Greetings from the Horn Farm! The season is well underway.

Both greenhouses are bursting with plants. We are growing plants for the Heirloom Plant Sale on May 6 as well as for the fields here at the farm. We will begin distributing shares to our CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) members beginning at the end of May–weather permitting. We still have a few shares available–either a weekly or biweekly selection of fresh, nutrient dense produce grown here at the farm.

We are growing thousands of plants in many varieties. Basil, for instance, comes in so many variations of color and flavor. This week we potted up Large Italian Green, Genovese, Licorice, as well as this gorgeous Red Rubin basil.

In addition to the work we’ve been doing in the fields and the greenhouses, we added more classes to the website and have organized them by category to make them easier to browse:

Cooking Classes
Ecological Design
Foraging Classes
Gardening & Farming
Wilderness Skills

Have you ever thought about insects as food?

Raising invertebrates for food and farming can be fun, entertaining and rewarding – and meet many different needs.

On May 13, join William Padilla-Brown for discussion and demonstrations as he takes us on a journey through many different invertebrates – starting with two ancient aquatic invertebrates, Brine Shrimp and Triops.

Participants will get hands-on instruction in setting up small habitats to take home with choice of crickets, roaches, mealworms, and/or Red Wiggler Worms. The course will end with a demonstration on how to cook with edible insects and participants may choose to participate in Entomophagy (the eating of insects). Space is limited. Register for MicroHerding Invertebrates today!

Thank you for your support of the Horn Farm Center for Agricultural Education!

We did it! One USDA Rural Business Development Grant, hundreds of hours of labor, one Leadership York volunteer project, many sleepless nights over 18 months from start to finish, the vent stack for the propane heater was completed this morning. Thank you to everyone who contributed to this project!

Both of our greenhouses are filled with plants we are growing for our Heirloom Plant Sale to be held on Saturday, May 6. A few lucky customers will go home with one of these hanging baskets of strawberry plants. Look! They are already bearing fruit!

We are looking for a few enthusiastic volunteers to help at the plant sale. If you can help out for a couple of hours, please sign up here!

We also use the greenhouses to grow plants for our CSA members. This week we transplanted cabbage that will be part of the shares in June. The black cloth is used to help keep the weeds at bay.
Have you ever had fresh, local, nutrient-dense cabbage? It’s so sweet and tender that it seems like a different vegetable than those that can be found in the grocery store. We still have shares left. What’s in a share? In early June you could expect to get:
spinach – 4 ounces
lettuce – one head
spring onions – 3
arugula – 4 ounces
strawberries – one quart
snap peas – one quart
beets – 3
carrots – one bunch
green garlic – 3

radishes – 4
cut your own herbs

Under the row cover we’ve already planted radishes with arugula.
In late July you might receive:
heirloom tomatoes – up to 3 pounds
cherry tomatoes – one pint
hot peppers – 3
sweet peppers – 3
potatoes – one quart
lettuce- one head
watermelon – 1
green beans – 6 ounces
garlic – one head
scallions – one bunch
cut your own herbs
We still have space for you to share in the harvest! More information and registration at:
https://hornfarmcenter.org/2017-horn-farm-csa/

Preparation for our Heirloom Plant Sale on May 6 starts months ahead. Depending on their needs, seeds are planted in trays of 32, 72, 98, or 128. Once the seedlings emerge they get ‘potted up’ into 3″ or 4″ pots where they live until the plant sale. This year we will have more than 15,000 plants–over 300 varieties of flowers, fruits, herbs, and vegetables. Click here for a list of plants.

Our volunteers are the ones who make the plant sale possible. If you have a few hours to help with the plant sale, please sign up here.

Save the date for our third annual Cycle the Solstice! On Saturday, June 24, The Cycle Works of Wrightsville, Pennsylvania will be hosting the third annual Cycle the Solstice bicycle ride to benefit The Horn Farm Center for Agricultural Education. Cycle the Solstice is a 10-, 20-, 30-, 62-, or 100-mile fun bike ride through York and Lancaster counties. More information and registration here.

It’s time to plant cool weather crops like kale, collards, cabbage, broccoli, and scallions, and we have plants for sale! Visit our online farm stand to place your order, then pick up your plants Saturday from 9 to 12 at the Horn Farm Center. Online Farm Stand