What's in a box?

How much are CSA shares?
 CSA shares are $650 for a season, running from the week of Memorial Day to the week before Thanksgiving - 26 weeks in total. If you're picking up at the New Cumberland market that'd be June 1st to November 23rd; customers getting a box mid-week will be picking up a little before that.  Half shares are exactly that - one half of a standard share - so they're available this year for $325.

What can you expect in a CSA box?
            Weekly boxes are never determined much before harvest – they’re designed to take advantage of what’s growing best that week and what might have failed to take off as quickly as expected.  That said, here are a few guidelines I try to follow and some ideas of what you can expect:

Box Size: I aim for enough food for a family of four that regularly cooks and eats veggies, and I aim for about $25 worth of produce a week.  When I figure that out I generally give CSA customers a bit of a discount over farmer’s market prices, too. That’s the benefit they get for paying in advance, for letting me pick out what they get each week, and for possibly getting produce with some cosmetic blemishes.  Like one of those forked carrots, or an eggplant with a nose on it.  Of course, every family of four eats differently, and $25 gets you a lot more onions than it does strawberries, but over the season that’s where I try to get the averages.

Reasonable mix: I assume people want six to ten different items in  useable portion sizes. I won’t leave you with a box consisting of fifty-seven cucumbers and nothing else, nor will I throw in a beet and hope you can find a dish that uses just one.  I try to put salad fixings in every box – either bagged or head lettuce, depending on the season – as well as hearty vegetables like roots and cooking greens, and bright flavors like tomatoes and peppers.  I try not to repeat flavors – don’t expect to get onions, garlic, leeks, and scallions all in the same week.

A couple samples:

June                                                                          
Snap peas                         
Swiss Chard
Lettuce mix              
Carrots
Chinese cabbage     
Radishes
Garlic scapes
New Potatoes           
Beets                            

August
Tomatoes (heirloom, slicing, and cherry types)
Canteloupe
Bell Peppers
Basil
Zucchini
Cucumbers
Eggplant
Garlic

September                                                               
Tomatoes (2-3 types)                                             
Winter Squash
Eggplant                             
Cucumbers         
Hot Peppers                      
Basil                       
Bell Peppers        
Canteloupe

November
Kale
Beets
Turnips
Arugula
Cabbage
Spinach
Carrots
Salad Mix

If you are interested in the seeding schedule, let me know - I'll be happy to share it with you.  But it can be a chaotic spreadsheet mess if all you're really wondering is what's in a typical box.  - Farmer Dave