Deep Roots CPS Farm

05/09/2026

So much joy this week.....
Joy for the rain that watered the fields.
Joy for 9 years of life! Happy Birthday Niatu!!
Joy for the mothers, aunties, grandmothers, caregivers, and chosen family who keep showing up with love. Happy Mother's Day!!
Joy for the harvest and the chance to share fresh, local food with our community.

This week’s harvest is full of spring goodness: beets, mixed bags of lettuce, spinach, chard, mustard greens, radishes, pea shoots, green onions, shallots, scallion blossoms, green garlic, strawberries, fresh herbs, chicken and duck eggs, pasture-raised chicken, gourmet mushrooms, and our signature drinks.

Come shop with us and take home something grown with care. We're at the today. from 8am until 12:30 pm.

Happy Mother’s Day weekend from all of us at Deep Roots CPS Farm. Thank you for being part of what we are growing.

05/09/2026

“I sustain myself with the love of family.” - Maya Angelou

This week, we had a lot to celebrate.

There are so many lessons farming teaches us. This week’s lesson was patience.

We watch the sky, we watch the soil, and we move when the land says it is time. We knew the rain was coming. We just did not know how much. So we worked, rushing to get seedlings and seeds in the ground, trusting that the weeks of preparing beds and starting trays were about to be met with a real gift from the sky.

By late Wednesday evening, we knew the rain would be enough to irrigate our fields. By Thursday morning, we were in celebration. Not just for the rain, but for our youngest daughter’s ninth year around the sun.

The morning was beautiful. The rain was here, and our youngest was delightfully excited about the start of her ninth birthday celebration. She had been counting down for the past 365 days, or so it seemed. I prepared her favorite breakfast, pancakes with whipped cream, YUM! She carries the kind of pure joy that I sometimes wish I could still tap into so easily.

There is also a particular joy in patience finally meeting what it has been waiting for. In being together as a family while the land is being recharged by the rain.

That, too, is part of what we are growing.

Earlier this week, we also gathered at the farm for the ribbon cutting of the EcoDome project, created in partnership with UNC Charlotte. It was a beautiful moment to see art, agriculture, design, and community come together on the farm. The EcoDome reminds us that farms can be more than places where food is grown. They can also be places where people gather, imagine, learn, heal, and build a deeper relationship with the land (more to come on this).

This Sunday is Mother’s Day. I am thinking about all the mothers in our community, blood mothers and chosen ones, the aunties, the grandmothers, and the women who feed, watch over, protect, and worry.
You are part of the reason we started this farm.

We wanted to know that our children would have farm space in the city. We wanted to know they would have food they could trust. We wanted them to grow up understanding that good land and good food are not luxuries.

They are birthrights.

To every mother reading this, Happy Mother’s Day. Thank you for the love that becomes everything else.

~ This Week’s Harvest ~
Beets, lettuce mix bags, lettuce heads, spinach, chard, mustard greens, radishes, pea shoots, green onions, shallots, scallion blossoms, green garlic. Strawberries. Fresh herbs include chamomile, cilantro, chives, sage, rosemary, oregano, parsley, tarragon, mint, and thyme. Chicken eggs and duck eggs. Chicken: breasts, leg quarters, wings, thighs, and whole chickens. Gourmet mushrooms. Our signature drinks: Ginger Mint Lemonade and Lavender Lemonade. Every single thing grown and tended with intention and love for you in mind.

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Market Update
Come shop with us at the Uptown Farmers Market (https://www.uptownfarmersmarket.com/) . Market hours are 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. We are grateful to keep showing up in that space and to continue sharing the harvest with our community.

Our next Sunday Market on the Farm is scheduled for Sunday, May 17, from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. Come shop with us directly at the farm. Come shop with us directly. We will be offering triple bucks for EBT/SNAP customers, which extends your produce dollars and helps put more fresh food on the table. For the full on-farm market schedule and updates throughout the season, please visit deeprootscpsfarm.com (https://www.deeprootscpsfarm.com/)

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A Small Way to Keep the Loop Closed.
Bring us your empty egg cartons.
If you have cardboard egg cartons at home, please bring them our way. We reuse them, and every one you return is one less we need to buy new. Cardboard only, no styrofoam. Thank you for being part of how we steward what we have.

When we pack our farm eggs, we often use cartons given to us by our customers. We place our Deep Roots CPS Farm sticker on them so you know the eggs came from our farm.

So, if you ever pick up eggs from our farm stand and notice that the carton looks like it may have originally come from another retailer or egg producer, that is why. We believe in reusing what we can.

