Thank you to all who physically support Little Ridge Farm!!!
This weekend we had a "Tribute to Workshares" lunch. Every year I have about 7 families who send someone out for 2 hours a week June into October. I try not to make them do the hardest work on the farm, but certainly they earn their discount. It's a great experience for one to learn first hand how the farm works and to get dirty. I RELY on these folks to make the farm work and every year it has been a very positive and rewarding experience. So a big THANK YOU to all who have pulled, picked, hunched, sifted, pounded and sweat for our food!
As they say "don't put all your eggs into one basket". So this year I decided to expand the amount of wholesale food I sell. I pick items that I do not grow for the CSA so there is no question as to which is for wholesale and which is for CSA. I grow a "carrot medley" (a mix of red, yellow, purple, white and orange) for Crown of Maine. They are a family created cooperative that buys from farmers in Maine and then redistributes the goods into New England.
For them I also grow an assortment of winter radish. They are spicy like regular radishes but bigger, different colors and can be stored into winter. And then I grow storage carrots for the Good Shepard Food bank. They received a grant so that they could actually buy fresh food from farms rather than relying on donations. It's a win win, as the farmers get paid and the food bank gets a consistent higher quality product.
With selling wholesale comes lots of washing, sorting and packaging. It is AMAZING how much food would potentially get discarded. Understandably so, restaurants want all their veggies to be uniform and perfect from top to root. No forks, blemishes, twists.....Well we all know how we love our dancing carrots!!! So this is where you come in. So I do not waste all of the "2nds", I will offer them in the share. This is the ONLY time you gets 2nds. So keep your eyes out for some spicy color in the next few weeks.
PYO PUMPKIN PARTY and POTLUCK October 1st from 11-2.
Don't miss out on finding the perfect pumpkin!!! We will take a wagon ride out to the patch at 11 am and them return for a potluck lunch!
This Week's Loot: carrots, potatoes, beets, peppers, chard, dill, sage melons (full share)
