May 26, 2025
Will Grow With Sun
by Farmer Dana

Harvest #4 (Week B) should include kale, salad radishes, hakurei turnips, cilantro, dill, komatsuna, green garlic, lettuce mix, head lettuce, and romaine. Some items will be a choice.

U-pick should include strawberries and labeled herbs like garlic chives, sage, lemon balm, oregano, catnip, anise hyssop, and bronze fennel (bring scissors).

Strawberry note: the cool, wet weather has slowed ripening down quite a bit. There are plenty of ripe berries, you just might have to work a little harder finding the choice ones. Fingers crossed for more consistent warmth and sun!

May 26, 2025
"Now What?!" Workshop
by Gia Yaccarino

Hosted by longtime member Gia Yaccarino on Saturday 5/31, Sunday 6/1, Saturday 6/7, and Sunday 6/8, all at 11 am.

Maybe you are a new member, maybe you’ve been a member for a while. Either way – this workshop is for you!

In the barn, everything made sense while you were putting your share into your bags to bring home. At home, it suddenly became very overwhelming once you began unpacking! We have all been there; it is part of the CSA learning curve.

Let us help you make the most of your farm share!

Being a member of a CSA opens the door to so many topics! At this workshop we will talk about:

- Resources: books, websites, Anchor Run CSA website (Recipes and Veggies 202 – it has pictures)
- How to keep your veggies as fresh as possible once they are in your refrigerator.
- The pros and cons of different preservation techniques (freezing, fermenting, canning, dehydrating).
- “Tools of the trade”, which I find invaluable.
- Before you compost: radish greens are edible!
- Composting, composting at the farm; what and what not to include in a compost pile, vermicomposting.
- Solar Cooking.

We will share recipes based on farm produce that our families love. And by share – I mean taste and provide copies of the recipes. Pestos - don’t limit yourself to Basil. What to do with all those greens? Veggie Hash! The list goes on! This is a casual, enlightening event that will enhance your experience of the CSA. Hope to see you there!

May 26, 2025
Workshifts this Week (5/26/25)
by Farmer Derek

This week's workshift schedule:

Bring gloves, water, a hat, sturdy shoes, and a pad for kneeling (if necessary for you).

We meet under the large red maple at the end of the barn by the pick up room.

Please be there by the scheduled start time (it might be hard to find us in the fields otherwise).

Workshift Guidelines - Workshift Sign Up Instructions

May 26, 2025
Less Rain, More Sun Please
by Farmer Derek

An interesting weather pattern continues: half the week provides ample sunshine and enough wind to let us work in the fields briefly; the other half is very cool and very rainy. It appears we'll endure a third straight week of this. While we were in need of some rainfall, six inches in two weeks is more than plenty, and now we would appreciate it if the soil dried out a bit more between rain events. So far in the month of May, 7 inches of rain has fallen, already 2 inches more than our 17-year average.

But fear not, the crops endure. Our typical spring harvested crops love this weather. The freshly planted summer, heat-loving crops like tomatoes, peppers, zucchini, cucumbers, tomatillos, and winter squash would most definitely appreciate warmer weather. They're surviving but not growing much. Eventually consistently warmer temperatures will arrive and they'll thrive.

While we're mostly staying on schedule with planting, tractor work, weeding, and cultivating, an upcoming big task is hilling/cultivating the 10,000 feet of potatoes and that would be most effective if the soil was dry and stayed dry for a couple of days after. We also have a few thousand feet of beds we need to ready for sweet potatoes. An area that was covered with a robust stand of winter rye plus moist soil will make this task slightly more difficult. The beds have been preliminarily shaped so they should at least dry out quicker. The sweet potato 'slips' aren't arriving until the first week of June so we have a bit more time to finalize the space.

Happy planting amid the return of warm sunshine!

May 26, 2025
U-Pick Information
by Farmer Dana

- Check the u-pick board in the hallway for u-pick crops and amounts before picking. Amounts listed are per share.

- Only crops listed on the board are available for u-pick.