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JJoin Us on the Farm for a Memorable Event: June 28 Fire & Farm-to-Table Dinner (https://shop.deeprootscpsfarm.com/dinners-workshops-and-events)
We are excited about this special event that will be held at our Charlotte, NC farm on Sunday June 28th.

Tickets are now on sale, and they have already started moving. We are grateful for the early support and excitement around this gathering.

We are also excited to announce that our chef lineup is coming very soon. This dinner will celebrate the relationship between farmers, chefs, fire, food, land, and community and there will surely be a few special appearances connected to our Top Chef moment. Stay tuned for more details, but we encourage you to reserve your seat early. This will be a beautiful evening on the farm.

Tickets and full details are available on our website. Get your tickets now. GET TICKETS NOW (https://checkout.square.site/merchant/J8FDA080BM1FW/checkout/QPQ3EJTDXXINUJRB6YB6YPUJ) . We hope to see you at the table.

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Thank you for being here, and for continuing to share the good news about our farm and the market. Your support and encouragement mean everything. Remember, joy is a reciprocal act.

With deep joy and gratitude,
Cherie & The Deep Roots CPS Farm Family

Please visit our website to learn more.
www.deeprootscpsfarm.com

Click here for an update from Deep Roots CPS Farm!

05/07/2026

She was 3 when we first stepped onto this land.
Now she is its biggest fan and a whole 9 years old.
Zuko's (our guardian livestock dog) best friend. First to the egg basket. Fastest over a fence.A ray of light. A consistent source of joy.
Happy birthday, baby girl. We love you.

05/01/2026

“If I have someone who believes in me, I can move mountains.” - Diana Ross

Before I share anything about our week on the farm, I have to say thank you. So many of you read last week's letter, heard our request for prayers, and responded. We had a few showers that delightfully wet the farm. Not quite enough to put us back in the positive, but enough to smother our grief. Thank you.

Last Sunday we especially enjoyed hanging out on the farm with fellow growers during our Growers Network Seed Swap event. There is something powerful about farmers and growers coming together, not just to talk about the work, but to share from what they have. Seeds, stories, and ideas were exchanged. Plus Farmer Alvamir gave everyone a tour of the farm, and it was beautiful to watch him lead folks through the land with the kind of familiarity that only comes from growing up in this work.

This week the farm has been especially giving.

The girls (our hens) are laying beautifully, and we hope you have noticed if you have come to shop our farm stand for eggs. Our production numbers are the highest they have ever been. So much so that all of our CSA members will receive a half dozen in their share bags this week. Our chickens are obviously happy. I have watched them scratch, fuss, scatter, and gather in the sunlight. They live the way chickens are meant to live, and we are grateful for every carton they give us.

If you need eggs, we have plenty right now at $9 per dozen. Simple, complete, and ready to nourish your family.

The abundance has not gone unnoticed by everyone, though. This week the second Black Rat snake of the season showed up in the coop. She was not bothering anyone, just curled up where the warmth and food are. The same eggs we are grateful for are noticed by every creature trying to survive. Farming keeps us humble that way. We are never the only ones paying attention.

We also welcomed our new summer intern Ari to the farm this week. We're excited about her joining our team and have certainly felt the work lighten a bit with her presence. Every set of new hands becomes part of a much larger story here, and we are so glad to have Ari with us. We love that the land and this work is giving us a wider community to connect with.

Finally, on Wednesday I had the honor of leading a breakout session at the 2026 Gaston County Public Health Summit called From Food Access to Food Dignity. My message was simple. A bag of food is not enough. Real food work asks whether the person receiving the food was treated with respect, whether the food fits their household, and whether they had choice and care along the way. A produce bag can be a blessing or a burden. We are committed to making it a blessing. (More on this soon in What We Inherit (https://cheriejzar.substack.com/) .)

Now for the Part I Hope You Read Twice: Come See Us Sunday! If you can.. Sunday, May 3, from 12 PM to 3 PM, we are opening our first On Farm Stand of the year, and we would love to see you.

The stand will be near the front of the farm, easy to find and easy to visit. We will have farm fresh eggs, seasonal produce, and farm raised chicken + other farm goods. Our horse will be out in the front pasture for led rides.

~ Triple Bucks for SNAP EBT Customers
We want every family to be able to take home good food, so we are offering Triple Bucks for SNAP EBT customers this season. You will get 3 times the match if you shop with us on Sunday. For example, Spend $25 with your SNAP EBT card and you take home $75 worth of farm food. Triple Bucks support is available up to $150 in total purchasing power. This is an awesome way to get your farm fresh produce.

