In 2021, we helped early care providers access Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) boxes. These boxes allowed providers to explore, educate, and eat local produce from the Hmong American Farmers Association. Check it out! 

While you may not think of 'farm to early care' when it's cold outside, there are so many great things you can do inside to get kids thinking about and eating delicious local food. 

Read on for a roundup of a few favorites!

Learning more about veggies helps build excitement and understanding. The providers we work with have explored the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) boxes in so many fun ways: 

Local farmers and home gardeners alike often have an abundance of zucchini. Try some zucchini fritters to make good use of your delicious abundance! If you have little ones at home, check our Zucchini version of Pint Size Produce for other zucchini-related fun!

Getting a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) share is a great way to expose kids to produce that you might not purchase at the grocery store. This opportunity can also be a challenge, learning to prepare produce that may be new to you. Kohlrabi can be one such vegetable. Kohlrabi belongs to the same family as broccoli and cabbage, and raw it tastes like some combination of cabbage, radish, and turnip. Lots of kohlrabi information here, and read on for one great way to use it: Kohlrabi Salad. No cooking required, fresh and delicious. Little hands can help mix, add ingredients, or chop! 

June is National Pollinators Month and National Dairy Month. Both great things to celebrate in Farm to Early Care land - and don't worry, they are good to celebrate even if you are reading this in July!

Rhubarb is one of the early markers of the growing season in the upper Midwest. Rhubarb was new for some providers from the CSA boxes last season, and a fun exploration for kids and providers. What better way to kick off the growing season than with a treat made with local rhubarb, from your garden, your neighbor, or a local farmer? 

Read on for staffer Nora's favorite rhubarb recipe: rhubarb bars. 

Using kitchen scraps can be a great low cost or no cost way to interact with and explore food.

There are so many ways to do this, from re-growing scraps to arts and crafts: 

Earth Day has been celebrated each April 22nd since 1970. It is a day focused on support for environmental protection. Environmental conservation and land stewardship are so integral to many things Renewing the Countryside as a whole is focused on, and farm to early care is no exception. Farm to early care can be part of growing the next generation of dedicated environmental stewards. What better way to celebrate Earth Day than by getting your hands in the soil, reading a great book about conservation, or supporting a local farmer who cares for the land? 

Some places to find great Earth Day activities for kids:   

There are several fairly new and wonderful books related to gardening. If you are searching for books for kids, read on for some of our new favorites! 

Jayden's Impossible Garden is a brand new, truly lovely book written by Minnesota author Mélina Mangal, illustrated by Ken Daley. This book talks about finding nature wherever you are, and the potential for growth and beauty in so many spaces. See the author read the book aloud here.