The first week of fall is here, but summer isn’t done just yet. At Quarter Acre Farm, our tables are still overflowing with ripe heirloom and cherry tomatoes. They are sweet, juicy, and taste like sunshine. These late-September harvests don’t disappoint when it comes to flavor and we’ll keep them coming straight through October. If you’ve been putting off stocking up, now’s the time to savor the flavors of summer while they’re still abundant.
Of course, fall has already started sneaking into our market tables. Our decorative dried gourds, introduced last week, have been a hit for porches, tablescapes, and autumn craft projects. Each one is unique, grown in our fields last year and carefully cured for months to be ready just in time for harvest season. If you missed them last weekend, you’ll find more waiting at our booth this Saturday at the Easton farmers’ market.
Last Call for Ceviche Tostada
This Saturday will be your final chance to enjoy our Blue Catfish Ceviche Tostada, a customer favorite that’s been the perfect summer treat. Light, tangy, and fresh, it’s made with sustainably caught local blue catfish and our housemade pico de gallo, all served on a crisp corn tostada with shredded lettuce.
Once it’s gone, it’s gone! Next weekend (October 4th) we’ll kick off our fall series of hot soups, with flavors rotating weekly. If ceviche has been your summer go-to, don’t miss your last opportunity to savor it this Saturday at the Easton farmers’ market.
Take-Home Meal: Pesto Pasta with Meatballs
For dinner this week, skip the cooking and let us do the work. On Saturday, September 27th, our take-home meal is:
- Penne pasta tossed in our housemade garlic scape pesto
- Topped with tender handmade meatballs
It’s a hearty, comforting meal that makes weeknight dinner effortless. Each portion serves one generously or two if you round it out with a salad or extra veggies at home. Just heat, serve, and enjoy a taste of the farm in your kitchen. Quantities are limited, so we recommend pre-ordering in our online shop.
From the Grill: Scrapple & Egg Taco
This week’s taco special is a true Eastern Shore classic with a farm-fresh twist: the Scrapple & Egg Taco. Crispy scrapple, fluffy scramble eggs, and fresh pico de gallo come together for a breakfast taco that’s savory, filling, and just right for the first Saturday of fall.
Market Fresh this Week
Here’s what you’ll find at the booth and in the online shop this week:
- Heirloom & cherry tomatoes (still going strong through October)
- Heirloom garlic: Elephant, Pyong Yang, Basque, Red Janice and new this week Kyshlik
- Decorative dried gourds
- Take-home Pesto Pasta with Meatballs (Sept. 27th only)
- Pico de gallo, guacamole, and blue catfish ceviche
Farm Notes: Summer’s Close, Fall’s Start
Of course, farming isn’t just about the crops, it’s about the moments in between. This past Sunday, we celebrated the last full day of summer with a little road trip to the beach. The sky was overcast and breezy, but still warm enough to soak in that seaside magic at Assateague.
It was also Sunny the farm dog’s very first beach day! She settled right in, lounging on the sand like she’d been doing it her whole life. Watching her discover the salty water, ocean breezes, and the joy of a good sunbathe was a reminder that fall isn’t the end of summer, it’s simply the start of a new rhythm.
Back on the farm, I had an exciting discovery while harvesting tomatoes on Monday: hornworms carrying Cotesia congregata, parasitoid wasp cocoons. If you’ve ever seen a tomato hornworm covered in little white “rice-like” cocoons, you’re witnessing nature’s pest control in action.
The tiny wasps parasitize the hornworm, eventually killing it and emerging as adults to continue hunting other hornworms. While hornworm damage is never fun to see, spotting these cocoons is a hopeful sign that nature is balancing out the farm.
Moments like these are a hopeful reminder that regenerative organic farming gives space for natural predators to thrive and help us protect the tomatoes you love.
Late September is the time that tomatoes are still bursting with summer flavor, fall gourds ready for your porch, hearty take-home meals for busy evenings, and market specials that make Saturday mornings worth the trip. Join us at the Easton farmers’ market this weekend, we’d love to see you.