Fall Update…and into the Holidays

Fall season is here – and not just the cooler temps, but also in the wonderful produce that you have started to see in your shares. For example, this week we will have pumpkins! There will be a few varieties and sizes to choose from, and all of them edible. In fact, sometimes, the uglier the outside of the pumpkin, the tastier the inside. According to one of our newer farmers, Aaron Cardones of Arevalos Farm, this is true of his “pie pumpkins” that you will see this coming week, which are charmingly warty.

As some may recall, we made a major shift at the Tucson CSA back in June as we transitioned “Farmer Frank” from Crooked Sky Farms out after 21 years of working together. Aaron is one of the farms that we have been able to source more from and help to build up both Arevalos and Double Adobe Farm to year-round farmers. They are helping to fill many of the spaces that Crooked Sky used to – such as all the tasty melons we enjoyed over the summer, and now many of the winter squash varieties to come.

You may have noticed more items from our New Roots Farmers, as well, over the past several months. We are excited to be able to support anywhere between 3 to 8 refugee farmers each week – collectively, supplying up to 2 full items or more for our shares.

We are grateful that the fall cooler temps are helping for two of our ongoing farms to ramp up production. Both Sleeping Frog Farm and Westover Farm will go from limited options due to a hot, dry September to an overabundance of wonderful greens to choose from soon. As always, be sure to use our recipe page and more particularly our guide to greens to help you make the most of your share.

Other signs of fall can be seen in our CSA Shop with the reappearance of Freeze-Dried Apples from Thrive & Grow Farms and before Thanksgiving the much anticipated Holiday Candies from Epic Fine Chocolates.

Speaking of Thanksgiving, we will be open for Thanksgiving week. There are a few more weeks to get your $20 deposit in for the best pasture-raised turkey around from CPR Meats. Those arrive (and should be picked up!) the week BEFORE Thanksgiving to give proper defrost time. We will also have one more week of Beef Pack Deposits that (we hope!) come before the turkeys. And in case you didn’t see it, fish from Alaska is back starting this week! So many great options for holiday entertaining or daily nourishment.

And it would not be the holidays without our Holiday Pop-Up Markets to get truly locally made goods from CSA members themselves! We will have our primary market on December 9th and 10th. If you are a CSA member who has artwork, crafts or goods that could be a good fit, please email us with details so we might be able to fit you in or find another pop-up time that works in the courtyard.

Fall season (and the start of our Winter Hours closing at 6:30pm) is a great time to linger in the courtyard to enjoy local music, buy the extra fun item (Holy Focaccia this week!), or chat with us and others about items in your share and share the best ways to use them up. And just a reminder we will be open Thanksgiving week but will be closed the last two weeks of December for our Winter Break.

We are thankful that you are part of this wonderful Tucson CSA community. Happy Fall!