Wow, we went from Summer to Winter in just a matter of days! As I am writing this, the farm has received a deep, long soak of rain, creating the perfect environment for Winter planting. This is the time to start all of your allium crops! These are your onions, garlic, shallots, leeks, and chives. They love Winter to grow strong, deep roots and prepare to bulb out in the Spring, bringing you the sweetest of allium crops, thanks to the sweet cold days of Winter. Starting this early in the season lets you start with seed. Feel free to plant thickly, and then thin later in the season, supplying your kitchen with green onions, early chives, and fresh garlic! If you are not in the mood to plant these crops, then sit back and enjoy your gardening catalogs as they arrive in the mail. This is the time of year when the gardening dreams come to life for the upcoming season!
At Moonstruck Farms, we are preparing all our Paperwhite Grow Kits, which do not require a cold period to grow and can be easily forced indoors for beautiful Winter blooms. If you desire to limit the height of the paperwhites, then rooting in a cold environment like a basement or garage that is 40 to 50 degrees will allow them to slowly develop a strong root system before bursting forth in bloom, which will create shorter foliage. In addition, we are packaging all our gift sets full of jams, jellies, and mustards created here on the farm with our organically grown fruit, and always with organic sugar that allows the farm-fresh flavors to take center stage in our jams. You can find all our gift items at the Phelan Certified Farmers Market on Mondays and at our online Etsy store. A limited supply is also available at Whole Life Soaps and Mountain Hardware in Wrightwood. As soon as the holidays are over later in the month, we will be pruning the remaining fruit trees, and thanks to all this beautiful rain and hopefully snow, I am looking forward to a beautiful crop next season!
The local farmers’ markets are in full holiday mode and ready to serve our wonderful GROWING community! You can find the Phelan Certified Farmers Market on Mondays, 2 pm to 5 pm, inside and outside the Phelan Community Center at 4128 Warbler Road in Phelan. The market will close December 22nd and 29th for the holidays, returning on Monday, January 5, 2026. The Wrightwood Certified Farmers Market is open every Friday, 3 pm to 6 pm, inside and outside the Wrightwood Community Center off of Park Avenue. The Wrightwood Certified Farmers Market will close December 19th and 26th for the holidays. Both markets accept EBT, and the Phelan Certified Farmers Market administers the Market Match grant, gifting up to $15 in farm-fresh produce to Calfresh customers when they use their EBT cards at market each Monday.