- U-pick crops and weekly allotments can be harvested any day of the week, 8am–8pm, Monday through Sunday of your pick up week. So if you can’t do your u-pick on your scheduled pick up day, feel free to come back any other day that week.

- BYO scissors for herbs and flowers.

- We provide half-pint, pint, and quart u-pick baskets for members to measure and harvest into. Please save these and reuse them as much as possible. If you have some that are still in good shape at the end of the season we'll gladly accept them back.

May 26, 2025
Some Additional Veggies and Greens
by Linda Dansbury

Things are changing, both in the fields and in the pick up room. It's time to get your U-Pick gear ready: hats, good shoes/boots depending on weather, scissors, containers - use the containers in the pick up room for measuring your harvest, and return at the end of your visit, or, take with you but bring them back and reuse each week when you do your U-Pick. Allow time to enjoy the beauty of the fields and harvest your own berries and (maybe) snow peas this week. And...make new friends with fellow members. Do not wash the strawberries until you are ready to eat them.

Escarole - a hardy, delicious green that is very nutritious. Use the tender inner leaves in your salads to add flavor and color to your dish. The outer leaves are delicious sauteed with garlic and a bit of red pepper flakes - or make it a meal by incorporating white beans and/or sausage. Escarole is also wonderful when added to soups such as Italian Wedding Soup and Minestrone. As with other greens, it does not like to sit in water so wrap it in a towel or paper towel before placing it in a plastic bag or container for storage.

Romaine - everyone knows romaine in Caesar salad. It's also delicious stuffed as in lettuce wraps, which can be as simple as slices of grilled chicken or fish with herbs or as complex as a Thai Laab (aka larb). Romaine is also delicious grilled. Just slice it in half or quarters depending on the size of the head, brush it with olive oil and place on the grill - do not walk away! You just want a nice char, but don't want it to get cooked. Serve with a Caesar dressing, or a Blue Cheese dressing. Yum!

Kohlrabi - a strange looking veggie that is in the same family as the lovely white hakurei turnips we like so much. Enjoy it as a crudite, sliced in salads, sauteed, etc. They are delicious, nutritious and store well.

May 26, 2025
Fun with Greens
by Linda Dansbury

The pick up room has been beautiful with all of the different shades and textures of the greens. Here are a few things we enjoyed this past week.

Head lettuce, cilantro, green garlic - It's soft shell crab season, so made those and used head lettuce leaves as a "wrap" for them. Used the herbs for added flavor and made a traditional Vietnamese dipping sauce using green garlic and a hot pepper that was frozen last year.

Kale, bok choy, komatsuna, green garlic, sliced turnips and turnip greens - A simple and very satisfying dinner is to collect a lot of greens and cook together. I started with the turnips and sauteed in olive oil. Added bok choy stems and sliced green garlic once the turnips were beginning to soften a bit. After a couple minutes, added the kale and turnip tops, then bok choy tops and finally the komatsuna. When almost cooked, I made "wells" in the greens and cracked an egg into each well. Placed a lid over the pan and cooked for about a minute. When the whites are just beginning to set, remove pan from the heat and serve each portion with an egg. Mix the egg up with the greens so it forms a sauce. Season to taste and enjoy with a piece of toasted bread. Any greens that are not used up I use in a frittata a day or so later.

Green garlic, cilantro - Made a delicious yogurt marinade for chicken that included a lot of cilantro and garlic. Also, salt, pepper, cumin and cayenne. Grilled the chicken and sat down outside to a delicious juicy, tender chicken dinner - just as it started to rain!

Radishes, garlic chives - One of my favorite dips is the Radishes with Goat Cheese Dip that is on this site. It incorporates yogurt, goat cheese and herbs, which can be switched up based on what is available. The recipe says to use a processor but I just mix by hand.

May 26, 2025
Bag Donations
by Farmer Dana

If anyone has extra grocery bags at home they're hanging onto, we would be happy to take them in the pick up room! Feel free to drop them off in the bins under the pick up room tables. Many thanks!

