CSA Newsletter -Week 18- 2016

Sigh. Another summer season has come and gone. It happened so fast! Each year the cycle spins around just a little faster. We are glad you joined us on this little ride and hope you will continue to visit us at the Farmers Markets in Olympia and Tacoma (Proctor) until next year’s CSA starts again. It makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside knowing that we are nourishing so many folks in the community.

I think I can speak confidently on behalf of our crew that we are all looking forward to a reduced (theoretically) work schedule. We can now enjoy later morning start times, earlier bed times, and hunkering down in front of our respective wood stoves and heaters, bowl of soup in hand, long abandoned books and projects ready to be taken up again. When I was younger, I always dreaded the dark, rainy season. Now I almost welcome it. Rest, and perhaps even a little boredom?????

In the next few weeks we will try to get this place all buttoned up for the winter. Like kids who have had their fun playing with the blocks and Legos, we now have to clean it all up. There is drip tape to roll up, trellises to take down, tools to put away, supplies to organize and inventory, greenhouses to clean, pots and flats to put in lofts; it’s a pretty long list and not terribly fun. But it has to get done, so we’ll brew the coffee and carry on. Because we live in a flood plain, we have to put away all the non-essential items now, while we have the luxury of time. It’s no fun to do during a flood. We have a half a dozen crew sticking around into the fall/winter so we’ll get it done.

THE CSA IS OVER, SO NOW WHAT?

You have no doubt gotten used to eating incredibly sweet and tasty fresh veggies all summer, so now what? Well, we have a handful of early and late fall shares left. We will be attending the Olympia and Proctor Farmers Market through the winter. We plan on having a wide variety of veggies all winter long, including fresh greens and herbs like lettuce, arugula, dill, cilantro, kale, and chard.

Sign up for 2017 begins in early January. I’ll send an email with a link after the first of the year.

SEEKING FEEDBACK-WE’RE ALL EARS: I don’t have a formal survey for you to fill out (because we all HATE surveys!) but please feel free to drop us line with any and all suggestions, compliments, complaints, observations, etc. We are always striving to improve and your feedback helps us do it. Thank you!

WHAT’S IN THE BOX:
Orange carrots
Yellow and purple carrots
Beets and chard
Rutabaga
Potatoes
Yellow onions
Garlic
Pie pumpkin
Delicata squash
Kale
Sweet peppers

ELABORATIONS:

Yellow and purple carrots: We have given these out before. They are a better cooking carrots, as opposed to fresh eating in my opinion, though you may enjoy them raw.

Potatoes: This variety is called Princess La Ratte. They are like most fingerlings-dense, waxy, great for oven roasting, stews, pot roasts, etc. We chose not to wash them for a few couple of reasons. 1. We were up against the clock trying to get the rest of the potatoes out of the ground v=before the monsoon hits tomorrow and 2. They store longer unwashed. You can keep them in the fridge or in a paper bag in a cool location.

Winter Squash: We have sampled all of the varieties, and deemed them sweet enough to eat, so go for it!

Onions: I mentioned many weeks back about the trouble with our onion crop and how many of them ended up being small. We fondly call this particular size of onion “Walters,” named after a customer of ours that specifically seeks them out and buys them by the 10 lb bag throughout the winter. He loves small onions. They are great tossed in whole or halved with pot roasts, or they are perfect when you only need a little bit of onion for a dish. Jim and I prefer the small ones, so we hope you appreciate them too.
BOX RETURN: Whether it is just this week’s box or a whole stockpile, you can return them to the Olympia or Proctor Farmers Market at any time (during business hours, of course). I you pick up at one of the state agencies, you can return your empty boxes there by Monday. Ditto Farm Fresh Market. If you pick up at someone’s home, it would be best to bring the boxes to the market so we don’t clutter up their yard! I’ll make the rounds next week to collect them.

Thank you once again for joining our CSA! Have a great fall and winter. We’ll see you next year!

Your Farmers,

Jen, Jim, and the Rising River Farm Crew.