Honoring Mothers
Asparagus Mother's Day

   The annual celebration of moms is this weekend, and we'll be offering chocolate-dipped strawberries to all the moms who spend part of their special day at the farm. The asparagus harvest kicks into full swing this weekend as well, so we'll have bouquet-like bundles of asparagus available in the market, and we'll be featuring delicious roasted asparagus and red onion flatbread pizza in the Roosteraunt.

   By the way, if you've noticed how great the Roosteraunt looks this year, that's thanks to Holly Walker, who has made that space delightfully her own. From the decor to the pizza recipes, it's all Holly this year!

   CSA members, if your summer vacation plans are already set, please log into your account and make your vacation hold requests. If you've forgotten your log-in codes, let us know and we'll re-set you. 

No you-picking this week. Strawberries should start in the middle of May.

Delivery days for group sites and and home delivery members will be determined at the end of May, after we've sold most of our shares. Watch Crop Talk for that information and other news.
Audley Farms CSA Add-on

   If you made it to the Members Open House on Saturday, you had a chance to sample some of the extraordinary beef that comes from Audley Farm . We're carrying that beef in our market this year, and we're offering a special CSA beef add-on for pick-up here at the farm. More information about the add-on program is available on our blog .
 
Caught in the Middle: Farmers Seek a New and Improved GMO Debate
From Modern Farmer

By Brian Barth on May 2, 2016

   Our recent feature on GMOs caused plenty of heated debate, and some pretty pointed criticisms from leading thinkers in the world of food and farming. But it also garnered praise as a rare example of balanced pro-environment, pro-farmer, pro-common sense reporting on the subject. The piece was not intended as either pro- or anti-GMO. Instead, the goal was to explore what a socially and environmentally beneficial genetically modified crop might look like.

   In my quest to understand why, exactly, GMOs cause so much agitation on both sides of the debate, I was surprised to find a large, less-vocal majority in the middle. These people, many of them farmers, don’t take issue with the technology itself, but how it is applied.

Read more here.

Get Cooking at Nibblins
   
   If you're looking for a way to boost your kitchen prowess and expand your repertoire of ways to make the most of your CSA share, you might try Nibblins in Winchester. Nibblins offers wide selection of gourmet kitchenware plus a full slate of cooking classes several days a week.
MTO Available at GCF
   
   When I met Sara Knight From MTO Kombucha at the Grow Your Health festival in March, I was a kombucha skeptic. The reputation of the stuff was noteworthy, but drinking it was one of those things you did only because it was good for you, as far as I could see. But Sara plied me with samples, and she sent a couple of jars home to my wife, which she loved. Since then we're like addicts -- we suck it down wherever we can find it. And as of Friday, we'll be able to find it at Great Country Farms. So will you, if you come before we drink it all.  
  Coming Up

Asparagus Bouquet Mother's Day Weekend, May 7 & 8
 
Admission included in CSA and Fan Memberships.

Also coming soon: Food Truck Fridays at Bluemont Vineyard. Beginning May 6 with Saffron Gourmet Truck. And the vineyard is now open seven days a week, so you can stop for a glass of wine whenever you visit the farm.
 
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Great Country Farms | 540-554-2073 | CSA@GreatCountryFarms.com | www.GreatCountryFarms.com