SUMMARY: SEVENTH Week of FALL 2020! - EXTRA VEGGIES! - ANNOUNCEMENTS - VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT- ACI DONATION UPDATE AND DONATE TODAY! - DID YOU KNOW? - LOCATIONS AND TIMES - WHAT TO EXPECT THIS WEEK - WHAT TO EXPECT NEXT WEEK
Week 7 - The SEVENTH Week of FALL CSA 2020!
HELLO DEAR CSA MEMBERS! I don't know about you, but I am excited for the future! Nearly all of the crops have been pulled from the fields and we are working almost exclusively in the hoophouses now. The team loves this news, as it makes the harvest and farm management much easier. However, that also means that the cold weather is here and it looks like it's here to stay for a while. That means frozen hoses, plants and toes!😄 It also means more work.
For most farmers, the Winter is the off-season. It's the time of year to put your feet up by the fire and comb through the seed magazines. But not this farm or farmer. Nope, since we are 365, we don't get that break time. In fact, Winter time is, in many ways, more difficult than the other seasons. The cold temperatures freeze all the hoses requiring draining every night. All the irrigation needs to be constantly drained and reconnected every day and the row-cover is terrible (don't get me started!). There are a lot of extra steps in the winter time to ensure the plants survive the cold temperatures, that they receive bio-available nutrients and that all the equipment on the farm is not frozen solid and working properly. All the heaters and the propane costs for all the buildings, nevermind the fact that extra labor is required due to the lack of efficiency and speed make things much more difficult. Finally, we grow less than half as much food because the varieties are limited and the growth time is reduced to an absolute minimal (or no growth at all). In short, Winter farming SUCKS😜 . Yup, there is no way around it. However, it keeps us employed and paying the bills. It also keeps us fed with the freshest most delicious and nutritious vegetables around, so that in and of itself is worth it!!
We absolutely love farming, and sometimes we have to take the negatives of working in unpleasant conditions in order to appreciate and celebrate the pleasant ones. That's life, right? It's also what makes life interesting and we love that we are your farmers and grateful that we get the opportunity to complain about farming in the Winter - so thank you for your support💚💚 !
See below for what's coming in your bags this week, and more updates!
Enjoy your share this week and don't forget to join the fun and share your recipes and pictures in the Facebook Community Group!
Thansgiving Week Schedule Change
For the week of Thanksgiving there will be a schedule change. Please notate the schedule as follows:
All pickup locations and door to door deliveries will be moved to Wednesday, November 25th. All locations and times are the same and have no further changes.
TO BE CLEAR: THE ONLY CHANGE FOR THANKSGIVING WILL BE A MOVE TO WEDNESDAY OF THAT WEEK (Nov. 25th) FOR ALL LOCATIONS. NO OTHER CHANGES WILL BE MADE. THERE WILL BE NO PICKUPS OR DELIVERIES ON THURSDAY (11/26) OR FRIDAY (11/27) OF THAT WEEK
ATTENTION AUTO-RENEWAL MEMBERS
If you selected auto-renewal you should have already received an e-mail with a reminder of your auto-withdrawal for your Winter CSA Membership. All auto-renewal charges will occur automatically on December 1st, 2020. The following will be the amount charged (all auto-renewals automatically received 5% off. The prices below reflect this discount):
SMALL: $189.05 after 5% discount
MEDIUM: $256.50 after 5% discount
LARGE: $318.25 after 5% discount
If you would like to make a change to your share size or location please make those requests prior to 11/29/2020. Thank you!
EXTRA VEGGIES FOR SALE
DON'T FORGET: SNAP MEMBERS ALWAYS RECEIVE 50% OFF!!
&
As always, all prices are
"Pay-What-You-Can-Afford."
See the weekly "What's in your Bag" e-mails that get sent on Wednesdays for your "extras" list.
For Payment: Cash or Check at the drops or the balance can be sent via PayPal to contact@ahavahfarm.com or via Venmo to 719-233-7828 or by paying with credit card over the phone.
Ahavah Community Initiative Volunteer SPOTLIGHT
THIS WEEK WE HAVE SOMETHING NEW! We have a few openings that we want to tell you about!
BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEMBER OPENING
We have at least 1 opening for the Board of Directors for ACI. This is a non-paid, volunteer position for two years with monthly meetings. All details and an application can be found HERE.
ADMINISTRATIVE PAID POSITION OPENING:
ACI is hiring for a part-time Administrative Assistant to the Board. This is a 15 hour per week position, here at the farm (employed by ACI). All details and the application can be found HERE.
Want to get involved with either ACI or as a volunteer on the farm? E-mail us to let us know. We are always looking for volunteers and we would love for you to join the party!
AHAVAH COMMUNITY INITIATIVE - APPLICATION AVAILABLE NOW!
The application for a free Winter CSA share membership is now available at www.ahavahcommunity.org/apply
If you, or someone you know is struggling to afford pure, nutritionally-dense food, we want you to please apply to receive a donated share.
The application takes no more than 5 minutes and is completely anonymous. We do not save your information or share it with anyone.
Whether you have applied in the past, received a membership in the past or are a current recipient of a donated share, we still want you to apply for 8 weeks of FREE, regeneratively grown food harvested fresh, every week, from Ahavah Farm. Application deadline is January 11th, 2021. Season begins the first week in February. Click below to apply.
www.ahavahcommunity.org/apply
DID YOU KNOW?
COMING SOON!!!!!!
