The spirit of Persephone hoping for strawberries

Persephone's Return

Do you know the ancient Greek myth that explains winter? I'm a HUGE fan of Greek mythology, so I'll tell you in any case. Hades, god of the underworld, kidnapped harvest goddess Demeter's daughter Persephone. Zeus was able to get her back to the realm of the living, but only once it was too late. She had eaten pomegranate seeds from Hades and was forever tied to him. She returns each year for four months, and Demeter is so sad that it gets cold and plants die. Thus, winter.

In modern farming, we refer to a specific time in winter as the Persephone Period. This is when there are fewer than 10 hours of daylight, which makes plants grow extremely slowly. We plant our winter greens early enough so that they're full sized before the Persephone Period begins mid-November.

But now, the Persephone period is over! Our newer plantings of winter greens are taking off, so we have lots of salad mix this week! Bryan planted arugula and bok choi, and this week will plant radishes, turnips, and garlic scallions. Rejoice - Persephone has returned and we'll have fun new veggies to eat soon!

Summer 2018 CSA

We hope you'll continue on as a summer CSA member! The market-style format will be the same, and we'll have the summer's bounty to choose from like tomatoes, cucumbers, potatoes, onions, and watermelons! If you're curious whether we'll have a specific crop, just let us know.

The summer season will begin on May 1st, and your remaining winter balance will roll over. If you plan to continue on, we ask that you put down a $50 deposit by March 31st (it will immediately apply to your winter balance.) Then, you can add whatever funds you like for the rest of the summer season. If you have any questions about this process just let us know.

To complete your summer sign up on Small Farm Central, click here. In the green box at the top of the page, select 2018 season. Select "2018" on the next page. Next, under "Main Season CSA," select "Re-enroll" (it's the last option listed.) Let us know if you have any questions or issues.

And if you're a CSA fan, please help us spread the word!! Feel free to direct people to our website for more info.

What We're Eating

Watermelon Radishes with Preserved Lemons

Use a knife or mandolin to thinly slice a Watermelon radish into rounds. Toss in about 1t lemon juice, 2t rice vinegar, 2T olive oil, salt and black pepper. Let radishes marinate for 15-20 minutes. Finely chop HEX Ferments Preserved Lemons and sprinkle on top. Garnish with a delicious green herb if you like. This was a simple and scrumptious side dish!

Moroccan Sweet Potatoes

Preheat oven to 325. Sautee coarsely chopped onions (about 1 c), cubed sweet potatoes (2c), 1-inch rounds of carrots (1c) in 1/4 c olive oil for 3-5 minutes. Cover with chicken (or vegetable) stock. Add 1 cinnamon stick, 1t each of cumin, paprika, and turmeric, 1/2t allspice and 2t salt. Mix and braise at 325F uncovered for 15-20 minutes. While cooking, toast 1/2 c walnuts in a dry pan on the stove (careful not to burn them!) Chop coarsely. When sweet potatoes are soft, stir in walnuts and 1/2 c dried fruit (we used golden raisins.) Cook on the stove for an additional 5 minutes, and serve. Goes great with rice or couscous.

Thanks everyone! We hope we get to keep growing for you this summer!

- Joanna and Bryan