With the planting of garlic today, the last farm task that must be accomplished in 2023 is done. We planted two rows this year, with German White, Redneck Wild, and Romanian Red. Over the years, these are the three that have made the biggest bulbs for us.
Saturday at the market
Another great Saturday in the books. Saturdays at the Meadville Market House are always a good time, and Second Saturdays especially so. It was lovely catching up with friends I haven’t seen in awhile. And it was such a beautiful day, I took a stroll around town after market and treated myself to lunch at Kettle Lake Kitchen. The fun is back in farming for me.
~ Stella
Spring is in the air — Season 9 begins!
Jason and Luna (above) spent Sunday afternoon prepping the Big Tunnel for planting. We’re hoping to plant our kale and other greens as soon as this weekend. The first farmers market is only about six weeks away!
Good-bye & thank you!
Our son and the CSA are the same age. For the first season - back when the farm was a solo project of Jason’s - Silas was a newborn.
Fast forward and both the farm and boy are eight. The farm is now every bit a team effort, and the CSA is also at an end. Thank you so much for being a CSA member. Some of you have been with us for years. How appreciated you made us feel by signing up each season.
We hope you enjoyed your time with us. If you’d like to track down Plot Twist Farm produce next season, you’ll be able to find us at several locations.
The other night, the three of us talked about how we felt about the CSA ending. We agreed it was bittersweet. We all have new things happening in our lives, and it feels like an exciting time. But something that was a force of good in our lives is ending, and it’s impossible to not feel a bit of sadness.
The farm has always been a blend of grit, goodwill, and great luck. We brought the grit, and it was you who always brought the goodwill by supporting a small farm. From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you.
~ Stella & Jason
A little weeding...
Last year, the farm was aesthetically pleasing for most of the season. The rows were (mostly) neat and tidy, and we were proud to show it off. This year, it’s quite aesthetically displeasing. Yet, despite the weeds, it’s been a good year so far, so we’re just not going to worry about what it looks like this season.
We did, however, need to clear out one spot, or risk losing our celery, which Jason started from seed in February and tended to for weeks before we transplanted it in June.
This was the sitch on Sunday morning:
Believe it or not, there were four rows of tiny celery in this mess, as well as rosemary.
We pulled a few weeds by lunchtime. Haha!
Getting better. The celery looks droopy because it literally hasn’t experienced full sun in weeks.
Way in the back, there was a section of celery that was a lost cause. Some kind of grass that was nearly impossible to pull had taken hold (and was no joke 4 feet tall!). We salvaged any celery we could from that section and transplanted it. Then, we mowed the grass down. The celery and rosemary are tucked all snug in straw and getting a long watering. On the far left, you see heirloom tomatoes.
Here’s proof that we do crawl out from under the weeds every now and then. Fingernails mostly clean. We had my best friend and her children stay with us last week, and she took Silas and her boys on an adventure day. We declared that we were wrapping up farm work in the morning and doing something fun — just the two of us. We checked out Davenport Fruit Farm Cidery and Winery — what a cool place! It was so nice to relax for a few peaceful hours. And, yes, we spent much of that time talking about… the farm!
And I’ll close things out with a tomato photo because we’re elbows deep in tomatoes right now. Enjoy the rest of your August. Nights are getting cooler. School’s about to start and we’re half way through the CSA season.
~ Stella
75% CSA retention rate for 2022!
This is a year unlike any other for us, as you know. For those of you who are new, Jason no longer works off the farm. That was not the case for our previous seven seasons. And Season 8 is a milestone year for another reason. After entering this year’s CSA memberships into a spreadsheet, Jason learned that 75 percent of our CSA members from last year have signed up for this year. The average retention rate for CSAs is about 45 percent.
The prospect of seeing and communicating with most of the same people this year came as happy news to me, and it makes me excited for the season. Many of those CSA members have been with us for several years now - if not from the very beginning!
A few CSA members opted out this year because they have plans to travel, with the end of the pandemic hopefully on the horizon. This, too, is happy news!
~ Stella
P.S. And we do have a few CSA spots still open. Last count was five.
The farm will be on TV Oct. 24!
Hello, friends! Fun news to share. Over the summer, PCN spent a day on the farm with us, and now it’s time for our show to air!
