This Week at the Farm: Blueberry Picking!

As we head into the height of the season, many of our crops are flourishing and there’s a steady flow of organic produce from the fields to the farmstand and kitchen. Before we get into what’s in season and details about blueberry picking (it’s Opening Day!)...

Our Annuals & Perennials Department has two sales going on through the end of the day Sunday:

• Buy one, get one FREE herb starts
• 10% off all pottery

Blueberries!

Starting this morning, our certified organic PYO blueberry patch will be open daily from dawn to dusk! In case you haven’t picked before: the blueberry patch is located about a half mile south of the farmstand on Pavillion Rd. Look for the sign that says “Sunny Fields Berry Farm”.

Our blueberries are sold by the pint, unlike strawberries (which are sold by the pound), so be sure to measure as you pick. We have containers down at the patch for you to use, or bring your own! After you pick, you can either pay at the blueberry shack with a check or exact change, or come down to the farmstand to pay with your CSA Card or credit card.

Visit www.cedarcirclefarm.org or call the farm for more information and blueberry picking updates.

The Season’s Bounty

There’s a lot to choose from in the farmstand right now: beets, broccoli, cabbage*, carrots, collards, fennel, eggplant, green beans, greens mix, kale, lettuce, lettuce mix, peas (shelling and snow), pickling cucumbers, slicer cucumbers, summer squash, tomatoes, zucchini. Heirloom tomatoes will be ripe in the next couple of weeks, and you can expect to see corn by the first or second week of August.

*Cabbage is the veg of the week, and is 10% off through Monday!

Our kitchen staff is working nonstop to turn the abundance of produce into tasty foods and products for you to enjoy. Snow pea stir fry, cucumber salad, egg salad, “the beet goes on”, and purslane pesto are just a few of the things you might find on your next trip to the farmstand. Keep an eye out for krauts, sweet pickles, and refrigerated pickles, coming soon!

Everyone’s enjoying the season’s bounty, including our summer day campers! In the mornings they break off into groups to do chores, like harvesting peas for snack time. In the afternoon, they choose from a variety of activities, some of which are food themed. Highlights this week were: making edible veggie art with roasted summer squash and a tzatziki dyed with beet juice, finding all of the colors of the rainbow on the farm to eat, and Farm Spa down at the river (complete with cucumber slices and honey sugar scrub!).

Stone Soup

At snack time on Wednesday, Meredith shared Cedar Circle’s Stone Soup story in which a band of musicians and a kale farmer, a beet farmer, and an onion farmer, all worked together to share what they had, taking a little and making it a lot, to create a very tasty soup. Afterwards, groups harvested either kale, beets, or onions, helped in the processing of it, and enjoyed a delicious (and beautifully colored) soup at closing circle.

To make stone soup: over medium heat, sauté chopped onion with olive oil, and salt. Next, add whatever veggies are in season (we used beets or potatoes), then add water and boil until the veggies are tender. Turn off the stove then add kale or other greens just until wilted. Don’t forget to salt and pepper as needed!

Save the Date!

Mark your calendar for this year’s Pumpkin Festival, held on Sunday, October 13th from 10 am to 3 pm! Stay tuned for more details as we get closer to the festival.

If you like to plan a few months ahead and your fall calendar is already filling up, we’d love for you to consider volunteering with us. Festival volunteers receive free admission to the festival, free lunch, and a coupon for a discount in the farmstand.

Volunteer →

Gardening Tips: How to Cut Stems

Our cut flower garden is thriving in its new location behind the farmstand. It’s in full bloom now and definitely worth a visit. When arranging your flowers in a vase, cut your stems on an angle. This will allow the plant to take up more water!

Get more tips →

There’s so much to do at the farm during this time of the year. Besides shopping for all the local ingredients you need for your next dinner, you can pick blueberries, pick flowers, grab some tasty prepared foods for a picnic with friends, and so much more. This really is the beginning of the bountiful summer harvest… it’s one of our favorite times of year on the farm and we love sharing it with you!

See you at the farm!

—From all of us

Upcoming

July 20: Norwich Farmers Market, 9–1.
July 21: Knife sharpening at the farmstand, 10–2.
July 23: Little Farmers drop-in class for children ages 2 to 5, 10–11 am.
July 25: Lebanon Farmers Market, 4–7 pm.
October 13: Pumpkin Festival! 10 am–3 pm.