CSA #12

Dear CSA-ers,

This week’s Preassembled Bag will contain Arugula, Romaine Head Lettuce, Watermelon Radishes, Chives, 2 bundles of Swiss Chard, and Dill. Orders may now be placed on the online market at: https://magneyfarm.locallygrown.net/market

After last week’s cold snap, things on the farm seem to be bouncing back quite well. Spring seems to be at full throttle and the mix of rain and sunlight days has growth going full throttle. The newest group of laying chickens are faring well and are journeying forward in their “chicken tractor.” The chicken tractor is a mobile coop that protects them from predators and allows the birds to travel to new foraging ground each day. Daytime on the farm is filled with bird sound, from the chickens, bluebirds, phoebes, and other wild birds that flit about the perimeter of the property. In the evening, especially rainy ones, the sound switches to the riotous chorus of frogs.

The evening brings its troubles though. If you have been with us for a few years, you’ve undoubtedly heard us lament our ongoing struggle with deer. A single deer casually crossing the property can level an entire crop. This year, we are trying something new on our most susceptible crops. Utilizing an elaborate pattern of electric wire, Hannah has constructed what we’ve affectionately named the ‘Deer Defense Grid.’ If deer are going to get at our outdoor lettuce this year, they’ll have to do it with the Mission Impossible theme song playing. You’ve got to find some humor in your work.

This week’s featured vegetable is the herb, dill. Dill’s culinary usage in Europe, the Mid-East, and Asia dates back so far it is difficult to even determine the origin of the plant. Eastern European cuisine seems to make the most liberal use of dill, where it is touted as having properties that aid digestion. A common theme from Slavic recipes is that dill is usually paired with dairy. Borscht served with sour cream and dill is perhaps the foremost example of this. For something a little easier, try a refreshing spin on an ordinary breakfast: bagels topped with cream cheese and chopped dill. Dill, like many deep-rooted herbs, is rich in the trace minerals that help our metabolism function well, so feel good about eating it. We’re still a little ways out from cucumbers, so we invite you to give dill a chance to shine independent of pickles.

We are just a few weeks out now from our first of summer crops, squash. We have plenty of blooms and they are starting to show the first little signs of actual squash. This is a relief, because we were so worried, we would lose them in the last frost of the season. However, they have recovered and are thriving in the warmer temps of Spring.

As always, we thank you so much for your support of our farm. Bringing the bounty of this region’s fertile soil to you through CSA brings us so much joy. We hope you feel some of that joy in every delivery bag.

Sincerely,
The Magney Legacy Ridge Farm Team