By now, you all know that Ahavah Farm Nursery is COMING SOON! We will be taking pre-orders for all your garden plants as well as any other varieties (house plants, medicinals, living herbs etc) that you may want. We will be launching the website soon (within a few weeks) and we will be offering gift certificates and pre-sales. The pre-sales will be a great way for you to guarantee your Spring garden. Of course we will have loads of plants available come Spring, but the only way to guarantee your selections will be available will be through pre-purchase.
Things are coming along, we are ordering all the seeds, pots and supplies and gearing up for success. If you recall, we attempted to do this last year (2019), but lost everything due to the Bomb Cyclone and we were forced to give refunds to all our pre-sales, which we did. This year we have come a long way. Our greenhouses are solid as stone and our staff is absolutely ready to crush it with Lorin at the head. We feel prepared to pull this off successfully and we are confident that now is the time!
Spring preseason orders will start soon - keep an eye our for announcements! We will be rolling out a website with living plants, heirloom seedlings, herbs, microgreens, flowers, medicinal plants, beneficial house plants, gift certificates, garden accessories and more!
Join Chef Lyn Harwell for a LIVE CSA Seasonal Cooking Class!
Want to get the most out of your CSA? Don't know what to do with all those amazing veggies? Perhaps you are an old pro, but just want to get a few more tips? Join renown Chef Lyn Harwell for a LIVE CSA Seasonal Cooking Class on Monday, November 16th at 6:30pm.
Join along with your own CSA share! Lyn will be using all the ingredients from this week's CSA share to help you prepare your local, seasonal veggies. This class is FREE! Donations welcome and accepted for Ahavah Community Initiative. All donations go straight to fulfill ACI's mission of reaching struggling local families with fresh, regeneratively grown vegetables.
Monday, November 16th @ 6:30pm LIVE at https://www.facebook.com/AhavahCommunityInitiative
CSA PICKUP LOCATIONS AND TIMES
NOTATE TIMES: Times are subject to change due to unforeseen circumstances. Please be aware that it is your responsibility to check Facebook and this blog on ahavahfarm.com for updated information and changes.
(photo credit: Megiddeh Goldston)
THURSDAYS:
COS North / Monument @ Beasts and Brews (7 Spectrum Loop, Ste. 140)
12pm to 1pm (Drive Thru)
NOTE: Beasts and Brews IS OPEN for business! They are doing take out orders and still offering a special discount for CSA members. Inquire inside or call ahead to pick up lunch to go! Go to www.beastsandbrews.com to learn more.
Denver @ JCC (350 S. Dahlia St.):
2:30pm to 4pm (Drive thru)
FRIDAYS:
Colorado Springs @ Ranch Foods Direct (4635 Town Center Dr.):
1pm to 2:30pm (Drive Thru)
2:30pm to 6pm (Inside store)
NOTE: The Ranch Food Direct Store IS OPEN! Please go in and support your local food producers - bread and baked goods, meats and veggies and so many other local goods and necessities. They are stocked! Go to www.ranchfoodsdirect.com to learn more!
Peyton @ Ahavah Farm (7545 Log Rd.):
10am to 11am (Drive Thru)
COMPOST
Be a part of our ZERO-WASTE mission here at Ahavah Farm and bring us your compost! PLEASE REMEMBER - NO PLASTIC BAGS. Want more information? CLICK HERE to learn about the program. Thank you everyone who has been bringing their compost! We are so excited that we can help on your mission to become Waste Free! __________________________________
BAGS! We need your bags!!!
Thank you everyone for recycling your LARGE bags with us (thank you, but we do not need the small ones, only the large ones)! When we receive your bags we immediately quarantine them for 2 weeks before reusing them to ensure they are safe of any yuckies. Thank you for bringing them and any others you may have!
__________________________________ What to expect THIS week:
As always, nothing is guaranteed. These are the items that are "in season" and are anticipated to be ready this week (which may or may not be available at the CSA):
Small = 4-6 items per week
Medium = 7-9 items per week
Large = 10-12 items per week
Potatoes- These rainbow potatoes are perfect!
Lettuce - Loads and loads of lettuce is coming this week! Red and green for a beautiful bed for a salad!
Kale- Absolutely amazing kale! The best we have ever had, you really can't beat this variety of Blue Curled kale. An heirloom variety that is super sweet and delicious! (don't forget to massage it!)
Kohlrabi- Big and beautiful - everything from the beautiful greens to the bulbs of these kohlrabi's are amazing!
Spinach- The sweetest spinach you have ever had, I can almost guarantee it!
Turnips- The biggest, most beautiful turnips we have EVER grown!! Sweet and tender with tender greens!
Tatsoi- There is a little burn-damage on these leaves, but wow are they incredibly tasty and ready for a stir fry!
Carrots - You really can't go wrong with carrots, but OH-MY-GOSH these carrots are gigantic!
Radish Microgreens - The spicy variety of microgreens that we will be offering this week and also one of the most beloved. It was one of the top five items we provided this year. All members should get some this week.
Sunshoots - Our sunshoots are certainly some of the nicest, most high-quality sunshoots you will ever find (that actually goes for all our microgreens). They are one of the most beloved items we grow as well and a regular staple to our CSA. Here are some ideas to use your sunnies this week: https://www.martinsgardenacf.com/sunflower-shoots-recipes
Broccoli Microgreens- These sure have been a favorite of many of our CSA members this year! We are so happy this is the case. This week, we will try to get them to all the members, but it all depends on yield.
Is that it? It's a lot, but I think so! I may be missing something...who knows, you might be surprised with something else too!
That's it for this week! We love you to pieces, are incredibly grateful for each and every one of you and we are blessed to the core to be YOUR farmers!! Yosef, Havah, Kids and Team The Camire Family
