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Great Country Farms

Community Supported Agriculture, CSA, Produce Farm, U-Pick, Field Trips in Loudoun County, VA

Pick your Own Fruit Farm

CLOSED Due to COVID-19.

Curbside Pickup Market Hours: Friday, Saturday, Sunday 10-5
540-554-2073
18780 Foggy Bottom Road, Bluemont, VA 20135

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Corona Virus and Community Supported Agriculture

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Dear CSA members and members of the Western Loudoun foodshed,

We want to let you know that Great Country Farms is responding to the ever-changing circumstances surrounding the corona virus by growing as much food as we can. Our greenhouse is full of new starts: peas, lettuce, onions, spinach, broccoli, beets, radishes, red kale, green kale, lacinato kale, bok choi, kohlrabi, Swiss chard, carrots, sweet corn, egg plant, Brandywine tomatoes, jalapeños, leeks, and basil. We have potatoes and onions in the ground already, and we’re starting to move out early peas, radishes, and beets.

Our exploration of no-till planting last year taught us how to get even more food out of less space, and we expect to learn even more — and grow even more — this year. So even though it’s impossible to predict what restrictions and other surprises might come our way in the next few weeks, rest assured that we’re following the guidelines of the CDC and the State Health Department, and we’re ramping up production. We plan to supply Western Loudoun County with a lot of health-sustaining, nutritionally vital food. Red kale, green kale, and a number of other items are currently available through our online farm store. We’ll keep you posted as more items come in.

Thanks for supporting us, and for supporting each other.

Custom CSA

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This change is a big deal.  It means far less wasted food, both for you and for us. It means you can eliminate unwanted items from your box, and add extras if you like.  It means we can add some unusual crops to our growing plan, knowing that people who want them will get them.  It means you have an easy way to buy surplus items in bulk, and we have an easy way to sell surplus items.

It’s a big deal.

Here’s what’s different:

  1. This new system will show you the weekly price, even though you’re buying a seasonal share, and the base price shown is for market-style farm pick-up. If you want join a group site, you’ll be invited to do so after choosing your share, and the delivery charge will be added automatically.
  2. We’ve reinstated home delivery, with two different pricing zones.
  3. When you sign up, you’ll be asked to set your preference level on every item we offer. Then each week you’ll get a chance to adjust your customized box contents.
  4. At group sites, you’ll have to find the box with your label on it. In the market, we’ll give you a customized list, and you’ll pack your box accordingly.
  5. If you use the installment plan, you’ll be charged 25% of your share price at sign-up, another 25% on the day of first pick-up, and the remaining 50% on a weekly basis throughout the season. Any extras you choose will be added to your weekly charge. You may choose to pay in full at sign-up, in which case you would see a weekly charge only if you add something to your box.

The new system is quite user-friendly, and there’s a lot of support available. We think it’s going to be a whole new world of great local food.

What’s My Delivery Day This Year?

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2018 CSA Delivery Schedule

Find the zip code of your delivery location.

Tuesday: 22201, 22202, 22203, 22204, 22205, 22207, 22209, 22301, 22302, 22310, 22314, 22315

Wednesday: 20105, 20120, 20121, 20136, 20151, 20152, 20155, 22003, 22015, 22030, 22031, 22032, 22033, 22042, 22046, 22124, 22152, 22153, 22180, 22181, PLUS Pamela Allen Group

Thursday: 20132, 20147, 20148, 20164, 20165, 20166, 20170, 20171 (EXCEPT Pamela Allen Group), 20175, 20176, 20191

Forgot your group site’s zip code? Check here:

Tuesday Group Sites

Herzfeld Group, Montana Street Group, Allan Group, Lyon Village/Krieger Group, Crystal City We Work Group, Moomaw Group, Motley Fool Group, Huntington Forest Group, Church Courts Group, Caputo Group

Wednesday Group Sites

Pamela Allen Group, Musci Group, McNerney Group, Clifton Townes Group, Crestwood Pediatric Group, Wellness Connection, Great Harvest Vienna, Olio2Go, Fontana Group, Bishop Group, Ewell Group, Gildea Group, Van Horn Group, Hamaker Group, Mosby Woods Group, Audley Farm Group

Thursday Group Sites

Sonak Family Chiropractic, Romaezi Group, Donohue Group, Mirra Group, Great Harvest Herndon, Great Harvest Ashburn, Reston Children’s Center, Leesburg Chiropractic, Brew LoCo, Wine’ing Butcher Group, Ellinger Group, Broadlands Nature Center, Flanagan Group, Evergreen Sportsplex 

Why Local Food?

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If you’re new to farm food or still considering your first CSA membership, you may be wondering exactly what makes this food different from convention grocery store fare. Most of the answers to that question lead to more questions, so we thought we’d point you to some resources that move the information train forward.

Let’s start with a list of basic factors. This particular list comes from the University of Washington’s “Whole U” wellness initiative, but most CSA farmers would come up with similar reasons.

  1. Local foods are fresh.
  2. Local foods are seasonal.
  3. Local foods have a higher sustainability quotient.
  4. Local foods promote variety.
  5. Factors 1 through 4 combine to make local food considerably more nutritious than food from the industrial system.
  6. Local foods promote local economies.
  7. Local foods create community.

