We had our first pickup at our CSA on Tuesday. For those of you that don’t know CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture. You can visit Local Harvest for more information on CSAs and to locate one near you.
Over the last 7 years we have been part of 3 different CSAs. This is its second year at Hillside and it is looking great and producing wonderfully. We were able to get a sneak peak at strawberry picking last week and were able to pick two quarts with our share this week. In addition they had available, kale, chard, turnips, dill, lots of varieties of lettuce, spinach, radishes, beets, collards, and arugula.
Our CSA has changed to a unit system rather than the traditional, take one of everything system. I wasn’t sure that I was going to like it but I was happy that I could take and additional unit of spinach and skip the beets, which I love but my family could string me up for serving. I also doubled up on the chard and skipped some of the lettuces. It was a great first share and totally unexpected. Last year the farm tried but the farmers just weren’t into it and it showed. Last year the farm was usually empty on pickup days, the fields overgrown and I rarely ran into other members. This year it’s staffed, they’ve built a children’s sand pit for the kids to play in, they are encouraging people to walk into the fields, they are organizing potlucks and various other member events, and I ran into and talked to many members.
It was a wonderful afternoon on the farm. Are you a member of a CSA? Comment below and tell us about your take.