Does anyone take part in a local CSA farm group?

Question

I just watched The Real Dirt on Farmer John, and am inspired to try this CSA farming co-op. You get to work on the farm if you wish, and buy a share in the farm. In exchange you get farm fresh produce and flowers that are organically grown weekly! There's something to be said for knowing where your produce comes from, and in this case, you know your farmer, and you know what he is or isn't putting on the crops. Plus, you're helping to support local growers, which is great!

Is anyone active in a CSA group? I would love to hear your experience, and what I should look for when picking out a farm to join. Thanks!

Answer 1

I'm a small farmer in Idaho, and I completely suport CSA programs!  I do not participate in the however, since what I raise, nobody wants showing up on their doorstep!  

I raise meat goats, and meat rabbits.  My customers come to my farm, and butcher here.  

There is one drawback to CSA programs, that many folks are not ready to deal with.  You get food that is in season.  You also get food that you may not be use to cooking, or eating.  Would you know what to do with beets, a hubbard squash,  gooseberries, or a sunberry?

You don't get to plan meals ahead of time.  The box of goodies arrives, and you plan your meals around the box of goodies.

It sounds great to only be getting vegtables that are in season....but how about the fact that corn is a 120 day crop?  That means the corn on the cob you eat for the 4th of July is not locally grown....it probably came from Mexico.

So just because you are use to eating something at a certain time of year, does not mean it's actually going to show up in your box when you expect it too.  On the other hand, it gives peope a TRUE idea of what is actually in season in their local area.  Something I think is VERY important!

If you have a choice of farms to join, try to pick on that is open, friendly, welcomes visitors (within reason) and freely answers questions.  Also pick one that grows food items you know, and enjoy.  If you think okra, watermellons that are yellow inside, tommatoes that are white, and eggplants that are pale green are too weird, or icky, and the farmer loves to grow such exotic fair, you will probably not be a good match.  You may need to look for a farm that grows more traditional things.  On the other hand, maybe you love the challenge of the exotic and unusual, and love to try new things!

If you are a city person, and have limited exposure to livestock, you need to know what the farm is fertilizing with.  If they use animal manure, you need to wash your vegtables very well.  You will have zero immunity to certain germs/bacteria, because you have no exposure.

We ONLY use manure on our farm, zero chemical fertilizers.  Our garden food tast wonderful, and are bursting with trace minerals and vitamin because we use manure.

It also makes a difference where the manure came from.  Did it come from the cattle being raised in a feedlot?  Toxic stuff!  Did it come from animals raised on pasture and hay?  About as natural as it comes then.

Good luck, and thank you for supporting small farmers!

~Garnet

Homesteading/Farming over 20 years

Answer 2

No I'm not, but I think you are headed in the right direction. Only eating local produce cuts down on pollution and fossil fuel consumption. You don't need to ship it far and it's way fresher YUM!

Answer 3

No, and the only farms we have around my area are cranberry bogs.... and cranberries are pretty bitter so yeah.

I don't care really about synthetic or organic foods because most of them are exactly the same. It's only the .1% that aren't that people get horrified over. (this is excluding Fast Food)