Hello Everyone!

That picture above was taken Thursday evening, and it feels like a whole season ago. I hope you all found somewhere to settle down to withstand the heat wave this weekend - it really was so hot. I found myself struggling by mid-day Sunday - it's just such a swing. It was only 53 as a high last Thursday when we were planting in the drizzle.

You can't really see it from these pictures I snapped while turning the transplanter around to go back and get more plants, but we planted nine 400' beds in section 18 last week (we have 20 sections on our farm, each 400'x50' or 1/2 acre). We planted 4 beds of peppers, 1 bed of eggplant, 2 beds of zucchini, a bed of cherry tomatoes and a bed of cut flowers! Plus we put out hoops and row cover for the eggplant and zucchini.

We use floating row cover, a woven polypropylene fabric that allows light, air and water transmission, but keeps out pests and has a slight greenhouse effect on the crops. Without this method of pest exclusion, we would struggle with solanaceous flea beetle, which is a tiny black beetle, which in large numbers can decimate eggplant seedlings. We'd also struggle with the striped cucumber beetle, which, on it's own doesn't cause too much damage if numbers are low, but it transmits a disease while feeding on the leaves and stems of zucchini, cucumber and some winter squash plants called "bacterial wilt" which causes the plant to die, usually just as the first few fruits emerge.

I'd really like to be able to move away from using so much plastic on the farm. I gave myself permission to use the plastic on the ground in these beds because it really does make such a different in weed management and crop performance, and we are still struggling with the challenges of start-up. We hope to phase out most plastic in the next few years, but for right now, I had to give a little for my own sanity, and just to make the bottom line work.

I had a bale shredder in the budget this year (a machine that you can put a bale of hay in and it shreds it and shoots it out, allowing you to spray mulch on the ground). It takes a LONG time to shake out bales of hay onto pathways by hand (and makes the crew cranky). The bale shredder makes mulching with hay a reasonable feat. A few things have already stirred up our budget this year, so we won't be spending $7,000 on a bale shredder (or whatever it costs now with inflation), but there is always next year.

It's hard, having moved farms so many times and having been in some form of a start up mode for so many years to not compare myself to farms that have been around for the same time (some longer) and wonder why I can't have my sh*t together the way they do.

And then I remember that nothing is like it seems on the internet, and everyone/every farm is facing their own challenges and has their own differing levels of support. I'm right where I am, and I remember that saying someone told me about ten years ago, "farms are measured in decades, not years." So, I'll look back in 10 years (when I'm struggling to figure out some new challenges) and see how far were have come.

Thank you for being on this journey with us. I can't believe it's the end of May . . .

Asparagus again! Enjoy this season while it lasts, I'm sure you all noticed how the lilac season blew by in a few days this year with these extreme temperature swings. Asparagus might be on the same path . . . we will see!

Spinach, again - cook it with eggs! Make a quiche! Chop it and stir it in with spaghetti!

Head lettuce . . . I know, it's the "oh my so much lettuce" time of year. But, lettuce loves spring. We've got lots of salad recipes for you down below. My mom mad this salad for us on Sunday it was very good! It called for half a head of lettuce, but just put a whole head it. It's a complete meal and really, really good.

Choose 2: Radish, bok choy, kale, swiss chard. Our first bunching greens of the season!

Choose 1: lettuce mix, arugula, mustard greens

Lets get excited about salads!! Usually I try and mix up the recipes in the spring shares to give you some non-salad options but this week we're going to embrace the leafy green. Salads don't have to be boring when there are so many different ways to make them exciting. I've included some of my all time favorites below. I also added a new Asparagus page this week with prep and storage tips and handful of recipes. Don't forget to check out the other recipe pages on the Upswing website if you need some other ideas!

While this calls for Butter lettuce, you can use any of the gorgeous leafy greens in your share. Fresh mint, honey and hazelnuts with salty pecorino Romano cheese.

Kale, Currants, pecorino Romano cheese, lemon juice, pine nuts and red pepper flakes. Super quick to throw together and a flavor explosion!

Carrots, radishes, quick pickled onions, pine nuts, sunflower seeds and crumbled feta all atop your gorgeous spring greens with a citrusy vinaigrette.

I love the recipes from this website. They're always incredibly flavorful and this salad is a great example with fresh herbs, crisp cucumbers and a creamy vinaigrette.

Don't be scared off by the "spicy" in the name - you can make it as spicy (or not) as your family likes. This one is always a winner in our house. I serve it with a side of tortilla chips that I sometimes crush over the top.

Arugula, kale, dill, basil, chives, feta, avocado, oregano and more! I'm not even a big sun-dried tomato fan and I couldn't stop eating this salad. So good.

Don't look at me like that! While noodles in salad isn't something you see everyday, you'll wonder why after trying this. If heat isn't your thing, skip the jalapeno in the dressing - it's still amazing.

Pick Up Details:

34 Rogers Rd, Holliston

Tuesday, 1pm-6pm

Park beyond the farm stand (up the hill, past the yellow house)

65 Brookline St, Pepperell (parking is more like 50 Brookline on maps)

Wednesday 2pm-6pm

Park in the lot near the greenhouses with the white 'Upswing Farm' sign

93 E Main St Hopkinton (but don't pull into the main entrance!, see parking info below)

Thursday, 1pm-6pm

Just west of the nursery is a traffic light. Turn up the hill onto Legacy Farm Rd North and then take your first right into the back gravel parking lot to park. You will see our truck and tents from the street.

Call 508-215-8378 with questions. If you text, please make sure to include your first and last name in the text.

Email brittany@upswingfarm.com with any planned schedule changes

Greens: In a plastic bag in the fridge, not near the freezer. (Ideally between 34 and 40 degrees with 98% humidity.) If they don't come in a bag, undo the twist tie when you get them home and put them in a bag. They will wilt without one.

Root veggies: All roots (even potatoes) want to be in the fridge. Onions, shallots will also want to go in the fridge (in paper bags, not plastic) since spring is sprouting season and they will want to grow if left on the counter. If they do sprout, you can still eat them! The whole green stalk is edible and delicious. Think "green onion". Potatoes should go in the fridge in a paper bag. If they sprout you can knock off the sprouts and still eat them.

Herbs and scallions: Unless you are drying them, they can go in a plastic bag in the fridge.