Wednesday, June 29, 2016

Thursday, June 30, 2016 Week #5



Happy Summer!

Welcome to the 18th year of Green Thumb CSA – Huntington, and its 2nd year at the Cinema Arts Centre! Whoo-hoo!

CSA Weather report…86 and sunny (don’t leave your veg in the car…they will be very unhappy because it’s way too hot in there)!

What happens if you don’t get any CSA emails and Thursday rolls around and it’s time to go to the CSA? GO ANYWAY! There have been times over the years when various things have prevented a CSA email from being sent…computers, storms, health emergencies, etc. However, the thing to do is to come to the Cinema and in all probability, your CSA share will be there (unless there’s weather that’s so treacherous travel would be extremely ill-advised and even then, the farm will show up and drive from Water Mill to Huntington before some CSA members would drive from Huntington…to Huntington). And if not (which I doubt…there was only one snowstorm where the farm showed up on Friday instead of Thursday because no one could drive anywhere), there would be a sign on the door saying something, or you could call me (though with Hurricane Sandy, even my land line was down because of the Verizon battery it’s hooked up to….grrrrrrr…I need to get that detached so I can get phone calls during those times when the power goes out).

Parking suggestion…try parking all the way around the building in the upper parking lot where the day care center play area is. You hopefully will find a spot, and it’s a short walk down the stairs to the entrance from there, and most people don’t seem to think of parking up there. If you park illegally you can get a parking ticket, it does happen!

If you are going to show up at the CSA later than 7:30pm, but before the Box Office is closing for the night (can be different every week but probably be open till at least 10pm) and it’s the last minute and you’re running late…call the Cinema Arts Centre Box Office at 631-423-7610 xt 0 and ask them to transfer the call to the café (do NOT leave a message to be given to the CSA because there have been occasions where we didn’t get the message and someone showed up to get their food and was not happy their food wasn’t there) so we can pack a bag for you, put your name on it, and leave it at the Box Office. If you don’t get to the Cinema before the Box Office closes, your food will NOT be there the next day. The Cinema is under no obligation to store your food, and we don’t want to be the cause of bugs being attracted to our wonderful CSA food.

If you’re sharing a CSA share with someone…it’s possible they’re not on this email list yet (if not email me their full name and email address…or have them do it), so check with them and then forward this if they didn’t get it (and always check the junk/spam folder).

Keep in mind that anything you read in this email (unless it’s directly related to the functioning and operation of the CSA) is subjective and like they say in the 12 step world…take what you like and leave the rest!

This week’s email includes…

1.       The CSA doesn’t need you this week (but we will soon enough J )
2.       CSA 101 – Bring Bags!!!
3.       Plants that naturally repel mosquitoes
4.       Help change the world with a click…
5.       The List- subject to change without notice because…farming is like that!
6.       Is your produce really local?
7.       Contest…win some Coffee!
8.       Event Listings…both near and far
9.       Got a dog or any pet that can get fleas? Check this out…
10.   What you actually got last week
11.   And now for something completely different


1.The CSA doesn’t need you this week (but we will soon enough)

We’re talking about working at the CSA.

We have the help we need for this week. Whoo-hoo!

If you didn’t already get an email from Rene or/and suzanne talking to you about being at the CSA on the Early Shift (3:30pm to 5:30pm) or the Late Shift (5:30pm to 7:30pm) this week, you’re not on the schedule for this week.

HOWEVER, you can always show up a little before 3:30pm or 5:30pm and offer to help out just in case someone doesn’t show up (stuff happens).
 
2.CSA 101…Bring Bags!

CSA basic, for this CSA anyway, is that you need to bring your own supply of bags for packing up your CSA share every week from now till December 8th!

So, my suggestion…put bags that you’re setting aside for your CSA share in EVERY vehicle you own or might ride in! J Put them in the trunk, or the glove compartment, or in a bigger bag somewhere in the car, or whatever you think will work for your situation. That way, you don’t even have to remember, they’re just there.

The CSA is under NO obligation to provide you with bags for your food.

I also recommend a selection of canvas, paper and plastic. I bag my CSA share up in my paper (Strawberries) and plastic bags (most everything else) and put it in my bigger canvas bag so when I get home, everything’s pretty much (with some exceptions…like herbs) ready to be put right into the fridge.

And if you send someone to pick up your CSA share for you, you need to tell them to…BRING BAGS!

3.Plants that naturally repel mosquitoes

Whether you’re outdoors gardening or grilling, avoiding mosquitoes without using toxic chemicals is always a good thing (keep in mind that fans work…ceiling/standing/even paper ones…they can’t fly near you in breezy conditions, and so does anything that makes smoke like grilling or incense…this article talks about burning herbs and I think it’s the smoke more than the herbs themselves that work)…

 
4.Help change the world with a click…

A.Reject new GMO labelling bill because they can do better than this…

B.And keep telling people you want your food labelled whether it contains GMO ingredients…

C.Thank Grady Memorial Hospital for not renewing their contract with McDonald’s (there are still 13 hospitals with McDonald’s in them…seriously, they all have commercial kitchens and can do better than this)…

D.Tell food companies to stop using Potassium Bromate (linked to cancer and tumor development)…
 

5.The List - subject to change without notice because…farming is like that!

