I pick up my first share of the season tomorrow and can’t wait. I’m in New England, so I figure a lot of CCers may be a few weeks ahead of us in pickups.
Lucky you. Ours doesn’t start for two more weeks!
What is a CSA box?
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I’m surprised ours started so early. This is a new farm for me and I don’t think our other one started until late June.
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Community Supported Agriculter. Basically, you pay the farmer before the growing season in return for a weekly “share” . It reduces the risk for the farmer and brings in revenue during the months they need to be be laying out money and doing work, but there is no money coming in. For most CSAs either you pick up a pre-packed box once a week with the vegetables that were harvested, or they work on a point system where you are given a certain amount of points and choose your own produce. Some CSA’s have a pick your own component or require some volunteer hours.
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CSA = Community supported agriculture
You basically buy a small share in a local farm and once/week you pick up whatever is in season.
There are only two of us at home now so a CSA share is way too much for us and the farm that did the 1/2 share stopped. I really miss it! Felt like xmas picking up the box and seeing what was inside!
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We get 1/2 a CSA share. Both of the CSAs in our town do 1/2 shares. Really, it’s more than plenty for two of us!
I love seeing what’s in the shares each week. Our CSA owner puts a newsletter in each week. It has ideas of what to do with some of the veggies, and always one really good recipe.
Our farm markets (who also have the CSAs) are now selling their own fresh picked small cucumbers, and summer squash…so I’m guessing we will see those in two weeks!
It’s always a surprise!
A CSA is what brings about some fun discussions here when @thumper1 poses a question…. “What do I do with THIS “random” vegetable”! I think we gave some great recipes ideas for her off the beaten path veggies last year! 
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Thank you all. I am now less ignorant than I was an hour ago 
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I’m in the upper Midwest and will be picking up my third box of the season this week ( I’m on an every other week plan).We get an email the day before which tells us whats included.
It’s a lot for a one person household, but I share with D and SIL. Two weeks ago I got some rhubarb I wasn’t planning on using, but someone in my Buy Nothing group was looking for some that day so I gifted it to her-win-win!
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We also get an email about our CSA pick up. Ours has some nice options.
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If you can’t pick up some week, you can have a friend pick up, you can save the $ amount and use it the following week, or you can donate your share to charity (they donate to a food bank).
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We are allowed to swap up to two items grown by our farmer. So…for example, if I don’t want rutabaga, I can double up on something else offered that week for the same value…or I can use that credit in the farm store to buy something there…like extra eggs, or their fabulous farm salsa, or a vegetable they grew but wasn’t on the CSA list that week.
I’m excited this will be beginning soon!!
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Our CSA also has a mushroom share I’d like to try, but the weeks don’t work out for me right now. They often have the mushrooms in the farmstand, so I’ll pick them up when available. I LOVE mushrooms, but I’m the only one in my family that eats them.
Other CSAs I’ve done are:
Flowers
Meat
Fish
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Do most of you pick your boxes up or are they delivered??
I do a flower share also from one of our farm markets. You get 8 bouquets of flowers over the summer. Share cost $90. They are absolutely beautiful. I did this last year…here are a couple of then:
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I pick up my share but the pick up spot is only about 3 blocks from my house so it’s an easy walk.
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For my flower share, you pick your own weekly from July -October.
I pick mine up at the farm. I prefer it that way. I join CSA’s where I can pick what I get each week. And sometimes there is a option to pick your own. Today I got to pick 2 pints of strawberries.
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We pick our share up. Our CSA doesn’t offer delivery. I prefer to pick up anyway because our pick up is at the farm store, and sometimes I get other things there too. Our farm market gives a 5% discount on everything to CSA members year round.
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This was my haul today. It’s still very early in the season, so the haul will get much bigger mid summer.
Today I got (pick 7 items from what was available)
1 bunch of carrots
2 onions (counts as 1 item)
a bunch of radiches
a bag of spinach
a bunch of beets
2 pints of pick your own strawberries
Also available were:
Salad turnips
Bagged lettuce
Heads of lettuce
I like that they prewash things at my CSA (except for the PYO stuff), but I rewash it when I get at home. This is what I pick up today. Still have to wash the beet and radish greens. Anyone have good vegan recipes? I was thinking just sauteed with garlic and olive oil with white beens.
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I love beet greens. I will sautéed with any veggies I have in the refrig (adding them nearer the end and sometimes serve over a potato or sweet potato with any combo of butter, whole milk yogurt or sour cream, balsamic glaze.
I have made pesto with radish greens.
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The CSA I belong to has a Facebook group where people post recipes and ideas on what to cook with the food they get.
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