Many resources are available to explore those factors in more detail. We’ll point you to some of them.

This post from an organization called Local Harvest starts with the feature that initially attracts most local eaters — taste — and it makes a useful connection between taste and nutritional density. Here’s a word about the source:

“Local Harvest is a community project, initiated by the Ethical Consumer Group, with a view to providing a resource to make it easy to find local and more sustainable food sources.”

This article from Scientific American discusses the alarming probability that nutritional density has been slowly bred out of most food in the industrial system. Industrial farming selects for size, growth rate, and pest resistance, not optimal nutrition. On top of that, it tends to use growing practices that damage soil, such as raising the same crops in the same fields year after year, with the help of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides.

“Because of soil depletion,” the authors report, “crops grown decades ago were much richer in vitamins and minerals than the varieties most of us get today.”

Unlike its industrial counterpart, our soil gets better every year because we enrich it with tons of compost and nitrogen-fixing cover crops. And since our soil is strong and we’re always changing crop locations, we don’t have to select for size or pest resistance. So our fruits and vegetables are more nutritious than what you’re likely to get from industrial sources.

A note on the source: “Scientific American, the longest continuously published magazine in the U.S., has been bringing its readers unique insights about developments in science and technology for more than 170 years.” Learn more here.

If the process of breeding nutrition out of the food supply interests you, try this article from the New York Times, which follows the process back to its earliest origins.

Check back for links to more websites as we continue to explore the question over the next few months.

5 Apple Varieties to Pick in mid-September

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It’s peak apple picking season in northern Virginia. I was thinking about posting tips for apple picking but found that there are already some excellent posts out there… my favorite is 10 Tips for Organizing an Apple Picking Outing with Kids.   One of the tips is to plan to get lots of apples and plan what you’ll do with them.   So, to help with those planning efforts, here is a list of apples ripe in northern Virginia in mid-September.  We’ve added photos, descriptions of their qualities and tasting notes.  Now you’re ready to pick lots of apples!

At Great Country Farms, all of our apple trees have been planted in the last 15 years so we are considered a “modern orchard” with dwarf trees designed for easy pick your own.  No ladders required!   Our varieties are names that you may not recognize but they have been derived from some of the best classic apples.  Take a wander through our varieties below and decide which options are best for you and your family.

Candy Crisp Apples on the tree

Candy Crisp Apples

Candy Crisp® 

  • Description:  This glossy yellow beauty is shaped like a Red Delicious apple with the top wider than the bottom and knobs on its flooring.
  • Parentage: This tree was discovered as a chance seedling growing in a Red Delicious orchard in New York.  Hence, Candy Crisp is thought to be related to and has a similar shape to Red Delicious but the skin color is golden yellow.
  • Tasting Notes: Firm, juicy and sweet with a somewhat pear-like flavor.
  • Uses: Sweeter  apple great for eating & dessert baking. Keeps well for 1-2 months refrigerated.

 

 

Jonafree apple on the tree

Jonafree

  • Description: deep red with creamy, white flesh and crisp, juicy eating quality similar to old-fashioned Jonathan, with 100% Jonathan flavor.
  • Parentage:Introduced in 1965 this apple was developed as a Purdue Rutger Illinois Coop from Golden Delicious, Jonathan and Rome Beauty  PRI 855-102 x NJ 31
  • Tasting Notes: Flavor is Jonathan-like, but less acidic.
  • Use: Great for Eating and holds up nicely for baking.  Great lunch box size apples.

 

 

Jonagold apple at Great Country Farms

Jonagold apple on the tree.

Jonagold

  • Description: this lovely red apple often shows golden striations.
  • Parentage:Golden Delicious and Jonathan
  • Tasting Notes: The Jonagold apple has a balanced blend of both its parents’ flavors offering the sweet-tart taste found in the Jonathan and the aromatic honey-like scent of the Golden Delicious.
  • Use: A great choice for cider, juicing and cooking. This apple stores well for 1-2 months refrigerated.

 

Ruby Jon apples at Great Country farms

Ruby Jon Apples on the tree.

Ruby John

  • Description: This more petite apples is deep red with creamy, white flesh and crisp, juicy eating quality similar to old-fashioned Jonathan, with 100% Jonathan flavor.
  • Parentage:Sport  (natural mutation) of Jonathan
  • Tasting Notes: Biting in reveals, well, a Jonathan which is an old classic, sweet and balanced and cidery, with flashes of spice.
  • Use: This smaller apples is great for lunches and snacks.
Shizuka apples at Great Country Farms

Shizuka Apples on the tree.

Shizuka

  • Description: This tall, large, yellow-hued apple that is mostly yellow with some green or red flush.
  • Parentage:Golden Delicious cross with Indo (Same parents as the Mutsu Apple)
  • Tasting Notes: This descendant of the golden has an almost buttery flavor that is mostly sweet with a hint of tart.
  • Uses: Eating, apple sauce and great for making dried apple rings.

Now that you know all about the apples ready to pick this season, here are some great links to Savor Apple Recipes and 15 Things to Do with all the apples you pick this fall.  Enjoy!

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