Here are the details sent out by PCN:
Get An Insider’s Look Into Plot Twist Farm with PCN Tours
One of our most popular weekly series, PCN Tours has brought viewers into more than 500
Pennsylvania museums and manufacturing facilities. Sunday, Oct. 24, at 6 p.m. we are giving
you an insider’s look into Plot Twist Farm in Guys Mill, Pa.
In this episode, you’ll learn about this no-spray, pesticide free vegetable farm. The farm sells to
local markets and offers a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program, where consumers
can become CSA members by purchasing a “share” before the farm season and in return receive
fresh, seasonal produce.
Watch PCN Tours to learn more about what makes this Commonwealth a great place to live and
work. New episodes are shown on Sundays at 6 p.m. with previous tours airing weekdays at 7
a.m. and 6 p.m.
ABOUT PCN: PCN is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit television network dedicated to educating,
connecting, and celebrating Pennsylvania's past, present, and future through cable television and
streaming platforms. To make a tax-deductible donation to support PCN’s mission or to get the
PCN Select App, visit pcntv.com.
HOW TO WATCH: Have cable? You have PCN. No cable? Stream with PCN Select on your
favorite device. Learn more at pcntv.com/how-to-watch
WEBSITE: pcntv.com/tours
DVDS, BLU-RAYS & DOWNLOADS: pcntv.com/shop
SOCIAL MEDIA: Twitter, Facebook, YouTube - @pcntv, Instagram - @pennsylvaniacablenetwork
Kale hideaway
PHOTO Stella Ruggiero
Hello, welcome to my kale leaf house.
Keeping it weird
It’s been a great tomato year on the farm. These are different varieties of artisan tomatoes. The bucket on the far right is chocolate cherry. The name comes from the dusky purple color, not the taste. They have a low-acid, earthy flavor.
A woman at the farmers market once said we were the farm with all the “weird stuff.” We’re proudly living up to that reputation this year, with dragon’s tongue beans, and purple beans that do a little hocus-pocus when cooking in the pot. We’ve got curious-looking black radishes and watermelon radishes. And the tomatoes around here are totally freaky. Chocolate cherry, metallic pink, neon yellow, green, black and orange and yellow cherry tomatoes dangle like ornaments on the twisting vines.
Weird seems to work for us. In total this week, we’ll haul about 600 pounds of tomatoes (normal and weird) out of the gardens. It’s been a few years since we’ve had this kind of tomato harvest. The new deer fence, combined with the lean and lower method, landscape fabric, and straw all contributed to a great tomato year.
Now, if you’re picturing pristine, weed-free high tunnels and neatly-trellised outdoor rows, you must be thinking of a different farm. Things got wild again this season. Not as wild as in the past, thanks to the fabric and straw, but still, the casual observer would probably see a mess. Weird, wild mess or not, that plot is producing truckload after truckload of produce right now.
~ Stella
1/2 bushels of tomatoes are ready!
What an exciting day of picking! These are heirloom tomatoes. They’re grown from seed that’s been saved for generations. They grow in beautiful colors and unusual shapes. They’re how a tomato is supposed to look and taste. In our opinion, they make the most delicious sauce.
Hello to our fellow tomato lovers! It’s time to sell tomatoes by the half bushel.
If you’d like to order, email PlotTwistFarm@gmail.com, or message us on Facebook. Let us know how many bushels you’re interested in, and we’ll set up a day for you to pick up at the farm. We’re at 9179 Dingman Road (look for our sign). Dingman Road is located off state Route 27, about half way between Meadville and Titusville.
Here’s what we have. All varieties are delicious for sauce. Like all Plot Twist Farm produce, our tomatoes are grown with absolutely no sprays. Each bushel weighs about 25 pounds.
HEIRLOOM TOMATOES (any combo of brandywine, pineapple, and Cherokee purple): 1/2 bushel for $40
PINEAPPLE HEIRLOOM TOMATOES (these are Stella’s FAVORITE!): 1/2 bushel for $40
RED TOMATOES (a mix of medium-sized to large Mountain Magics and Early Girls): 1/2 bushel for $32
MIXED TOMATOES (any combo of heirlooms and red tomatoes): 1/2 bushel for $35
ROMA TOMATOES (aka “sauce tomatoes”): COMING SOON 1/2 bushel for $35
~ Stella & Jason