June 30, 2016
Week #5

1.Lettuce: Leaf, Green – 1 head
2.Fennel - 1 bunch
3.Radishes – 1 bunch
4.Peas: Sugar Snap – 1 bag
5.Parsley, Italian – 1 bunch

Total Items: 5

Flower Share – maybe…maybe not

 
6.Is your produce really local?

Well, at Green Thumb CSA – Huntington all of ours is (and local in this case means from Water Mill, Long Island)…

 
7.Contest…win some Coffee!

Roasted in Red Hook, Brooklyn from farms in Brazil that this small company (Nobletree) owns and operates. For more info about the company…

To win Coffee, enter here…

 
8.Got a dog or any pet that can get fleas? Check this out…

CSA Member Mindy LaMantia almost had a tragic story, when her dog got deathly ill from the flea and tick medication that her vet had advised as safe. After thousands of dollars spent-- antibiotics, x-rays, hydration shots, supplements, he is finally on the mend. The Environmental Protection Agency is recently making it their business to research these products, as their toxic chemicals are finding their way into our water supply in a huge and frightening way—they have published that 30,000 recent pet deaths can be attributed to Flea and Tick medications and “that is only the ones the EPA know about”.

Mindy has found a product that works and is 100% safe. AND….It costs under $20 a year! She has had it on her dog now since the end of February and can attest to its effectiveness. There are no chemicals, it works with Magnetic and Scalar waves. Please email Mindy directly if you (or anyone you know) might be interested in hearing about this product: Inspired2Act@aol.com

  
9.Event Listings…both near and far

Friday, July 8th

7:30pm

World Peace Café
Dipamkarma Meditation Center
282 NY Ave
Huntington
$10

Meditation at 7:30pm, Café snacks and entertainment (live music, poetry, comedy) at 8:15pm (and check out next door to Sip Tea Lounge for some tea).


Monday, July 11th to July 23rd

Kick Sugar Addiction World Summit 2016 Online Conference
FREE

For 12 days hear 21 experts in the field of sugar addiction and sugar addiction recovery. Check website for the list of speakers.


Monday, July 18th

8:30am to 7pm

Farm Tour and Organic Agriculture Workshop
The Rodale Institute
Kutztown, PA
$90
For more info and to make reservations:
516-626-0908

Join the Long Island Food Coalition, Slow Food North Shore and iEat Green on a chartered bus road trip to The Rodale Institute for a farm tour and workshop about organic agriculture!


Sunday, July 31st

5pm

Hayground Chef’s Dinner
Hayground School (Jeff’s Kitchen)
151 Mitchell Lane
Bridgehampton
Tickets: $1200 (seriously)

A superstar chef event for a good cause. If you got it, here’s a good place to spend it! J


Friday, August 12th to Sunday, August 14th

NOFA Summer Conference
University of Massachusetts
Amherst, MA
For more info and to register (early bird prices till July 15):

NOFA (Northeast Organic Farmer’s Association) is the group that’s been certifying farms organic since the time before the USDA got involved. They rock. We have a NY chapter that you can join…
There are 2 conferences every year. In the winter, each NOFA member state (NY, NJ, CT, RI, MA, NH, VT) has their own winter conference (the one that farmers can attend because…they’re not working). In the summer, everybody from all the member states gets together for the summer conference and about 1,000 to 2,000 people that are interested in health, organic farming and gardening, healthy living and healthy eating get together for a WHOLE lot of workshops, movies and parties, and cafeteria style eating of organic/local foods that would accommodate most any dietary needs (gluten free, vegan, paleo, raw). It’s great for families (they have workshops for kids from 5 to 12, and 13 to 17…and they have childcare available for ages 2 to 4), singles, seniors, and just about anybody. If you go, a good time will be had by all! Feel free to ask me any questions as have been to the summer and winter conferences, and CSA member Vickie Muller has gone to the NOFA Summer Conference with her daughter for a few years too.
This year’s keynote speakers…

10.What you actually got last week (not always what was in the email the week before because farming is like that regarding occasional last minute changes)

June 23, 2016
Week #4

1.Lettuce: Boston, Green – 1 head - $3.25
2. Garlic Scapes - 1 bunch - $3.00
3.Mustard Greens – 1 bunch - $3.50
4.Peas: Snow OR Sugar Snap – 1 bag (3/4 lb.) - $6.00
5.Savory, Winter – 1 bunch* - $3.00

Total Items: 5
Total Amount: $18.75
(since we pay $18.50 per week for our CSA share, this week we got $.25 more than we paid, SO that means at the moment, our farmer has given us $3.00 more than we paid for up to this point. Over the course of the CSA year…and over the years…we have gotten at least one, and sometimes up to two, share’s worth of food that we didn’t pay for…so keep reading this and see how it plays out from week to week)

*No Veggie Sheet…
Winter Savory (did not know it was voted Herb of the Year in 2015 by the International Herb Association)…GREAT with Beans as it’s an anti-flatulence herb!

Herb Share – June 2B
Mint AND Sorrel

Flower Share – Week #2
Ageratum
 
11.And now for something completely different

Short documentary (10 minutes) about a vegetarian who falls in love with a Colorado cattle rancher…

###