Spring Farm Visit
A green house sits on the land of one of the Grace Brothers’ CSA farmers.
Our Community Supported Agriculture team visited our Amish growers in Medina County this week to check in before the season starts in early June.
Many of the growers told us that they have blossoms on strawberry plants and are planting potatoes. Farmers showed us sprouts thriving in greenhouses of salad greens, peppers, tomatoes, and cabbages. A couple of farms already have salad greens big enough to eat growing in pots outside. All these plants will produce the food we will be eating during the CSA later in the summer. Farmers start growing long before we ever eat anything.
Thanks to the nice spring weather, the first few weeks of CSA season should expect strawberries, salad greens, green onions, perhaps a basil plant, beets, & more!
One of our farmers reported that he was still eating crisp sweet carrots from his fall harvest. He is happy to start adding spring chicken eggs, ramps, and asparagus as well. All are growing on his land.
We also talked with one of our honey suppliers who is making bee boxes and you may be able to place orders at our store in June for your very own!
Experimental Farming
One of our growers already has a line of tomatoes in the ground in her field. Each tomato plant has a plastic bag around it filled with water. The water does not touch the plant but helps act as protection from frost and cold. The insulation from the water acts as a tiny greenhouse to keep the tomatoes warm and give them a head start for earlier snacking! We had never seen anyone grow tomatoes this way before. She told us that it’s been a few years since she had grown tomatoes this way and wanted an early harvest for her family. Check out the picture in this article to see this experimental practice!
One farmer is also starting corn early. He planted corn in his greenhouse to get it growing before the corn is usually planted in fields. We’re hoping he can supply corn to us earlier than usual this year.
All that said, it’s a special time of year here as we approach the early June launch of our Summer CSA.
If you’re interested in signing up, it’s not too late!
Plastic bags with water protect plants from frost.