May 19, 2025
Strawberries Starting to Ripen!
by Farmer Dana

Harvest #3 (Week A) should include kale, arugula, salad radishes, hakurei turnips, bok choy, cilantro, dill, komatsuna, green garlic, lettuce mix, head lettuce, and romaine. Some items will be a choice.

U-pick should include strawberries and labeled herbs like sage, lemon balm, oregano, catnip, anise hyssop, and bronze fennel (bring scissors).

May 19, 2025
"Now What?!" Workshop
by Gia Yaccarino

Hosted by longtime member Gia Yaccarino on Saturday 5/31, Sunday 6/1, Saturday 6/7, and Sunday 6/8, all at 11 am.

Maybe you are a new member, maybe you’ve been a member for a while. Either way – this workshop is for you!

In the barn, everything made sense while you were putting your share into your bags to bring home. At home, it suddenly became very overwhelming once you began unpacking! We have all been there; it is part of the CSA learning curve.

Let us help you make the most of your farm share!

Being a member of a CSA opens the door to so many topics! At this workshop we will talk about:

- Resources: books, websites, Anchor Run CSA website (Recipes and Veggies 202 – it has pictures)
- How to keep your veggies as fresh as possible once they are in your refrigerator.
- The pros and cons of different preservation techniques (freezing, fermenting, canning, dehydrating).
- “Tools of the trade”, which I find invaluable.
- Before you compost: radish greens are edible!
- Composting, composting at the farm; what and what not to include in a compost pile, vermicomposting.
- Solar Cooking.

We will share recipes based on farm produce that our families love. And by share – I mean taste and provide copies of the recipes. Pestos - don’t limit yourself to Basil. What to do with all those greens? Veggie Hash! The list goes on! This is a casual, enlightening event that will enhance your experience of the CSA. Hope to see you there!

May 19, 2025
Workshifts this Week (5/19/25)
by Farmer Derek

This week's workshift schedule:

Bring gloves, water, a hat, sturdy shoes, and a pad for kneeling (if necessary for you).

We meet under the large red maple at the end of the barn by the pick up room.

Please be there by the scheduled start time (it might be hard to find us in the fields otherwise).

Workshift Guidelines - Workshift Sign Up Instructions

May 19, 2025
Rain, Rain, Go Away?
by Farmer Derek

I'm thrilled to be sitting here on our porch on a sunny and windy evening after receiving four inches of rain over four sunless days. The fields have dried out just enough before the next rain event arrives Wednesday. Thanks to the prolonged water deficit, the ground seems to have slurped up any excess moisture. We were able to get back in the fields today and cultivate/hoe where needed as well as transplant winter squash, lettuce, scallions, herbs, beans, and edamame.

During last week's soggy situation, we were fortunately able to do inside work when it was too wet outside. In two of our tunnels, greens were fully harvested and we were able to lay fabric and transplant the first of the tomatoes. On Friday morning, before the final waterfall, we transplanted all of the outdoor cherry tomatoes. Tomatillos went in the day before.

Overall the fields tolerated the two rounds of heavy rainfall pretty well. Seven or eight years ago waterways were installed to collect and deflect excess water and keep erosion to a minimum. We've also learned and modified over time to orient our fields so they drain into grassed driving lanes. Flash flood type rain events are common so we've had to develop methods of coping.

Let's hope the rain this week is slow and steady!

May 19, 2025
Greens Galore
by Linda Dansbury

First harvests are marked by tender delicious greens. Here are a few of the ways I enjoyed them this past week. If you want to share with fellow members how you enjoy your harvest or ask questions, please email me at lindadansbury@comcast.net and please put Anchor Run in the title.

Bok choy, green garlic, kale, cilantro - enjoyed the Asian Style Cole Slaw on this site. Love this recipe and make this often using whatever greens are available.

Rutabaga, potatoes, green garlic - made a mixed mash of these 2 root veggies and added a chopped up green garlic to the cooking water for added flavor - yum.

Turnips, radishes, green garlic - I did a quick pickling for these and used it as a side dish for a Vietnamese grilled chicken - they were so good. I might mess with the recipe a bit and then share next week.

