Stop by the Farm for plant starts: Saturdays and Sundays, 9am-2pm. Cash or check only. Shop early for best selection. Updated plant list below.

Farm Tip of the Week: Never turn or till your soil when it’s wet and saturated. This practice will destroy the structure of your soil and could take years to recover. Patience is a gardener’s best friend.

Plant list for April 22 & 23
Cauliflower, Clarify – $4 / 6 pack
Kale, Lacinato – $4 / 6 pack
Pac Choi (Bok Choi), Choko – $4 / 6 pack
Arugula – $4 /6 pack
Napa Cabbage, Wa Wa Tsai – $4 / 6pack
Spinach, Lizard – $4 / 6pack
Basil, Aroma – $4 / 6pack
Cabbage, Ruby King – $4 / 6pack
Cabbage, Kilagreg – $4 / 6pack
Swiss Chard, Bright Lights – $4 / 6pack
Kale, Red Russian – $4 / 6pack
Lettuce, Flashy Trout Back – $4 / 6pack
Lettuce, Green Forest Romaine – $4 / 6pack
Lettuce, Adriana Butterhead – $4 / 6pack
Broccoli, Emerald Jewel – $4 / 6pack

Stop by the Farm for plant starts: Saturdays and Sundays, 9am-2pm. Cash or check only. Shop early for best selection. Plant list below.

Farm Tip of the Week: Due to the unseasonably cold spring, plants like tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers should wait to be planted out. We will offer heat loving crops when it’s the right time to plant.

Plant list for April 15 & 16
Pac Choi (Bok Choi), Choko – $4 /6 pack
Arugula – $4 /6 pack
Napa Cabbage, Wa Wa Tsai – $4 / 6pack
Spinach, Lizard – $4 / 6pack
Basil, Aroma – $4 / 6pack
Cabbage, Ruby King – $4 / 6pack
Cabbage, Kilagreg – $4 / 6pack
Swiss Chard, Bright Lights – $4 / 6pack
Kale, Red Russian – $4 / 6pack
Lettuce, Flashy Trout Back – $4 / 6pack
Lettuce, Green Forest Romaine – $4 / 6pack
Lettuce, Adriana Butterhead – $4 / 6pack
Broccoli, Emerald Jewel – $4 / 6pack

The continued cold weather has delayed the plant sale by about two weeks, but come mid-April our baby plants will be ready to go out into the wild world! Next week we’ll have the first plant list out on our plant start page, which will be updated each week as stock turns over. From April 14 until further notice, stop by the Farm Saturdays and Sundays from 9am-2pm. Our supplies are limited, so early bird gets the best selection. Cash or check only please.

Over the winter we discovered crock pot chicken with our Riverbird Farm birds, and wow, is it a game changer! Season your (thawed) chicken, set it in the crock pot (we set it on some canning rings to elevate), turn it to low and walk away for 5-6 hours. So tender and juicy! We get two meals plus stock bones from each bird. While some might argue a certain infamous $4.99 rotisserie chix is cheaper and faster, our response is “at what cost?” Buying local pastured meat creates a smaller carbon footprint, is kinder to the animals and healthier for you. So check out our friends at Riverbird Farm! We are the Eastside pickup location for their CSA, and our members can sign up to pick up a chicken whenever they are picking up their veggie box – one stop shopping for delicious local food!

Speaking of pastured poultry, our laying flock is in full spring egg production mode! $7 a dozen. Text the Farmer at 360.338.8654 for pickup.

It may be frosty and freezing outside, but inside the warmth of the propagation room, tomato seedlings are emerging! Fact is, our PNW growing season is so short that most all our plants need a head start. Are you planting a garden this year? Whether for the pure joy of biting into a vine-ripened tomato from your patio pot, or wanting to control your food budget a bit, growing yer own can be a rewarding pastime.

Each spring we offer a limited amount of veggie starts grown right here on the farm for our neighbors to plant in their gardens. Having the Farmer nearby is a great additional resource for when you have questions throughout the summer. With 30+ years experience growing veggies, he’s ‘pert much seen it all.

What do you want to eat this summer? Post your comments below and we’ll get those seeds started. Talk about concierge service! And free consultation to boot!

Q: What’s a CSA you ask?

A: CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture. When you buy a CSA you are actually investing in a share of a farm. Usually a flat fee is paid to a farm at the beginning of the season while the customer receives farm fresh products at agreed upon intervals (weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, etc). This arrangement provides financial security for the farmers and allows the consumer to share in both the bounty and risks throughout the harvest season. If you have the ways and means to buy a CSA, that money goes directly to the farm. They are able to invest more in their farm business while continuing to grow more food for our communities.

While Urban Futures Farm operates on a CSA model, we are sold out for the season. We are fortunate however, to have a lot of farmers in our community happy to provide you with fresh, healthy food! Learn more through the Community Farm Land Trust and their 2023 CSA guide.

And before you know it, winter squash has brought us to the end of this year’s CSA cycle. The mainstay of many a warm, savory meal, your squash has been well cured and can last several months, if you can possibly wait that long!

Some favorite preparations: From a long-time customer – butternut squash with lime and green chile. From the Farmer – pumpkin chipotle corn chowder, which you can also make with Kabocha squash. And from this writer – roasted butternut lasagne , which has a similar vibe to ravioli with much less work!

We’re honored that you chose Urban Futures Farm for delicious seasonal, hyper local produce this summer. We hope you enjoyed exploring all the tastes in your weekly box, and wish you and yours a wonderful fall and winter season!

It’s starting to feel like soup weather, and leek soup is a great seasonal choice. There’s two kinds of leek soup it seems. One is rustic, with chunks of potato and leek suspended in a flavorful broth. The other has the same ingredients, pureed to a velvety smoothness. We prefer the former and our new favorite recipe includes a little white wine.

You have a pumpkin in your box this week! What will you do with it? Pancakes, pie, cheesecake? If your favorite recipes start with a can of pumpkin, we recommend roasting your pumpkin first for the puree your recipe needs. And if you’re looking to switch up your pumpkin fix, the Farmer recommends this pumpkin mousse.

Fall signals the return of the oven in cookery, filling the house with the aroma of something savory baking low and slow.

You’ve got the makings of a classic fall dish in your box this week: roasted root vegetables! Hearty and filling, this dish comes standard with rosemary, or fancy with Dijon and balsamic. Add some sausage to the mix and you’ve got yourself a sheet pan supper! This is an easy dish to swap veggies in and out, depending on what you have. And leftovers make a perfect breakfast next day with an egg on top. 🍳

Here come the squash! Over the next few weeks, you will see pumpkin, delicata, acorn and kabocha. From sweet to savory, these mighty vegetables are the backbone for many a hearty fall dish.

Acorn squash, with its compact size, dark green skin and fluted sides, makes a pretty presentation when filled with savory stuffings. Its also great thinly sliced and roasted, curried or as a soup. Find a flavor profile to your liking at Gypsyplate.

Got a favorite squash recipe? Email it to the Farmer at urbanagrarian@comcast.net, and we’ll share it!

When the leeks come in, we know we’re in late summer headed toward fall. Normally the impetus for potato leek soup, but it feels too early. So behold the Bacon Leek Crustless Quiche! Flour adds body to the egg, and ditching the crust makes it an easy weeknight dinner with a side salad/veg of your choice. Even better with farm-fresh eggs! Ask the Farmer at pickup.

On the theme of bacon, you’ll find it also pairs well with the collards in your box this week – Kickin’ Collard Greens is a Farmer favorite.