Dear Farm Community -

It’s giant spiders! It’s tangled spaghetti in meat sauce! It’s the face-hugger monster from Alien! It’s….. actually just asparagus! If you aren’t familiar with how asparagus grows, let’s go over a quick crash course. When asparagus pops out of the ground it looks like it’s trying to prank some idiot into thinking that’s how asparagus grows:

But beneath the soil, asparagus grows from a sprawling root system known as a “crown.” [Pause here for the perfect song companion, Crown on the Ground by Sleigh Bells, though in this case, we’ll just say it’s crown in the ground. It’s pretty wild to see if you never knew what was going on down there (We’ll share photos of the crowns in a minute.) Asparagus is a long-game crop, taking 3–4 years to go from seed to crown to full production. Our crowns were planted many years ago and are quite productive at this point, but the time came to consolidate the strongest plants, cut out the empty patches, and move the whole asparagus gang across the farm to a little unused triangular plot that happens to be the perfect fit. This shift will free up an entire field for us to bring back into seasonal production.

A pretty straightforward and truthfully very fun project, we started by digging up all of the asparagus crowns using the tractor. Farmer Tommy rode the middle buster for extra plow weight, lending to a very Pirates of the Caribbean-esque experience (just imagine the theme song when you look at this photo…)

Once the field was plowed and the soil loose, we scrounged around in the soil like the little dirt goblins that we are, unearthing the crowns one by one and collecting them up.

We piled these into the tractor bucket, moved them across the farm, and sorted them into “Big’s” (the best and brightest), “Little’s” (smaller but still healthy and strong!) and “Crumb Bum’s” (the very sad pathetic crowns that we did not re-plant). And finally, after sorting, it was time to get them all settled into their new home :)

After yesterday’s rain, we’re sure they’re settling in nicely, and even with this late-winter disruption we’re still anticipating a decent harvest this year. It may be a bit smaller as they recover from the move, but this fresh, weed-free soil and a field made up of only the strongest plants should have them (and us!) much happier than their old digs. See you in the spring, asparagus!

Speaking of the Spring ~ Did you know our Spring CSA is only TWO weeks away?! In our spring session we’re looking forward to seeing berries, beets, spring onions, green garlic, sugar snap peas, asparagus, and more :) If you haven’t hopped on our CSA yet this year, check out our Spring options:

❋ Three Season Veggie CSA (Discounted & Free Gift!)
❋ Three Season Flower CSA (Discounted & Free Gift!)
❋ Spring Veggie CSA (Discounted)
❋ Spring Flower CSA (Discounted)
❋ Weekly-Pay CSA

This week, current CSA members will enjoy more mushrooms from Andrew’s Acres. You’ll also be receiving fresh, flavorful fennel! With its subtle licorice sweetness and bright crunch, fennel shines both cooked and raw. In this Sheet Pan Chicken with Fennel and Olives, it roasts into tender, caramelized layers and balances beautifully with briny olives and sweet pear. Shaved thin for a salad with parmesan, parsley, and pine nuts, it’s crisp, refreshing, and perfectly balanced. Who doesn’t love parmesan on everything? And in this NYT recipe for Citrus-Braised Fennel with White Beans, fennel becomes extra tender and fragrant, ain integral part of a cozy, nourishing dish to get you through this last bit of winter.

With crowns of asparagus atop our heads 👑 ,
Diamond Hill Farmers

spring produce is just around the bend!

join our CSA