Hello Farm Friends, Neighbors, and CSA Members!
We’ve been open the last few Sundays and it’s been lovely to see some of you! Starting on Friday, March 26th, we’ll be open Friday, Saturday, & Sunday from 1:00 to 4:00 pm. Hooray! We’ll have pansies and violas ready, plus houseplants, succulents, and popping corn. As the season progresses we’ll have tons more annuals, perennials, and vegetable plants!
In egg news, the days are getting longer and the ducks are stepping up their laying! Chef Beaker McDuck wonders if you need some duck eggs? Come and get ‘em. We’re open this Sunday from 1-4pm. $8 per dozen. Freshest egg game around. Quack quack.
We’ve been busy bees in the greenhouse, planting seeds, transplanting seedlings, and propagating cuttings. Now that the days are longer, things are really starting to grow! We’ve got some exciting native plants coming up if you want to make your garden more welcoming to pollinators and birds this summer--Sweet Joe Pye plant, native columbine, and more will be ready in a few more weeks! Maria has been planting hundreds (thousands, probably!) of seeds, Perry has been transplanting tons of marigold seedlings this past week. Andromeda is working on sprouting some ginger and turmeric, which will hopefully pay off in the fall.
Last week we released some beneficial insects--ladybugs and lacewings--in the greenhouse to gobble up any errant aphids and mealybugs. Praying mantises have also been hatching all over the greenhouse, so they’re hunting, too. Take that, pests. Using biological controls like beneficial insects helps us to never have to use any chemical pesticides.
We got a new propane furnace installed in Marsupial House (the glass greenhouse in the back—left side). The old oil furnace in there gave up the ghost. That’s pretty exciting and gives us more space to put all the plants that are sprouting!
Fun Springtime Project: Edible Flower Ice Cubes!
Violas and pansies are pretty AND edible! Here are our best tips for making them into magical ice cubes:
Boil water and let it cool for nice clear ice.
Use fresh flowers free from chemicals and pesticides. (We don’t use any, so if you use our flowers, you’re good!)
Freeze the cubes in layers: first freeze a layer of water, then place the flower on the ice and carefully pour a layer of water over it to hold it down. Freeze again. Finally, pour in one last layer of water and once it’s frozen you’re ready to use your cubes!
Try larger ice cube trays (add more layers/flowers!) or round ice cube trays.
Try other edible flowers or herbs! (Mint, lavender, or basil ice cubes!)
Only seven days until Spring! Don’t forget to try to stand an egg on its end on the Vernal Equinox. (If you use one of our eggs, please send a photo to rivercrestfarm@gmail.com!)
See you soon!
Andromeda & the River Crest Crew