I’m expanding the CSA slightly this year since I now have a job with summers off. It’s still a very small, neighborly operation, which I think is good (I like CSAs that are actually community supported, not just farmer-run Blue Apron services). It’s literally just run out of two backyards. The benefit of that is that you really do get produce straight from me and my family. You can come by and see what we’re up to and trust that we’re doing our best. The downside is that you kind of run with our families’ schedule and the production variables of a very small farm. I’m only planting about ten feet of beans, and if bugs eat them, they eat them (exceptions below). If I get sick for a week we’ll probably skip it, that sort of thing. I don’t have a whole crew to work with. If that sounds interesting, keep on reading.
Cost and Schedule
Full shares this year are $750 and half shares are $485, for which you are guaranteed 22 weeks of produce out of the roughly 25-week period between mid-May and mid-October. That works out to about $30/week for full shares and $22/week for mediums, which incorporates for us the dramatic rise in the price of food over the past few years while hopefully still getting you a good deal compared to grocery store prices.
As per the last couple years, those skipped weeks may be a combination of weeks we skip (family vacations or just a decision that we’ve got a slow produce week) and weeks you may skip. If we end up shortchanging you (e.g., only delivering 19 weeks of reasonable boxes), we will offer a prorated refund. If you end up shortchanging us (e.g., you are out of town every other week in the summer), you should see if a friend can pick up for you or we can donate your veggies to the food bank.
If you’re interested, please try to get me at least a $200 deposit to reserve your spot and then pay the rest by the first delivery.
Delivery Details
We will set a delivery date that works for everyone as the season start approaches. It may shift between the school year and the summer as my schedule changes, but we’ll we'll try to keep them consistent as much as possible. It gets to be too much hassle if I have six different delivery days every week and they’re constantly changing.
Growing Methods
I use organic practices but am not certified organic. I have been certified in the past, back when I had a bigger farm, and will be again if we scale back up sufficiently, but it’s not cost-efficient for five CSA shares and some restaurant sales. And, legally, certification is not required for operations with under $5,000 in gross sales anyway. But I do know what certification entails and abide by it, which means I’m not just saying “no spray” and thinking that’s the same thing. I use organic fertility management (in my opinion a much harder problem then pest control), keeping my garden fertile via manure application (90-120 days before harvest, per regulations) and organic-certified fertilizers. I do use some organic-allowed pest controls, mainly kaolin clay, Bt for caterpillars, and copper for tomato blight.
Off-Farm Produce
In order to make the CSA fit in better with both the space we have available and the demands of our lives, I occasionally buy in a little produce - specifically low-value, space-intensive crops like winter squash. 90% or more of what you get will get come from me, but our winter squash crop always does poorly and takes up space that I could use to grow literally hundreds of lettuce or dozens of broccoli. I will let you know when anything is grown off-farm and it will always be from local farmers that I know, not from the supermarket or the produce auction or anything like that. I also occasionally include foraged mushrooms or other wild-foraged products in shares, if I find them out in the woods. If you’re not interested in these additions, please let me know.
Newsletter
Member feedback has consistently indicated that you like getting newsletters, and I enjoy writing it, so you can look forward to a weekly note on the farm with every share. I can do hard copies in the boxes or just post them here - please let me know if you have preferences either way.
Handling Standards
I follow general best practices for produce handling. I often do not wash produce if it keeps better that way - lettuce seems to degrade every time you wash it, for instance. If things are really dirty I’ll wash them off, but in general, if you eat something fresh out of the bag you do so at your own risk. (I do it all the time, but I’m just saying - I don’t wash strawberries off in bleach or anything like that). At the moment I am not planning on continuing the Covid-era handling standards I was using in the past (e.g., facemask while picking, etc.). If we have another Covid peak or similar issue we can reinstate masked picking and packing as needed.
Thanks and happy new year!
D&G