Farmer John Pays Tribute to Departing Field Coordinator Jonathan Fagan; Shareholders Write about our Crew

12-Week Peak Season Shares Available

The peak summer crops are coming on beautifully. Let your friends know that we have 12-week Peak Season vegetable shares and 6-delivery fruit shares available, starting the week of August 5th. Tell them to visit www.AngelicOrganics.com and sign up by July 27th to get started with the 12-week share.

This is also a good time for you to sign up for the 6-delivery fruit. If you haven’t signed up for our extended season vegetable share, they are still available.

The Weather

Muggy week. No rain.

The Work

Our crew steadfastly performs the hard, noble, sweaty work of growing food for your table. Read shareholder praises of our crew elsewhere in this issue of Farm News.

The Crops

Cucumbers have been prolific. We project what to plant based on previous years’ yields. This year, the cucumbers fooled us and are producing almost twice as much as we expected. They’ll slow down soon. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy your cucumbers.

Field Coordinator Jonathan Fagan Leaves Us

After 3 years of loyal and enthusiastic work at Angelic Organics, our field coordinator Jonathan Fagan is moving to Madison, where his partner has enrolled in law school. Jon is a very energetic worker, of good cheer, and a team builder. He shows a deep interest in all aspects of farming and is pretty much always game for a conversation on anything agricultural (well, on any topic, period.). He has contributed tremendously to our efficiency in the fields and the packing shed, and has helped to raise our standards for the vegetables you receive.

We took Jonathan out for dinner last week to commemorate his time with Angelic Organics. (He might help us out part time for the rest of the season…we’re still in discussion about this, but officially, he ended his work with the farm last week.) If you want to personally thank Jon for his work at Angelic Organics, write him at email hidden; JavaScript is required. We’re going to miss you, Jonathan.

Jon Fagan, 4th from left, with some of farm crew and Learning Center staff at Bushel & Peck’s in Beloit

From Shareholders, to the Crew

Just wanted to say thank you, we are loving the vegetables!!  I’ve wanted to sign up for this for a few years now, only wish we had sooner.  Made delicious zucchini noodles today with kale/walnut pesto thanks to the huge bag of basil! I just finished shredding beets and kohlrabi for our salad lunches tomorrow and the beets in particular are quite lovely.  Thank you so much for your hard work, we couldn’t be happier!

~Missy

I just enjoyed a caprese salad with the best smelling and tasting basil I have ever had! Please thank the crew! another wonderful box of veggies! Thank you!!

~Tammy

Dear Chris,

It’s another quiet Saturday afternoon, and we’re once again contemplating a lovely dinner, largely thanks to you and your crew.

My grandmother, a widow at a young age with five children to feed, supported her family by farming.  I grew up helping with the easy things— shelling peas, picking tomatoes (which rarely made it out of the garden) , and weeding.  So when we contemplate whether to have chard or kale chips or both, or when we admire the gorgeous golden beets that are in the box once more, or when we enjoy our favorite turnip recipe again, we do take the step of remembering you and your crew and the hard work you do.  Each summer brings its own challenges weather- wise, but I’d never know it when I consider the beautiful bounty you produce year after year.

Thanks for your hard work, and know that there are little and big thank yous that go out to you each and every mealtime all over Chicagoland.

~Julia

Stay Close to Your Farm

Visit us often at www.facebook.com/angelicorganics , where we post exciting farm developments regularly. We invite you to post about your CSA experience there, too.

Adventures at the Angelic Organics Learning Center 

If the Shareholder Open House left you and your family wanting more adventures on the farm this summer, consider signing up for these two upcoming events with Angelic Organics Learning Center that are fun for the entire family. To sign up, visit http://www.learngrowconnect.org/event

Kids With Cob Friday, August 2, 1 – 4 PM

Come cooperate with others to construct a mini eco-village while learning natural building techniques.  Use your hands to build model homes using a mixture of clay, sand and straw, called “cob”, then use your imagination to create stories about people in the community.  While we build, we’ll also bake bread in our cob oven.  Adults register with children.  $12

Animal Day for Families Saturday, August 3, 10 AM – 3 PM

Bring your kids to the farm for a day of hands-on experiences with the animals. Help the crew milk the goats, feed the horses, and gather eggs from the chickens.  See how you can produce soil from kitchen scraps with worm boxes. Make goat’s milk ice cream and enjoy a sack lunch under the trees near our timber frame barn.  Please register for each family member age 3 and up. $20

Please Note: this summary is written before you receive your box—please be aware that some guesswork is involved. As always, be sure to thoroughly wash all of your vegetables.

 Brassicas – 1-2 green cabbage

Fruiting Crops – watermelon, 2 summer squash (Zucchini, Yellow or Patty Pan), 8 cucumbers, green peppers, eggplant

Rooting Crops – carrots

Cooking Greens – kale, bag of baby swiss chard

Alliums – sweet onions

Apium – celery