May 19, 2025
U-Pick Information
by Farmer Dana

- Check the u-pick board in the hallway for u-pick crops and amounts before picking. Amounts listed are per share.

- Only crops listed on the board are available for u-pick.

- U-pick crops and weekly allotments can be harvested any day of the week, 8am–8pm, Monday through Sunday of your pick up week. So if you can’t do your u-pick on your scheduled pick up day, feel free to come back any other day that week.

- BYO scissors for herbs and flowers.

- We provide half-pint, pint, and quart u-pick baskets for members to measure and harvest into. Please save these and reuse them as much as possible. If you have some that are still in good shape at the end of the season we'll gladly accept them back.

May 12, 2025
Make it Green
by Farmer Derek

Harvest #2 (Week B) should include kale, arugula, salad radishes, hakurei turnips, bok choy, garlic chives, cilantro, dill, komatsuna, green garlic, lettuce mix, and storage roots (rutabaga, purple daikons). Some items will be a choice.

U-pick should include labeled herbs like sage, lemon balm, oregano, catnip, anise hyssop, and bronze fennel (bring scissors).

FYI we do our best to predict the harvest but we don't always get it 100% right.

May 12, 2025
Abundant Spring Greens
by Linda Dansbury

The season is off to an early start, thanks to our very experienced farmers and the use of high tunnels. Here is a little information about some of the items that you may be less familiar with. There are recipes on this site that have been developed or chosen to highlight the veggies we receive throughout the season. On the Homepage, select the For Members tab, then select Recipes. Use the search bar to look for ideas on how to enjoy the veggies.

Green Garlic - Unlike cured garlic, green garlic needs to be stored in the fridge and you use the entire vegetable - no need to peel anything! It has a more mild flavor than the mature version. You can basically use it in place of "regular" garlic, but the longer it cooks, the less garlic flavor you will have, so I prefer to enjoy it in preparations that use raw garlic. I made an Italian marinade/salad dressing incorporating the green garlic and it was delicious.

Garlic Chives - Garlic chives can be eaten raw, cooked, or used as a garnish. They can be chopped and added to salads, soups, stir-fries, or dumplings, and their mild garlic flavor pairs well with eggs and other dishes. The entire plant, including the bulbs, stems, flowers, and even the seeds, is edible.

Radishes/Turnips - Both can be used either raw or cooked. This time of year, I prefer to eat them raw, either sliced in salads, or part of a crudite platter. For best storage, cut the greens off when you get them home and store the greens separately - don't throw them away! They are delicious cooked/sauteed with other greens. One cooked recipe I really like is Asian Turnip Green and White Saute.

Komatsuna - A member of the mustard family and is similar to bok choy and mizuna. It has a fresh, sweet taste with a subtle mustardy flavor, especially when cooked. Komatsuna is a good source of calcium, vitamin A, vitamin C, and fiber. It's particularly high in calcium, offering about three times the amount found in spinach. Komatsuna can be eaten raw, cooked, or used in various dishes like salads, soups, stir-fries, and as a side dish. I most enjoy it when sauteed with other greens, and add a splash of sesame oil and/or soy sauce near the end of cooking. It is also delicious added to stir fries and even soups near the end of cooking.

Lettuce, Arugula - I love spring greens in large salads (with sliced radishes and/or turnips). Since the greens are so mild, using a simple vinaigrette is best so the wonderful flavors aren't over powered. It can be as simple as lemon juice, salt, pepper and good quality oil. For storing, keep in mind that greens staying wet in a sealed container causes rotting to occur quickly. The way I like to store my greens is to wrap them in a kitchen towel/paper towel before placing in a resealable bag. I also like to clean a lot of greens at a time (salad spinner is a best companion for this). I have a large plastic container that I line with a paper towel and place washed greens in this and store in fridge on a shelf. Greens stay fresh for awhile if they never freeze. I also store some radishes or other veggies I like to add to my salads in the container, so everything is in one place.

May 12, 2025
Workshifts this Week (5/12/25)
by Farmer Derek

This week's workshift schedule:

Bring gloves, water, a hat, sturdy shoes, and a pad for kneeling (if necessary for you).