Please share this with neighbors and friends who use SNAP. Fresh, local food should not feel out of reach for any family.

~ This Week’s Harvest ~
Beet leaves, chard, celery, lettuce mix, head lettuce, pea shoots, green onions, wasabina mustard greens, kale, shallots, green garlic, radish, shallots, spinach, salad turnips,
Herbs: cilantro, sage, mint, tarragon, lovage, thyme, lemon balm, rosemary, curly parsley, lavender, chives, chive blossoms, and bronze fennel.
Eggs and Poultry: Chicken eggs, duck eggs, chicken leg quarters, chicken breast, wings, and whole birds.
Mushrooms: chestnuts, oyster, king, shiitake
Drinks: lavender lemonade & ginger mint lemonade.
Come ready to shop, stock your kitchen, and take home something fresh from the farm.

~ Market Update ~
Want to pick up your share of the harvest? Well you can find us each Saturday at the Uptown Farmers Market (https://www.uptownfarmersmarket.com/) . We are grateful to keep showing up in that space and to continue sharing the harvest with our community. Market hours are 8am - 12:30 pm.

This Sunday, May 3rd our farm stand will be open from 12PM - 3PM. We are planning to have our farm stand open on the 1st and 4th Sunday of each month starting in June.

For the full on-farm market schedule and updates throughout the season, please visit deeprootscpsfarm.com (https://www.deeprootscpsfarm.com/)

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Community Connections
The harvest is just one way we show love. Another is showing up for the people and businesses building alongside us. Here is what we'We hope you'll connect with us in the community. we’re excited to share two events that celebrate local farmers, creativity, and the power of coming together.

EcoDome Ribbon Cutting: Monday, May 4th | Deep Roots CPS Farm
We invite you to join us on Monday May 4th on our farm for this special event. The EcoDome Pavilion will be officially unveiled on the farm. This is the result of a meaningful partnership with Professor Kyle Spence (https://coaa.charlotte.edu/people/kyle-spence/) and the UNC Charlotte School of Architecture's Community Planning Workshops and Ceramics Studio.

Chef Greg Collier will be curating a farm-to-table culinary experience for the occasion, and the day will bring together student design teams, farm leadership, and community partners in a truly special way.

This work is made possible through the UNC Charlotte Urban Institute, the 2024-2025 Gambrell Faculty Fellowship, and Neighboring Concepts.

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You don't want to miss this special event: June 28 Farm-to-Table Dinner (https://shop.deeprootscpsfarm.com/dinners-workshops-and-events)
On Sunday, June 28, we are opening the table again for our next farm-to-table dinner at the farm. These evenings are some of our favorite nights of the year. The food comes straight from the fields, the company is warm, and the stories that get shared around the table stay with us long after the plates are cleared. Seats are limited and they go quickly, so if you have been meaning to join us for one of these, this is the one to put on your calendar.

Tickets and full details will be posted on our website GET TICKETS NOW (https://checkout.square.site/merchant/J8FDA080BM1FW/checkout/QPQ3EJTDXXINUJRB6YB6YPUJ) . We hope to see you at the table.

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Thank you for your continued support and for believing in this work.

With love and tremendous hope,
Cherie & The Deep Roots CPS Farm Family

Deeply Rooted in Community

Please visit our website to learn more.
www.deeprootscpsfarm.com

Click here for an update from Deep Roots CPS Farm!

05/01/2026

Peace Family!

We are excited to see you this weekend!

This week, our tables will be full and we would love for you to come be a part of it.
We’ll have our seasonal veggies, eggs, herbs, mushrooms, our signature lemonade drinks, and chicken. ❤️

Come shop our farm stand at the Uptown Farmers Market
Saturday, May 2 | 8:00 AM – 12:30 PM

Or visit us on the farm
Sunday, May 3 | 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM
2401 Primm Road Charlotte NC 28216

We are especially excited to share that we are partnering with the Charlotte Food Policy Council to TRIPLE SNAP EBT benefits this weekend at our Sunday Market.

That means
Spend $25 → Receive an additional $50
More fresh food. More access. More community.

This is about making sure everyone can experience the nourishment that comes from locally grown food.

Come see us. Come shop. Come connect.

04/24/2026

04/24/2026

Shallots. Fresh from the field and full of color.

We’re harvesting three beautiful shallot varieties this season: Nero, Rodriguez, and Monique. Each one brings its own color, flavor, and personality to the table, from soft golden tones to deep purple bulbs.

