Spinach leaves are sprouting at Willow Wisp Organic Farm in Wayne County even as winter frost covers much of Northeast Pennsylvania. Tannis Kowalchuk walked through rows of parsley, bok choy and arugula in her greenhouse. She plucked a handful of spinach from the ground, offering a few to try.
"This has survived [the cold]. You can taste how sweet this is … because it's been frozen," said Kowalchuk.
She co-owns Willow Wisp, a 25-acre farm that grows over 400 types of vegetables, herbs and flowers in Damascus Township. The farm abuts the Delaware River, from which the operation siphons its water.
Pointing to a crop of miner's lettuce, Kowalchuk described how miners in California would eat the vitamin C-rich lettuce to stave off scurvy. Claytonia perfoliata, to use its scientific name, loves cold weather but isn't commonly found in Northern grocery stores.
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