I still remember the first time I read about CSAs many years ago. The idea of purchasing a share or subscription of a farm's produce and in return receiving a box of seasonal, locally grown produce each week throughout the growing season was so appealing.
I looked in vain, off and on, for such a set up in the Dallas area until a few weeks ago when I happened across a notice on the Dallas Morning News food blog pointing me to this notice that a local farmer was looking for subscribers for a CSA he was beginning.
Exciting? Oh yeah! They are even providing blueberries. Blueberries!
You will receive 6-15 different fruits and vegetables each week. All fruit and vegetables will be grown here on our farm (we may have to supplement our certified organic blueberries by picking from another blueberry farm close to us where absolutely no pesticides are used. Our blueberry bushes are still only 4 years old.) This supply will include 2 pints of blueberries each week plus one full flat (12 pints) during blueberry season. We will be planting peach, pear, plum, and apple trees for future fruit harvest.
I wasted no time but signed up online and sent in my check that very day. I later received notice that I was in. Woohoo!I just got an email that sets up the pick up schedule and talks about the effects of our wacky weather on the planting. Somehow I didn't stop to think about the fact that I now will feel more connected to our weather just because I now know it will have a direct effect on the farm which I am now helping support. I like that though. Reading the email suddenly took me back to the days when my parents had a gigantic vegetable garden (GIGANTIC) that we weeded all summer long.
... have been so busy trying to finish all the spring transplanting from the small plug trays into the 2 inch cups, finishing onion planting in the fields "on mud beds", planting eggplant seeds, the 8 varieties of pepper seeds (5 heirloom varieties) and tomato seeds (one heirloom variety) in the small plug trays on warmer beds in the greenhouses. It is already time to begin planting squash, cucumber, watermelon, cantaloupe, Israel melon, and zucchini seeds in the greenhouses.Yep, we're going to have a connection to nature that I haven't experienced in some time, even though it will be vicarious. As well, I am going to be forced to vary our diet and try new varieties of fruit and vegetables ... also all to the good. I'm excited about this.
Photos of our future produce pickups (fingers crossed for good weather).
2 comments:
CSA are lovely; last year, sadly, the New England weather did not cooperate and we hardly got anything from our poor friends at the farm. Talk about truly sharing in a farmer's plight. The one week of unadulterated sunshine came during prime cuke growing... we ended up with 15 cucumbers that week. Be prepared to get creative. I love the concept and hope the weather is kinder to y'all this year! We have started our own garden, and are eagerly awaiting sowing time!
I too just got the golden opportunity to join a CSA. They've always just been tooo far from me to be able to make the pickups. But now, whoohoo, I'm in. Ours begins in late april, and I can't wait. I've wanted to do this for years and I'm excited to be able to finally give it a go. Enjoy!!
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