These fresh shallots will be available this Saturday at our farmstand in limited quantities.

Cooking tip: Fresh shallots are milder and more delicate than storage onions. Slice them thin and sauté slowly in butter or olive oil until soft and golden, then add them to eggs, roasted vegetables, salad dressings, sauces, or anything that needs a little sweet, savory depth.

Fresh, local, and deeply rooted in community.

04/24/2026

In a season when we have been praying for rain, the came back on its own.

It's beautiful, flavorful and such a delight to harvest now that we have our new harvest tool!

At our Monroe farm, this chamomile was one of the first perennial herbs to greet us this spring, and it has settled beautifully into the red clay soil. This week, we are harvesting with a new tool that is gentler on the hands and faster on the row. You can see the little yellow and white blooms filling the crate, and there is still so much more on the stem.

We'll have some to share along with what you see below at tomorrow's market. Come see us from 8am - 12:30pm.

~ This Week’s Harvest ~
Arugula, beets, lettuce mix bags, lettuce heads, spinach, kale, chard, mustard greens, radishes, pea shoots, green onions, shallots, scallion blossoms, green garlic. Fresh herbs include chamomile, cilantro, chives, sage, rosemary, oregano, parsley, tarragon, mint, and thyme. Chicken eggs and duck eggs. Whole Chicken and for our mushroom lovers, we are coming in with a full spread: shiitake, Italian oyster, lion’s mane, king mushrooms, chestnut, blue oysters, and nameko. Every single thing grown and tended with intention and love for you in mind.

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🌼 Chamomile | Monroe, NC

04/24/2026

This week's lesson: Catastrophe as a Masterclass in Gratitude & Resilience.

This season on the farm is reminding us that farming is both faith and labor. Earth Day came and went this week, and we spent it the way we spend most days now, in the fields and our eyes scanning the sky for clouds that never arrived.

We are in a drought, and we have been praying for rain. Plainly. Out loud. In the truck on the way to the field. At the market. We have asked friends, customers, and fellow farmers to pray as well.

My mother used to say that rain is one of the few things God did not give us a substitute for, and she was right. We can irrigate, and we do. But nothing washes a field the way rain does. Nothing wakes the soil up the same way. The plants can tell the difference. So can a farmer.

I will not pretend this season has been easy. It has not been. Yes it was full of much excitement about our appearance on the Top Chef Show and we have been full of so much gratitude and amazement. But the WEATHER…yes, mother nature hasn't brought rain our way in quite some time. But I have been sitting with something I read recently, research out of Stanford by a psychologist named Alia Crum, about how the mindset we bring to a hard situation does not just shape how we feel about it. It shapes what we notice, how we show up, and what we are able to do with what we have been given. A catastrophe and a classroom can be the same set of circumstances wearing a different lens.

And still, the drought is teaching us. To stretch every gallon, to mulch heavier, to waste nothing. To notice how central water is to every part of this system, and how quickly everything tips when water is scarce. There is power in gratitude, and there is learning in every season, if we are willing to receive it.

Still, we are harvesting, still hopeful, and deeply grateful. This farm is not a hobby or a side project. It is our family's livelihood and our life's work. It is how we sustain our home and continue our work in the community. That is why we do not take lightly the abundance that still rises from the land, even in a hard season. We are grateful for this week's harvest and for the chance to keep offering something meaningful to our community. That includes fresh shallots, planted in the fall and growing at our Monroe farm, where we are continuing the work of getting irrigation in place and trusting the Earth to do what it does. That is why we are thankful that we can lean on a community of people to call for rain in whatever way their spirituality calls them to do that. That is why we remain grateful that we have a well that pulls water from aquifer below the earth...there is abundance. We're listening and learning from Mother Earth and we celebrate her beauty and abundance daily.

~ This Week’s Harvest ~
Arugula, beets, lettuce mix bags, lettuce heads, spinach, kale, chard, mustard greens, radishes, pea shoots, green onions, shallots, scallion blossoms, green garlic. Fresh herbs include chamomile, cilantro, chives, sage, rosemary, oregano, parsley, tarragon, mint, and thyme. Chicken eggs and duck eggs. Whole Chicken and for our mushroom lovers, we are coming in with a full spread: shiitake, Italian oyster, lion’s mane, king mushrooms, chestnut, blue oysters, and nameko. Every single thing grown and tended with intention and love for you in mind.

———
Market Update
This season, you can find us each Saturday at the Uptown Farmers Market (https://www.uptownfarmersmarket.com/) . We are grateful to keep showing up in that space and to continue sharing the harvest with our community. Market hours are 8am - 12:30 pm. We are grateful to keep showing up in that space and to continue sharing the harvest with our community.

