5/28/25 Trials Ramped Up in 2025
Every year on the farm we do a few trials but this year with a team of very astute farm managers (Sean, Sarah and now Bobby!) we are doing a lot of trials and hopefully will be taking our varieties and diversity of veg to a new level for this year and beyond! Having farmed for 18 years sometimes you get into the, “well we’ve always grown X” or “X just doesn’t do well” even though it’s been 12 years since we last trialed it. I love being pushed by younger energy, change is hard and yet the one constant in life, right?
In today’s box we have Napa Cabbage for all Classic Shares. The variety of Napa Cabbage is Rubicon, we know we like both Minuet and Rubicon (two varieties) but we’re trying to cue into what seasons which are better.
Today Family Boxes have Amadeus Broccoli which is new to us and we’re really excited about it. But we’re also trialing the variety Belstar. We’ve been growing only Gypsy but we’ve not been happy with it after our tried and true Arcadia seeds stopped being grown years ago. We have side by side trials of Belstar and Amadeus coming on soon. We look for nice big crowns that do well in heat but also side shoot production after the initial head is taken.
Just yesterday Elizabeth ordered seed for two new summer Cauliflowers we’ll seed early next week as we’ve just had too many failures of the variety Bishop that we’ve grown for years.
We’re also doing trials in Carrot varieties (as well as sowing). We’re increasing corn with a new second variety (we had two last year, one was a winner and one not). We’re trying Melons for the first time in 12+ years. Elizabeth is trying just a few plants of Okra. Last year we tried and succeeded at Garlic after a fail 10 years ago, this year we’re adding a second variety. And as most years our Tomatoes varieties have 10 tried and true varieties plus 4 new ones. We’re even going all in and doing a fully 140 foot bed of San Marzano’s. That’s a bit of a gamble but farming is gambling.
We’re often asked what our favorite crop is, and I have two answers… one is the next seasonal crop just about to come on, but the second answer is a DIVERSITY. It’s what holds the key to our ecological resilience but also economic resilience. Every year we have several failures, that might be the variety, it might be human error but is most often due to forces outside of our control such as weather or pests. We also will have many crops that are a profound success and that diversity means that we keep those things in balance.
If you ever have a veggie that you have major excitement about (either positive or negative) please let us know. Your feedback is important.
Happy Birthday Charlie the Llama (& RIP) plus Happy 17th to SFF CSA!
Many of you may wonder why our email address is Charlie the Llama yet we don’t have a Llama. We had a Llama the first 11 years of this farm who was beloved by all, he was super sweet, loved getting kisses and greeting CSA Members. When he passed (at the ripe age of 24) our CSA Members told us to keep the email address and so we have.
Our CSA started out May 28th, 2008 with 20 members and now we have 220! A few of those early members are still with us! Shout out to Glass and McBride from 2008, plus Arthur, Broudy-Murphy, Coltrane, Eisley, Elliott Guilford, Hester, Mercado, Narath who joined in 2009 & 2010!! Thanks for your long term commitment!
Produce Notes & Recipes
This Week’s Box
Leaf Lettuce Mix
Panisse Lettuce
Rainbow Kale
Cabbage: Napa (Classic) OR Green (Family)
Kohlrabi (Classic) OR Rainbow Chard (Family)
Summer Squash (SR) OR Cucumbers (WC)
Basil (SR) OR Parsley (WC)
Family: Tokyo Bekana & Strawberries
With good Napa and Green Cabbages going out this week, it’s a great week for a light ferment OR some Cabbage salads.
Versatile Fermented Cabbage (Napa or Green)
Think of this as a hybrid between a mild kimchi and a simple sauerkraut—flavorful, tangy, and adaptable.
