Millsap Farm Summer 2012 Community Supported Agriculture ( C S A )
How does it work?
We, the farmers, are responsible for the planting, tending, harvesting and gathering of the crops. Farm members buy a share of our harvest in advance of the growing season; this allows us to purchase seeds and other supplies when needed without incurring a debt. Members also commit to help out on the farm 12 hours per season, usually for 4-hour shifts on harvest days, providing the extra labor needed to get all the produce harvested, cleaned, bagged or bundled, and ready for pick-up. Each week during the growing season members pick up their share of the harvest at the farm from 4-6 p.m. on Tuesdays, or one of our off site pick up locations, or new this year is a home delivery option. As always, please remember that Community Supported Agriculture is a risk sharing proposition. As farmers, we pledge to farm in a sustainable manner, and to do everything in our power to produce a high quality, large harvest. We’ve already got crops in the ground, and we are planting more every day. While we do sell some produce through other outlets, we commit to provide produce to CSA members first and foremost. As members, you pledge to support the farm with your financial and moral support, understanding that farming is risky business, and there are inevitably losses and wins in every season.
What kind of veggies will I get in my share?
Pick up for the summer CSA will be 24 weeks long from May 15, thru October 23rd. Our commitment is to provide you with 7-10 different vegetables per week, depending on the season. A full share will feed a family of four or two adults who cook at home regularly and eat a lot of veggies. We are offering half shares for those of you who can not use a whole share each week. Half shares are half the produce of a full share for $350 a season. Every week the share will change; the best way to understand is to check last year’s blog postings; here are a few examples:
Spring: green peas, baby beets w/ greens, green onions, carrots w/ tops, salad mix, kohlrabi, radishes,
broccoli, radish pods
Summer: tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, okra, melons, cucumbers, onions, summer squash, basil, new potatoes
Fall: lettuce, broccoli, winter squash, green beans, pepper, cabbage, beets, potatoes, dill
Pick up will be at the farm Tuesdays from 4-7pm or delivered straight to your door, or at Homegrown Foods from 5-6 pm.
At Millsap Farm we use a buffet style of pick up, where we clearly label the items in a share and you fill your own share. The farm is 4.5 miles north of Springfield city limits, just off of Glenstone Ave, which becomes Highway H north of Springfield. The benefit of picking up at this location is you get to connect with the farm and us, the farmers. Many of our members gladly drive weekly so their families have the chance to walk through the fields, cavort with the chickens and see how their food is grown all season long. Many people find this connection drawing them back from year to year, and we really enjoy it too! You also get the benefit of choosing your produce yourself from our bulk crates, which means you can decide if you want a big or small squash, yellow or red tomatoes, etc. This also includes any items which are choices of one item or another. Many times there may be a choice between two items which we don’t have enough of to give everyone a full share of ie; Okra and Eggplant were offered as opposite choices a couple of times in summer of 2010.
Home Delivery- to your door step- if you live within city limits, you have the option of having your CSA share delivered to your door, sometime between 4 and 7p.m. on Tuesday afternoon, for $5/week, with a one-time container fee of $10.
Homegrown Foods pick up This pick-up is located outside Homegrown Food, Amanda Millsap Owen’s store at the corner of Pickwick and Cherry, in the heart of Springfield. There is a $3/week charge for picking up there, payable to the delivery person at the time of pick-up, plus a one time charge of $10 for purchase of two plastic totes for us to bring your veggies to the pick-up (allowing us to swap them weekly). Each week your share will arrive at the store at 5pm, delivered by someone from the farm, and will be there for you to pick-up until 6pm. If you are unable to make it to the store by 6pm, we will give your share to Amanda, who will hold it for you (for a storage fee of $2) in her cooler, until Wednesday at noon, at which time it is forfeit unless you contact her prior to that time. This pick-up can save a great deal of driving, and also give you the chance to shop for other local goodies, like milk from Ozark Mountain Dairy, Askinosie Chocolate, and a full variety of meat. If you haven’t been in to check out this local hot spot, you need to see it in person.
How much & when do I work on the farm?
Each share holder contributes by assisting with the harvest of the shares 3 times a season for a total of 12 hours. The farm work takes place Tuesday mornings for harvest; it includes harvesting, sorting, and packing of the produce with the farmers. There are also a limited number of weekend workdays, to do general farm work. Several shifts can be satisfied one morning based on the number of participants a household brings. Members will schedule these shifts at the pre-season kick off meeting Saturday May 12th at 5:30 at the farm (please mark your calendar). A Core Group of members helps administer the CSA and provide input. Voluntary participation in the Core Group is open to any member and work with the core group can fulfill part or all of the 12 hours committed.
What can we get besides Veggies?
In addition to the vegetable share, we are also offering, a bread share, a fruit share. Feel free to sign up for as many shares as you want.; if 2 loaves of bread feed your family for a week or 2 shares of fruit would be more adequate, that’s is great.
- A bread share, which provides a loaf of fresh-baked homemade bread free of preservatives each week.
- The fruit share consists of locally grown fruit that is in season, grown on other farms. Quantities will vary, but are based on using our bulk buying ability to get you the most local fruit for your money. Spring will bring strawberries, then blueberries followed by blackberries, peaches, apples and pears.
- No Egg share this year- sorry
How much does it cost?
This summer, shares will cost $24.79 per week for 24 weeks, for a total cost of $595, spread out over four monthly payments. Half shares are half the produce of a full share for $350 a season. We arrive at this cost by budgeting our expenses, including seeds, fuel, greenhouse wear and tear, compost, tractor operation, etc., and our labor costs, which includes one full-time farmer and several helpers, then divide that by the number of people we can serve given our land (we are offering 75 shares this season), greenhouse size, and ability to grow.
How Do I Join ?
If you’re ready to sign up, and you are a new member, then click on this link:http://millsapfarm.csasignup.com/members and get started. If you are a returning member, click this link: http://millsapfarm.csasignup.com/members/returning
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