Sunday, May 3, from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m., we are hosting an on-farm market. Come shop with us directly. We will be offering triple bucks for EBT/SNAP customers, which extends your produce dollars and helps put more fresh food on the table. We hope to begin this regular on-farm Sunday market in June. For the full on-farm market schedule and updates throughout the season, please visit deeprootscpsfarm.com (https://www.deeprootscpsfarm.com/)

Bring the Little Ones
If you are heading to Uptown this Saturday, bring the little ones by the Radish Roots Corner, the children's tent at the market. Kids ages 4 through 12 can do a craft activity and earn tokens to spend on fresh fruits and vegetables with the farmers. There are cooking demos, kid-friendly recipes, and a real chance for them to taste what is in season.

We love seeing young hands reach across the table for a bunch of herbs or pick out their own shallot. It is how the next generation learns where food comes from, and it is one of the sweetest parts of a Saturday morning. You can read more about the program at uptownfarmersmarket.com/radish-roots-tokens.

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Community Connections
The harvest is just one way we show love. Another is showing up for the people and businesses building alongside us. Here is what we'We hope you'll connect with us in the community. we’re excited to share two events that celebrate local farmers, creativity, and the power of coming together.

We enjoyed our time spent this Earth Day with Mecklenburg Soil and Water Conservation District at Edgewater Farm Park in Huntersville. A huge Thank you to Mecklenburg Soil and Water Conservation District for hosting an event on Wednesday April 22nd that was designed to celebrate local farmers and the Earth. There was lots to learn and networking with seasoned and new and beginning farmers in Mecklenburg County. Learn more. (https://conserve.mecknc.gov/event/celebrate-earth-day-mswcd)

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EcoDome Ribbon Cutting: Monday, May 4th | Deep Roots CPS Farm
We're excited about the big reveal coming up on May 4th, where the EcoDome Pavilion will be officially unveiled right here on the farm. This is the result of a meaningful partnership with Professor Kyle Spence (https://coaa.charlotte.edu/people/kyle-spence/) and the UNC Charlotte School of Architecture's Community Planning Workshops and Ceramics Studio. Their students designed the EcoDome alongside the 'Storybox' installation, a celebration of Black agrarian heritage, and the 'Systemic Atlas' exhibition exploring Charlotte's political ecology.

Chef Greg Collier will be curating a farm-to-table culinary experience for the occasion, and the day will bring together student design teams, farm leadership, and community partners in a truly special way.

This work is made possible through the UNC Charlotte Urban Institute, the 2024-2025 Gambrell Faculty Fellowship, and Neighboring Concepts.

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Save the Date: June 28 Farm-to-Table Dinner (https://shop.deeprootscpsfarm.com/dinners-workshops-and-events)
On Sunday, June 28, we are opening the table again for our next farm-to-table dinner at the farm. These evenings are some of our favorite nights of the year. The food comes straight from the fields, the company is warm, and the stories that get shared around the table stay with us long after the plates are cleared. Seats are limited and they go quickly, so if you have been meaning to join us for one of these, this is the one to put on your calendar.

Tickets and full details will be posted on our website GET TICKETS NOW (https://checkout.square.site/merchant/J8FDA080BM1FW/checkout/QPQ3EJTDXXINUJRB6YB6YPUJ) . We hope to see you at the table.

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Thank you for being here. Thank you for every conversation at the market table, every recipe you have sent back to us, every neighbor you have told about the farm. Please keep treating one another with dignity and respect. It matters.

And if you have any rain to send our way, we will take it.

With understanding and gratitude,
Cherie & The Deep Roots CPS Farm Family

Please visit our website to learn more.
www.deeprootscpsfarm.com

Click here for an update from Deep Roots CPS Farm!

04/18/2026

We are headed into our second full week back at market and bringing a beautiful selection from the farm with us.

Find us at the Uptown Farmers Market today April 18th starting at 8am for freshly harvested vegetables, herbs, mushrooms, signature drinks, and chicken. CSA pickup also starts today, and we are excited to keep feeding our community in meaningful ways.

Did you know Deep Roots CPS Farm is GAP certified? That means we follow verified food safety practices that help ensure our produce is handled with care from harvest to market.

Come shop the harvest and connect with us at market. We cannot wait to see you.

And be sure to visit our website at deeprootscpsfarm.com to sign up for our newsletter to stay in the loop on market offerings, farm updates, special events, and the deeper reflections that keep us grounded in this work.