Ingredients (for ~1 quart jar):
1 medium head of Napa or Green Cabbage (2–2.5 lbs)
1 tablespoon kosher or sea salt (non-iodized)
2–3 garlic cloves, minced
1-inch piece of ginger, grated
1 small carrot, julienned (optional for color and crunch - could be kohlrabi)
1 scallion, chopped (optional)
1 tsp chili flakes or Korean gochugaru (adjust to taste)
1 tsp sugar (optional—helps kickstart fermentation)
Prep the Cabbage: Remove outer leaves, save 1-2 clean ones. Chop cabbage into thin strips. Place in a large bowl, sprinkle with salt, and massage it for 5–10 minutes until it softens and releases liquid.
Add Aromatics: Mix in garlic, ginger, carrot, scallion, chili, and sugar if using.
Pack the Jar: Tightly pack the cabbage into a clean quart-sized glass jar, pressing down to release more brine. Leave at least 1 inch of headspace at the top. Tuck a whole outer leaf on top to keep shreds submerged. Weigh it down with a fermentation weight or a small jar filled with water.
Ferment: Cover with a lid (loose-fitting if airtight) or use an airlock lid. Ferment at room temp (65–75°F) out of direct sunlight. Check daily to ensure it's submerged and taste after 3–5 days. Full flavor typically develops in 1–2 weeks.
Store: Once it’s tangy and flavorful, remove the weight, seal, and refrigerate. Will keep for months.
Notes:
Napa cabbage: Softer texture, absorbs flavor quickly, ferments a little faster.
Green cabbage: Crunchier, more classic sauerkraut texture, slower fermentation.
Napa Cabbage and Kohlrabi Salad (adapted from Meristem Horticulture)
1 Napa cabbage
1 bunch scallions or chives
1-2 bulbs kohlrabi
1/3 cup butter
1 package ramen noodles, broken
2 Tbs sesame seeds
1 cup sliced almonds
A pinch of salt (if using unsalted butter)
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup white sugar
2 Tbs soy sauce
Thinly chop or shred the head of the Napa cabbage. Mince the chives or scallions. Peel the exterior of the kohlrabi bulb and thinly slice or shred. Mix all three together for the green salad base.
For the topping, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Melt the butter in a bowl, and mix the ramen noodles, sesame seeds, and almonds into the pot with the melted butter. Put the mixture onto a baking sheet, apply a pinch of salt to the toppings, and bake this topping in the oven. You will need to watch them and stir them often to make sure they do not burn. When the topping is golden brown, remove from the oven.
For the vinaigrette, in a small saucepan, heat apple cider vinegar, oil, sugar, and soy sauce. Bring the mixture to a boil for 1 minute. Remove the pan from heat, and let the dressing cool.
Combine the vinaigrette, the topping, and the greens immediately before serving. The ramen noodles in the topping will get soggy if premixed for a while before eating. Enjoy!
Note on Boxes & Paper Bags
We use waxed boxes for your CSA Boxes because they are sturdy and can be used over and over. Once your name is put on a box, it will only be used for your produce. We do anticipate the boxes cycling back every week. Please do NOT take your box. If you have someone else pick up and they forget, please try to get the box back by the following CSA that would be amazing. Creating extra boxes for you causes extra cost, waste plus piles of boxes.
When boxes get too old for you, we transition these boxes (with liners) to taking produce to farmers’ market. We do try to have as little packaging as possible.
We use Paper Bags instead of plastic for your light greens because they are compostable and not made from petroleum BUT that means your light greens can wilt more quickly. Please make sure to get your light greens out of them ASAP, wash them and get them put away in your refrigerator for easy use during the week. Your handbook has a full page on Washing & Preparing Greens plus Storage times (page 19 & 21) and a full page on Greens Subsstitutions (page 20). Check them out if you haven’t.
Extra Shares
Flower Share: our first round of Sunflowers 🌻 are in!
Lettuce Share: Red Butter & Curly Red Leaf Lettuce 🥬
Bunched Greens Share: 🌈 Rainbow Chard
Egg Shares: 🍳 Remember we still have openings!