We are excited to have our crew slowly coming back to us this spring. We’ve really been fortunate to develop some great long lasting relationships with our crew and this is what really makes our farm work.
There’s a lot about the farm that is very cyclical – in spring, everything is new again and there is no rhythm. Right now, Ryan is a bit frazzled – I think this is a spring thing and the cold doesn’t help.
On The Farm
Much of the spring is for farm management activities like preparing beds for plantings, getting the plastic mulch ready, seeding, and making sure you have all the supplies. But every time “the weather is right” we seem to do some random farm management activity – this week it was a controlled burn by Ryan, Jacob and Katie. It’s one way to rejuvenate that plants you want to see and manage the weeds you don’t.
The greenhouse and high tunnels are all full to the brim! On Monday evening, we moved plants from outside, back into the greenhouse to protect them from three nights of temperatures in the 20s. Then we took row cover (a blanket for plants) to the field and covered the plants that were already up. It was a bit chilly with a few snow flakes flying – it would have been perfect for a November day, but less exciting for April.
We’ve got more than 3,000 pounds of ‘spuds’ cut and ready to go in the field in the next week. We’ve got six varieties of potatoes ranging from the popular Yukon Gold types to old fashioned Dakota Pearls and red varieties. Tomato plants will be leaving the greenhouse next week to be planted in the field. Radishes, spinach, lettuce, dill, turnips, and beets are all coming up in the field.
Drive Up Vegetables this Friday!
Veggies Available on Friday 4/23
Lettuce
Spinach
Radishes
Turnips
Popcorn
Tomato Plants
We will continue having Friday vegetable sales on the farm for the next four weeks. For this Friday, we will continue to have drive up sales – pull up to the shed, we give you a menu, place your order, and we will bring vegetables to the car. Online pre-orders will begin in May. This week we will have Lettuce, Spinach, Radishes, Turnips, Popcorn… those stinkin 20s froze off the asparagus again. Plan for Asparagus on 4/30!
Regular hours (updated on pekareksproduce.com) will resume in late May and we hope to invite you in the shed at that time.
Weekly Vegetable Subscription
The weekly vegetable subscription will start in just under a month. This is another one of those activities on the farm that is built on relationships. We are thankful to everyone that is returning and glad to have new members too. If you’ve been trying to eat healthier and make some better food choices, this is really a great way to make it happen. Every spring, we have to reset our own eating habits on the farm and there’s no better way than with fresh produce.
Consider getting your weekly dose of Pekarek’s Produce by signing up for the weekly vegetable subscription. We have three locations in Lincoln, Seward, and on the Farm.
Your Farmers,
Ryan, Katie, Jacob, Margret, Michael, Lukas, and Grace