W26 (WK4): Yay’s & Bummer’s & Ice Storms

Jan 26

Dear Farm Community -

We’re crossing our fingers and holding our breath as we check on the farm today, hoping there’s no structural damage to our high tunnels from the ice storm. Last year, we spent an entire day clearing snow and managed to avoid major damage, though a few structures still took some minor hits. Ice, unfortunately, is a different beast (much harder to clear), so for now all we can do is wait, hope, and pray that the added weight doesn’t bring anything down. You’ll definitely hear about it either way once we’re able to get eyes on everything!

Aside from the icy elephant in the room, last week we held our annual meeting of the minds to reflect on what went well in 2025 and what went… less than well. This year, we lovingly labeled these categories YAYs and BUMMERs.

Our BUMMER list included a very rainy Mother’s Day (see: less than ideal flower sales), market tents taking an unfortunate and damaging joyride in high winds, our orchard not getting all the love we aspire to give it due to time constraints, a region-wide strawberry disease that wiped out our crop, dahlias once again struggling with the weather, and our lisianthus planting getting completely swallowed by weeds. There were a few other bummers on the list too, and while it’s easy to feel bummed, the real value of this exercise is in sharing disappointments and finding solutions together. It’s part of how we keep dialing things in year after year ~ staying aligned on where we need to grow and how we’re going to do it. In fact, we’re already doing some things a little differently in 2026 and expecting better results to follow.

And truly, there was SO much to celebrate in 2025. Our YAY list was longer than it’s ever been. At the very top: our CSA program! Y’all showed up in a big way, and we were thrilled to welcome so many new community members this year. We can’t wait to see what 2026 brings. Other big YAYs included the construction of many new high tunnels, standout seasons for cucumbers, potatoes, peonies, chrysanthemums, and delphinium, launching new farmers markets (shoutout Grant Park and Peach Tree Road!), and our continued pursuit of grant funding. We’re still waiting to hear back on our big USDA grant application so keep your fingers crossed for us!

Thanks for sticking with us through all the YAYs and BUMMERs. We’re so grateful to be growing with you.

Another huge YAY was our wholesale flower program! 2025 was our biggest year yet working with florists in Athens and Atlanta, and watching our blooms get transformed by such wildly talented, visionary florists has been such a joy. Seeing our flowers out in the world, styled so beautifully and with so much care, never ever gets old! And now that you mention it, we’re…….

…CALLING ALL FLORISTS! 🌸 Our 2026 wholesale buying guide and registered buyer application are officially LIVE on our website! We recommend applying early ~ once March hits, we’ll be up to our eyeballs in harvesting blooms. If you’re a florist, we’d love to add you to our wholesale email list and connect you with some of the most beautiful flowers around. To start dreaming up your year ahead, take a look at our 2025 and 2024 bloom calendars for a glimpse of what we grow and offer. We’d love to be your flower farm!

2026 wholesale buying guide

registered buyer application

In CSA World, your shares this week contain bok choy! Bok choy (also called pak choi) originated in China and has a long history in East Asian cuisine. It’s related to veggies like turnips, mustard greens, and broccoli rabe which you can tell from its slightly mustardy flavor. Eaten raw it’s crisp, juicy, and mildly peppery, and becomes tender and slightly sweet when cooked.

Bok choy is one of the top “How do I cook this?!” veggies we bring to market and pack into CSA shares. It might look a little unapproachable at first, but once you see how many easy, delicious ways there are to cook it, you’ll be more than happy to invite it onto your plate.

Unsurprisingly, many bok choy recipes incorporate asian flavors like ginger, sesame, rice vinegar, and chili. Try out this charred bok choy and cannellini bean salad recipe that incorporates some maple syrup for a sweet n spicy vibe. To warm your bones on a cold night (many in the forecast….) peep these recipes for red curry lemongrass soup, vegetarian pho, or make some homemade ramen, blanch your bok choy, and add to the bowl!

If you’re craving something a little brighter and crisper, try Stephen Satterfield’s Apple, Bok Choy, and Radish Slaw from his cookbook Root to Leaf. (True story: Remembering how delicious this is and that I had all ingredients to make it, I paused halfway through writing this newsletter to put it together. Pictured here in full front-porch winter-wonderland glory.)

Apple, Bok Choy, and Radish Slaw
from Root to Leaf by Stephen Satterfield (pg. 254)
ingredients:
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 medium, tart, crisp apple
1 medium watermelon radish (swap for your share’s daikon radish!)
1 medium head bok choy
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

to assemble:
Place the apple cider vinegar in a medium bowl. Slice the apple vertically into 4 equal parts. Place each quarter cut side down, with the seeds facing your knife. With the blade at a 45-degree angle, slice away the core and seeds from each quarter.

Thinly slice the apple quarters either on a mandoline or by hand. Julienne the apple slices into matchsticks. Thinly slice the watermelon radish on a mandoline or by hand, and then cut the slices into matchsticks; add to the bowl with the apple. Trim the bok choy by removing the core at the base. Separate each leaf and rinse well. Cut each leaf lengthwise adown the center of the rib. Lay the trimmed leaves one on top of another and cut them crosswise into thin pieces. Add the leaves to the bowl, season with salt and pepper, and toss with the olive oil.

We hope you fared well through the ice storm - can’t wait to share this week’s veggies with you!

Stay warm out there,
Diamond Hill Farmers

nourish yourself thru the winter ❄️

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