Delivery #4 - Friday, June 20, 2008

COMING THIS WEEK
Mesclun
Head lettuce - 1 -2 heads
A handful of snow peas?
Mixed greens, mostly kale, collards and Zen
Radishes
Peppermint - I'll try to pick enough to dry for winter tea
Tarragon
Turnips??
Bouquet - Veronica, Daisies, Lady's Mantle, Snapdragons?, Yarrow?, Peonies?, Mock Orange, Rubeckia

Remember to check the blog for a description of what gets delivered each week. I try to post by Saturday. And call me if you have any questions.
lastingimpressionscsa.blogspot.com/
There is a chance that there will be spinach at the stand this week from Peter Tusinski's farm on River Rd.


BAGS/FOOD STORAGE
Based on some cloth bags I saw in a mail order catalog, Karen has made us some lovely bags to store our mesclun. Wash your mesclun and put it in the bag while still damp. The leaves keep fresh in the frig. Karen will be making more bags as time allows so that you will able to return empty bags to us so we can use them for future deliveries.
I am determined that eventually we will have a system that does not require plastic bags.

MONEY
Several people have asked me about the cost of the shares and when they ought to pay.

Each share costs $400 to $550 on a sliding scale.
Half shares are $225 - $300 on a sliding scale.
You decide where you belong on that scale.

All members made a minimum deposit of $100 by April 1.
The balance is due by August 1.

However, if you prefer to pay sooner than August 1, that is perfectly fine, in fact it is helpful to me as most of my farm expenses are in the first half of the year. If you would like to pay in installments, that is fine too. I will be sure to include a receipt in your delivery this week and I apologize for not giving you a receipt sooner.

GARDEN NEWS
It feels like there is a lot of news this week. The greenhouse is up, covered and planted. (Thank you Robin!) I am pretending it's Georgia in there and have planted some blackeyed peas, okra, hot and sweet peppers and tomatoes under cover. The Farm Stand opened for the first time this year on Saturday and despite my very low key marketing, there were enough visitors to buy everything that I had picked. I have also received some really encouraging messages from friends far and near in response to my announcement about the stand.

The peas are all in bloom, the snow peas have little pods, the Rat's Tail radish is blooming, the baby corn is up, the mock orange is blooming which always such a sweet smelling treat, suddenly the zinnia plants look BIG, and the baby peaches are as large as pecans.

Of course the weeds are also off and running but fortunately both Karen and I find weeding rather soothing. Plus we can chat across the garden bed. I am working on digging up a new area next to the garage and increasing the flower garden space. Karen is beating back the old weedy patch of the garden so we can set out more lettuce and plant more greens. Saturday is the beginning of my 3rd Farm Week so even though there is a ton to do I feel fairly relaxed about it all.

Happy Solstice!
Laura