This Week’s LUCSA Box
For Box Delivery: 8/19, 8/20, 8/21 - 2026
Fresh Produce:
Plums
Nectarines
Sugar Cube Cantaloupe Cherry Tomatoes Lunchbox Peppers
Blue Potatoes
Weekly Staples:
Ruby - Hibiscus Tea
Mushrooms
Bread
Eggs
Any share changes must be submitted to lucsa@theurbancanopy.org by Monday at 11AM
Weekly Add-Ons
Add locally-sourced food and home goods to your box to round out your CSA delivery. Add-ons save trips to the grocery store and allow you to get more of what you want conveniently delivered inside your LUCSA share.
Access the Add-On Shop through our member portal.
This Week in the Shop:
SALE!
Rishi Sparkling Botanicals Tea - Black Lemon
Upton’s Naturals - Ground Seitan
Featured Items This Week:
Urban Canopy - Shishitos
Urban Canopy - Jalapeños
Urban Canopy - Poblanos
Urban Canopy - Parsley
Urban Canopy - Italian Basil and Thai Basil
Urban Canopy - Fennel
Urban Canopy - Green Tomatoes
Urban Canopy - Sunflowers
Mick Klug - Blueberries
Mick Klug - Nectarines
Mick Klug - Strawberries
*Reminder: Add-Ons must be ordered by Monday at 11AM
New Vendor Highlight:
Ruby Fine Hibiscus Tea (Chicago, IL)
Ruby Fine Hibiscus Tea is a unique blend of hibiscus tea, brewed with ginger, local honey and pink salt. Brothers Jan and Miles Menafee from Oak Park founded Ruby, a Black-owned and Chicago-based beverage brand, in the Summer of 2025, after two years of experimentation and feedback from family and friends.
Ruby Fine Hibiscus Tea is named after Jan and Miles’s great-grandmother Ruby Wright, who first taught them that you can taste the love in anything that you make. It’s that love that the brothers pour into every bottle of Ruby in honor of their great-grandmother.
We are so excited welcome Ruby Fine Hibiscus Tea to our LUCSA community in this week’s share!
A Message from oFarm:
"Rain, rain, please go away....This past week felt a little tooo soggy for my taste. I mean I love a good summer rain, but the repetitive down pour situation....yeah, it'd be lovely if that could stop. Luckily the storms didn't take out any major plants, just some pepper limbs, but that's pretty par for the course. Speaking of pretty, I'd love to introduce our new bombshell to the villa, she's gorg and we all love her soooo much<333 She's our red sunflower!!!! I mean, come on, how often do you see these moody Judy's out in the wild??? And no they aren't dyed! They just grow like that ting She's in short supply and obvi hot demand, so you'll wanna make sure to lock in and catch her while you still can!
It's also been a min, so shhhhh, but a lil teaser of some goss from out in the fields; who/where did the vehicle go?, cruising is a vibe, oh and the farm sweeties might be going to Monster Jam?? Until next time!
xoxo
gossip grower"
Substitutions
Items for those already opting out of beverage, bread, mushrooms, or eggs OR having a conflicting allergy; subject to change, even if specified. Please refer back to this newsletter throughout the week for updates
Basil - Wild Coyote (Berrien Springs, MI)
Storage Tip - To keep herbs perky for more than a few meals, trim the stems as you would flowers to remove dried-up ends, then stick the bunch in a tall glass of water. Loosely cover with a plastic bag and keep it on the counter. This method allows moisture to stay in while ethylene escapes, making for herbs that remain vibrant for nearly a week.
Yellow Summer Squash - Nichols Farm and Orchard (Marengo, IL)
Storage Tip - Summer squash can be stored in the fridge for up to 10 days. Do not wash before putting in the fridge. Store in an open plastic bag so moisture doesn't accumulate.
Red Onions - Garden Gate Farm (Fairbury, IL)
Storage Tip - Keep cool, dry and out of direct light, on your counter, in a cupboard, or in a perforated paper bag for up to 6 months.
Eggplant - Wild Coyote (Berrien Springs, MI)
Storage Tip - Keep cool and dry around 50 degrees if possible, or in an open bag in the fridge. Use within a week.
*Farming is never 100% Predictable
Please keep in mind that share contents may vary due to market availability so contents may vary slightly from this list. We appreciate your flexibility.
Pro-Tip for Produce Longevity
When your share arrives, immediately unpack your produce and move into proper storage containers!
Always Wash Before Eating
As a general best practice with all produce including ours, we recommend washing produce before eating.
Please Remember to Save and Return LUCSA Packaging
We request that you return your wax box and Finn’s Ranch egg cartons during your next delivery. Help practice sustainability by helping us re-use all of these items for future deliveries.
We’re unfortunately not able to re-use; non-Finn’s egg cartons, rubber bands, bags, berry containers or glass jars.
Recipes
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For more recipe ideas, follow us on Instagram
Our recipe reels provide additional information on how to use produce and processing items each week!
We have created a handy Produce Guide which includes most items you will be getting in your box this season and through out the year. It is helpful for identification and has lots of storage tips, and also includes a log of recipes. It’s not a bad idea to bookmark this page!
Previous Boxes
If you missed a week and want to see what was in a previous share, we archive a PDF of all our previous newsletters here.
You can also use it to look at previous seasons if you are interested to see what crops are coming.
