Hattie’s Garden, a Local Model for Farm Fresh Delivery 

Hattie’s Garden in Lewes has an innovative model to encourage us all to buy and appreciate local produce and other products with the added bonus of optional home delivery.

You may already be familiar with Hattie’s Garden as a popular stop in the Historic Lewes Farmers Market, but did you know that Hattie also operates a service during the off-season, from December through May, providing customers with produce and many other local vendor products. In this way, Hattie’s Garden strives to support local business and especially small sustainable farming on Delmarva.

Fill out an order form and stop by Hattie’s Garden on Saturday to pickup your order, or have it delivered if you live in Rehoboth or Lewes. She is also open Tuesday’s from 12-3 for casual shopping at the garden.

Once the Historic Lewes Farmers Market opens in May, Hattie will participate in the Saturday market and be open at the garden for shopping on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

Hattie’s Garden is also a popular place for home gardeners to purchase her garden ready plants. They grow flower, herbs and vegetable plants for your spring planting. Heirloom tomato plants, pepper plants, eggplants and many more varieties are available at her garden site on Kendale Road. Her faithful followers swear by her plants, lovingly raised in the finest organic soil from Vermont. A list of the varieties usually offered are on the plant section of the website.

Hattie’s Garden also operates a CSA – a Community Supported Agriculture service. In an “everyone benefits” situation, participants pay Hattie’s in advance of the spring growing season, and have credit toward future purchases. This system helps farmers meet their elevated expenses in the early months of planting. Hattie generously incentivizes joining her CSA by adding 10% credit to your account.

CSA membership is available in increments of between $50 and $500 ($500 buys you $550 in credit). Credits can go towards on site purchases, delivery and Historic Lewes Farmers market purchases. The deadline to apply for the 2024 CSA is March 1st.

So what about the delivery service whether or not you join the CSA?

Every Saturday morning before Noon, all year, Hattie’s Garden provides home delivery. For an additional fee of $5, residents of Lewes, Rehoboth Beach and Milton are eligible for this service.

Local grass fed beef, free range chickens, pork, cheese, organic eggs, homemade jams, coffee and more are available (upon availability) each week. Even Alaskan salmon, cod and rockfish are on the list.

To order, you need to subscribe to Hattie’s email list, and on Sundays, you’ll receive a list of available products for the upcoming Saturday. Orders must be placed online no later than 8 pm on Tuesdays. (It’s first come, first served, so it’s recommended to order early!). Read more about Off Season Pick-Up / Delivery Service.

If you’d prefer to pick up your order in person, Hattie’s is open on Saturdays from 9 am until 2 pm. They are also open for shopping on Tuesdays, Noon until 3 pm.

Don’t let the winter months fool you into thinking nothing edible is growing around here. Right now, Hattie’s Garden offers young carrots (I’ve had them and they are delicious), a few greens and lots of microgreens. As we progress into the spring, more vegetables will become available. Check out Hattie’s Garden’s website to learn more about her sustainable farming practices, her produce, her gardening classes and more. And be sure to consider the benefits of supporting Hattie by joining her CSA.

By Bridget FitzPatrick