We meet under the large red maple at the end of the barn by the pick up room.

Please be there by the scheduled start time (it might be hard to find us in the fields otherwise).

Workshift Guidelines - Workshift Sign Up Instructions

May 12, 2025
Pick Up Days and Times Plus Farm Communication
by Farmer Dana

- Pick up days are Tuesdays 1-8pm, Thursdays 1-8pm, and Saturdays 9am–12pm. You're assigned a permanent pick up day but you may temporarily switch to a different day or week.

- If you need to temporarily switch your pick up day and/or week, please email us by 5pm Monday prior to your pick up day.

- After each pick up we'll look at the sign in sheets and if your name is not checked off we will contact you to see if you did miss pick up and want to reschedule.

- We sent an email this past Friday informing you of your designated pick up day and week. Please email us if you did not receive it. It was sent to the primary account holder's email address. If you did not receive it in your inbox, check spam or another folder. It's a good idea to make sure our emails end up in a place you'll notice them since this is how we communicate farm information, events, etc.

- You can log in and view your information on your members page, including share size, pick up day, work history, and balance.

May 12, 2025
Pick Up Essentials
by Farmer Dana

- BYO baskets/bags/boxes to bring your harvest home. Sometimes we have donated shopping bags on hand to pack your shares in, but sometimes we don’t! (Also, our produce is not packaged in any way, so bringing your own bags is important if you want produce kept separate within a larger container. This is a small way we can reduce farm plastic waste. One member let us know that their plastic waste is reduced by half when they are picking up shares from the farm - great news!)

- Check off your name on the sign-in sheet before collecting your share from the barn. Organized by share size and alphabetically by last name.

- Follow harvest amounts written on the chalk boards labeled with your share size (full, half, medium).

- If you need help with anything please feel free to ask a Farm Staffer in the barn for help at anytime!

- Parking is available in the large stone lot at the end of the driveway. Parking next to the barn is available for people with physical challenges and for cars with sleeping kids.

May 12, 2025
U-Pick Information
by Farmer Dana

- Check the u-pick board in the hallway for u-pick crops and amounts before picking. Amounts listed are per share.

- Only crops listed on the board are available for u-pick.

- U-pick crops and weekly allotments can be harvested any day of the week, 8am–8pm, Monday through Sunday of your pick up week. So if you can’t do your u-pick on your scheduled pick up day, feel free to come back any other day that week.

- BYO scissors for herbs and flowers.

- We provide half-pint, pint, and quart u-pick baskets for members to measure and harvest into. Please save these and reuse them as much as possible. If you have some that are still in good shape at the end of the season we'll gladly accept them back.

May 12, 2025
Continuation
by Farmer Derek

Welcome to Harvest Week #2, Week B. I've been racing around since the rain let up Friday, doing a million and a half things before the next round arrives tomorrow, Tuesday. When the weather is good and the ground is dry we fly. Thus, shortened notes again this week.

Ground was prepped for eggplant, watermelon, cantaloupe, winter squash, zucchini, cucumbers, sweet potatoes, leeks, lettuce, basil, scallions, herbs, beans, edamame, tomatoes, and strawberries. Carrots were weeded and hoed. Landscape fabric was applied for future watermelon and cantaloupe. Cover crops were mowed. Veggie crops were irrigated, others transplanted.

Tomorrow and Thursday we harvest. Wednesday we seed in the greenhouse then maybe transplant tomatillos and cherry tomatoes. Friday we probably begin weeding the onion patch.

'Tis the season!

May 4, 2025
Workshifts this Week (5/5/25)
by Farmer Derek

This week's workshift schedule:

Bring gloves, water, a hat, sturdy shoes, and a pad for kneeling (if necessary for you).

We meet under the large red maple at the end of the barn by the pick up room.

Please be there by the scheduled start time (it might be hard to find us in the fields otherwise).

Workshift Guidelines - Workshift Sign Up Instructions

May 4, 2025
Pick Up Days and Times Plus Farm Communication
by Farmer Dana

- Pick up days are Tuesdays 1-8pm, Thursdays 1-8pm, and Saturdays 9am–12pm. You're assigned a permanent pick up day but you may temporarily switch to a different day or week.

