$30 order minimum for delivery into Pittsburgh (Northside only at this time)
-new on the webstore – violets, green garlic, and a LITTLE bit of spinach (we have lots more spinach planted that’s almost ready, but this is the batch that overwintered in the high tunnel). Also… don’t forget to buy a bunch of eggs!
Where to find us?!
The Farm – WEDNESDAY (11 – 7). We’ll set your order out, you come pick it up. We’re putting orders out on the counter under the red awning. Park at the top of the hill in front of the house.
Northside – Wednesday 12:30 – 1:00 at the parking lot on Union Place by Allegheny Commons. Ask about delivery options.
Click here to shop our web-store!
remember that shipping options for farm store purchases are only for Farm or Northside pick up for now.
It’s not too late to join the CSA! Sign up now!
Check out the Seedling Form – to build your own custom order of seedlings –
Fill out this form to give your preference on what seedlings we start for summer sales. Fill out the form this week, and seedlings will be grown for pick-up the week of Mother’s Day. Survey Link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd7lIuuzzzP1TMw5IbHp1PbeEUvXSYw-YqmahvVpcZCk0HkIQ/viewform?usp=sf_link
There’s another cold spell coming up! How about cooking up a Loin Roast? They are on sale!
Garlic and Herb Roasted Pork Loin –
Our bone in roasts are about 3 -4 lbs and don’t have the skin on (as this recipe requires) – but we can highly recommend that you apply a nice layer of Jowl Bacon to the top of your roast instead.
Here’s another recipe where they’ve combined the bacon and loin roast….magic!
Notes from the Field – jen
Lots of planting happening out there! Annie and I have been tag teaming the fields since the weather has warmed up and the the fields dried out. I’ve run the tractor and tilled/prepped the fields, while Annie comes behind and seeds or plants. There’s two successions of beets, radishes, cilantro, and carrots in the ground already. We’ve got the kale, cabbage and first succession of lettuce planted too. There’s been small windows of warm(ish) dry weather which allows us to work the fields. We take any opportunity to plant something when we can.
We have our fields broken into 5 areas, each with about 6 sections per field. Those sections are then broken into 8 beds each. Each bed is 32″ x 50′. We’re dreaming of the day when we can have a 100% no till farm – but our systems just aren’t there yet. Two resources are needed to make our no till system successful: 1 – lots of compost! Right now, we buy compost from AgRecycle. They’re a local operation that’s also certified organic! It’s pricey to bring in large volumes of compost, so we dream of creating a on-farm-scale vermi-composting system one day. 2 – lots of wood chips. We’re constantly using up wood chips for the pigs – it makes great bedding and helps to dry up muddy areas. We’ve used it for mulching areas of our perennial crops (fruit trees/vines), but could use a larger volume of chips between all the beds in the field when we go no-till. If you know of anyone who needs a place to drop chips – send them our way! We can never have too many chips!
From the Barnyard – jen
You’d think the fluctuation in the weather would be difficult for the animals. One night we doubled down on bedding for the pigs, just to keep them warm and cozy. The next day we’re adding water to their wallows to cool them down!
During the cold snap, I spent the nights worrying about the chickens in the field (the ones we just moved to the chicken tractors) catching a chill. They have a tarp for overhead protection but nothing to keep out the biting winds. This chicken tractor wasn’t designed with Western PA springs in mind I guess! During my morning check – they were all perfectly fine…. that’s what feathers are for – insulation! A day later, the chickens are going through two 5 gallon buckets of water a day because of the heat wave! We are getting our 3rd batch of chickens in next week.
Some of you may have been repeatedly dropped from our newsletter. We’ve finally sleuthed out the problem. It’s at the check out page of our online store. At the very bottom, there’s a box that needs to be checked to ensure that you continue to receive the newsletter. So – if you buy anything from our website – remember to be sure that the box is checked! Here’s an example of what I’m talking about. Hopefully we’ll get this fixed soon!
The patio/veranda has come along nicely! We’re 90% there and have a few detail touches and then we can have a Par-tay! It’s been a dream of ours since we put up the red awning. We’ve converted a dusty picnic area into expanded CSA/retail space, lounge, and activity area. One step closer to a “refined” community gathering space! Ham has already established himself as the Host.
