Hot dogs – $12/lb.

Bacon – $14.25/lb.

Ground beef, stew beef and short ribs – $10/lb.

Rib eye steak and strip steak – $13/lb.

Brisket and chuck roast – $11/lb.

Sirloin steak – $15/lb.

Tenderloin steaks – $20/lb.

Stewing chickens – $15 each

Comfrey salve – $8/2 oz. jar

Peppermint and lavender soap – $6/5 oz. bar

Garlic powder – $9.50 for 1.9 ounce

Lard frozen – $20/quart

Frozen peaches – $12/2 lb. bag

Chicken and pork stock frozen – $7.50/quart

Thanksgiving turkeys – $5.50/lb. – for preorder and pick up November 20 or 21 – order a hen or a tom

Good bye, but hopefully just for now. And thanks again for being the cornerstone of our farm marketing.

Julie