- If you need to temporarily switch your pick up day and/or week, please email us by 5pm Monday prior to your pick up day.

- After each pick up we'll look at the sign in sheets and if your name is not checked off we will contact you to see if you did miss pick up and want to reschedule.

- We sent an email this past Friday informing you of your designated pick up day and week. Please email us if you did not receive it. It was sent to the primary account holder's email address. If you did not receive it in your inbox, check spam or another folder. It's a good idea to make sure our emails end up in a place you'll notice them since this is how we communicate farm information, events, etc.

- You can log in and view your information on your members page, including share size, pick up day, work history, and balance.

May 4, 2025
A Note On Storage
by Farmer Dana

Over the years many members have asked about the best way to store farm veggies. For greens, we find that keeping them in large plastic bags in the fridge (away from colder micro climates that might freeze) works great. Our favorite bags to use are 2 gallon ziplock-type bags, rinsed and dried between uses. Fresh herbs can also be stored this way, with the exception of basil which likes to be treated like a fresh bouquet of flowers, in a jar of water on the counter at room temperature. For the rest of the veggies you'll receive these first few harvests, the aforementioned bag method also works. Would love to hear about any veggie storage successes you might have had, please send an email if you'd like to share!

May 4, 2025
Pick Up Essentials
by Farmer Dana

- BYO baskets/bags/boxes to bring your harvest home. Sometimes we have donated shopping bags on hand to pack your shares in, but sometimes we don’t! (Also, our produce is not packaged in any way, so bringing your own bags is important if you want produce kept separate within a larger container. This is a small way we can reduce farm plastic waste. One member last year let us know that their plastic waste is reduced by half when they are picking up shares from the farm - great news!)

- Check off your name on the sign-in sheet before collecting your share from the barn. Organized by share size and alphabetically by last name.

- Follow harvest amounts written on the chalk boards labeled with your share size (full, half, medium).

- If you need help with anything please feel free to ask a Farm Staffer in the barn for help at anytime!

- Parking is available in the large stone lot at the end of the driveway. Parking next to the barn is available for people with physical challenges and for cars with sleeping kids.

May 4, 2025
U-Pick Information
by Farmer Dana

- Check the u-pick board in the hallway for u-pick crops and amounts before picking. Amounts listed are per share.

- Only crops listed on the board are available for u-pick.

- U-pick crops and weekly allotments can be harvested any day of the week, 8am–8pm, of your pick up week. So if you can’t do your u-pick on your scheduled pick up day, feel free to come back any other day that week.

- BYO scissors for herbs and flowers.

- We provide half-pint, pint, and quart u-pick baskets for members to measure and harvest into. Please save these and reuse them as much as possible. If you have some that are still in good shape at the end of the season we'll gladly accept them back.

May 4, 2025
Positive Growth
by Farmer Derek

Welcome to the 2025 harvest season, we hope it'll be a good one. We're excited to once again share and eat farm fresh organic produce. We're super busy, so I'll keep this pretty short this week.

Oddly, this season is mirroring the start of the last one, with wet and cool weather in march and very early April, followed by three weeks of warm, windy, and dry conditions (yes the rain keeps missing the farm). Overall production is good, though, thanks to our ability to irrigate and our ever-improving soil that is the foundation of healthy food. And once again we're lucky to have a great crew of farm staff.

We're very thankful for your continued support. Shares are sold out once again with an 80% retention rate for this season. During these strange days it's reassuring to come together as an essential food community. See you around!

May 4, 2025
Fresh Start
by Farmer Derek

Harvest #1 (Week A) should include kale, arugula, salad radishes, hakurei turnips, bok choy, garlic chives, komatsuna, green garlic, lettuce mix, and storage roots (rutabaga, purple daikons, potatoes). Some items will be a choice.

U-pick should include labeled herbs like sage, lemon balm, oregano, catnip, anise hyssop, and bronze fennel (bring scissors).

FYI we do our best to predict the harvest but we don't always get it 100% right.