June 5, 2025
The sun is shining brightly, the birds are singing their sweet songs, and we're finally drying out from this week's rains. We're eagerly anticipating warmer temperatures and hoping they, along with this glorious sunshine, are here to stay! Not only do we humans crave the warmth, but our hungry crops are definitely ready for it too.
Harvesting
It's an incredibly exciting time here on the farm as we're starting to harvest more than just delicious asparagus! This past week, we began picking chub cucumbers, and just yesterday, we harvested our very first zucchini. If all goes well, we're crossing our fingers to start gathering those sweet grape tomatoes by Friday, though we'll have to keep a close eye on how quickly they ripen on the vine.
While we're not in full swing yet, these initial harvests are thrilling, allowing us to send fresh produce to our retail Garden Centers and Farmers Markets!
Rejuvenating
We want to give you a heads-up that our tomato production might be a little slow to kick off the season. We unfortunately lost a significant portion of our first planting due to frozen tomatoes plants back in March. If you follow us on Facebook, you may remember our post about it.
This setback has delayed us a bit, but rest assured, we're working tirelessly and doing everything we can to bring you those vibrant red, ripe, and juicy Minnesota-grown tomatoes you've come to adore, as soon as possible. Your patience is appreciated — they'll be worth the wait!
Buzzing and Blooming
The farm is truly buzzing with all kinds of activity right now. Flower season is still in full bloom, with beautiful shipments continuously heading to our Garden Centers each week.
We're also busy filling countless pots with soil as we prepare for planting mums in the coming weeks. This crucial soil-filling process needs to be completed within the next few days because our main warehouse is about to undergo a remarkable transformation.
It takes about a week to convert it from a soil production area into a pristine vegetable sorting and packing facility. This involves moving machinery and meticulously dusting and scrubbing every inch of the building in preparation for another bustling summer.
Planting
Out in the fields, planting is still well underway. While the first and second plantings of many crops are already in the ground, we're diligently following up with succession plantings. This ensures we'll have a steady supply of fresh crops all the way up until the first frost.
Our biggest task this week, and for the next 2-3 weeks, will be carefully thinning our apple orchard. This involves removing some of the apples from each tree. It's a time-consuming, but vital process, because it allows the remaining apples to grow larger. They absorb more nutrients throughout the season, resulting in bigger, healthier fruit. We believe this effort is truly beneficial and worth every moment.
Opening Up
Mark your calendars because the next big date for the farm is Friday, June 20th! This is the exciting day when all of our vegetable stands will officially open for the season.
We know so many of you are eagerly anticipating visiting these locations, and we can't wait to see you there! See our full list of Vegetable Stand locations.
And don't forget, our Garden Centers always carry a full line of our fresh produce too! In fact, you can pick up items like asparagus, chub cucumbers, zucchini, and even some grape tomatoes before June 20th at our Garden Centers.
So, stop in and discover the abundance of fresh and local offerings heading your way. Enjoy the season!
