Wow, we've made it to the last week of the fall shares and the last regular delivery of the 2021 season! Overall, this season has offered a bounty of crops and I've been so thankful for the support of returning and new members. I love growing vegetables for others and I love doing a job that allows me to work outside with nature. Even if sometimes nature can be a difficult companion. 2021 started off very dry and ended very wet yet somehow the crops managed to survive (and thrive) in these extremes. I am just now starting to see the cummulative effect of several very wet months with higher than normal levels of rot and disease in the field. Luckily, though, most fall crops are either fully harvested and stored safely or are a crop that can handle a lot of moisture. The hailstorm we had about a month ago negatively impacted some of our fall greens (hence the lack of salad greens and spinach in the fall shares) but we faired better than many farms that also lost many more crops. We do have a surplus of some fall crops so I will be doing one or two pop-up deliveries for those that would like to continue to get some fall veggies into November. I will send a separate email outside of the weekly share system with more details and instructions on how to purchase. The crops I imagine having include: carrots, beets, onions, garlic, winter squash, kale, apples, eggs, honey and maybe a few other things depending on the weather. All of the regular 'extras' (as supply allows) will also be able to be added to these deliveries.
I also want to give eager members a sneak preview of plans for our 2022 season. While many aspects will stay the same as 2021, I am going to take a break from the regular weekly CSA shares. Now, I know you are probably thinking that doesn't sound much like 2021 at all, but let me clarify! My plan for 2022 is to offer all the same veggies (plus perhaps more fruit) in pre-packed boxes using the Harvie system to allow customization and extra purchases. However, I am planning to run these as 'pop-up' sales running on a roughly bi-weekly schedule. The delivery times and locations will remain the same but members will no longer need to sign-up before the season starts or sign-up for the entire season. Instead, you will receive an email each time there is a delivery and on a first-come, first-serve basis you can buy a share for that week. There will be a minimum charge equal to the cost of a small share ($26) but then you can add items to your box up to any value.
I anticipate during peak harvest season (late August and September) there will be veggies available most weeks but during the rest of the growing season I am aiming for bi-weekly deliveries. I also hope to start deliveries earlier in the year and continue later in the fall, which means that I will be doing a similar number of deliveries spread over a longer period of time. My reasons for opting for this schedule in 2022 is two-fold. First, as our fruit and nut tree orchards reach production age, there is more harvest work to be done in them than Rob can fit in around his full-time off-farm work. A bi-weekly schedule will allow me to dedicate some time to these crops and also put more time into preserving food for our own needs. Second, as our sons get older (16 and nearly 13!) we don't have many summers left with them both around and able to travel or camp with us and so we are hoping to do more of this in 2022. A bi-weekly schedule will allow our family some flexibility to fit these activities in.
For those that know for sure that they will be buying pop-up shares, there will be an option in December and January to pre-purchase credits for your account. If you choose to do this, I will offer a 5% bonus for pre-purchasing (ie. if you pre-purchase $200, I will put a $210 credit on your account). This helps us at a time when our expenses are highest. I know some people will prefer a regular, weekly CSA share and in that case I recommend you check out the listing of local CSA farms on Taste Real. However, I think this scedule will work well for members who like flexibility or who often travel, have a home garden, or prefer the vegetables of some seasons over others. This way you can grab a share when you are around and like what is offered and skip it with no effort on your part when it doesn't meet your needs.
Once this season is wrapped, I will be sending a separate email to each of you outlining the 2022 season and providing instructions on how to receive these 'pop-up' share emails. These one or two pop-ups I plan to do in this fall will serve as a trial run for you and me to see how this new system works!
