Full Share:  Salad Mix, Huckleberry Gold potatoes, Carrots, Sun Golds, Slicer Tomato, Shishito Peppers, Poblano Pepper, Salmon River Squash, Onions, Garlic, Jalapeno Peppers, and Ring of Fire Hot Peppers.

Partial Share:  Salad Mix, Sungold, Kabocha Squash, Huckleberry Gold potatoes, Sweet Onion, Garlic, Shishito Peppers, Jalapeño pepper, and Ring of Fire Hot Peppers

Hello CSA Members!

You know it must be Week #19 when I’m writing long-winded diatribes about human choices, community self determination, and the proliferation of storage units…..Ohhh, the dreaded storage unit! Meanwhile Rebecca is channeling her delirium into increasingly crazy CSA photo patterns. Yep, that’s right, it’s week #19.  The penultimate share!  That means there is one more week to go 😉

A this point, I’m guessing most of you have experienced frost at your homes?  And the weather has definitely turned a bit chilly, although pleasant.  And the days are getting noticeably shorter.   What does this mean at the farm?  Well, we still have not experienced the “Black Death”, which is the first hard freeze in the mid-20’s that kills off most of the crops, including those in the high tunnels.  So, in preparation for this pending event, we have been scrambling to bring in the last of the sensitive crops such as tomatoes, peppers, winter squash, and eggplant.  In addition, we continue to chip away at the storage crops such as carrots and potatoes.   While our carrots at the end of last season were definitely disappointing, this season is looking to be the opposite.  We still have 18 beds of carrots that are all filled out and looking good.   Eighteen 180 foot beds, which comes out to about 18,000 pounds of carrots.  I think my L4 vertebrae just groaned.

With winter quickly approaching, what does this mean for access to Two Bear Farm produce?   Well, at this point, you have your share this week, then you have your final share (week #20) next week  from Sept. 24th-29th.  The last week of CSA also is the last week of both the Whitefish and C. Falls farmer’s markets.   The following week, on Thursday, October 4th, we are hosting the 3rd annual Stock-Up Sale at the farm from 4pm until dark.  This event has become quite popular, and gives you an opportunity to enjoy the farm, talk to your neighbors, eat dinner from our food truck, and shop for bulk storage crops from both our greenhouse and pack shed.   Lastly, Rebecca has decided to do the fall CSA again, which is a 5-week CSA that runs from October 23rd to November 20th.  This CSA consists of fresh greens as well as some storage crops to keep you in local food until Thanksgiving, and is limited to 50 spots.  Pickup for the fall CSA is only on the farm (no deliveries or drop points) on Tuesday evenings from 4-6pm.  We are opening this fall CSA up to our summer CSA members first, before opening it up to the general public next week.  If you are interested, please sign up on our website twobearfarm.com

As for this weeks share, we do not usually serve up any hot peppers, but we thought that maybe some of you would like to make some spicy winter squash soup.  We’re supplying you the squash, so why not supply you the peppers?  The jalapeño’s are mild, but the Ring of Fire’s pack a punch.   Check out this Kabocha squash recipe, or this amazing array of choices at Dishing up the Dirt.

Time for bed!   See you at CSA pickup!

Todd