Community Supported Agriculture: A Win-Win-Win Concept

It’s my second year participating in a community supported agriculture program, and I am hooked!

Last year, I loved my CSA so much that I joined two this year! I am splitting them with a couple I know who was also interested, and I’m glad, because I am single, and though I love vegetables, I am practically overwhelmed, even after dividing both of my shares in half!

Image via WikipediaI’ve been interested in the CSA concept for years. It seems like such an amazingly common-sense, yet innovative idea. You get fresh, healthy, locally grown (and often organic) foods, often at a lower price than what you would find at the supermarket. The farmer gets a built-in market, and usually they get paid at the beginning of the season, when they need it most. And you are helping out the environment by eating locally grown rather than having foods shipped in from other areas (or even other countries), as well as supporting small farms that tend to operate more sustainably and take better care of the soil & water they use.

The problem was, I didn’t know how to find a CSA, or if there even were any in my area. I searched online a few times several years ago, but didn’t have much luck. But in the few years since then, the farming community has embraced the use of the internet, and many farms now have their own websites, which makes it much easier to find participating programs. There are at least 5 or 6 CSAs that deliver locally to my hometown now, and several others in outlying areas in the vicinity.

I’ve told many friends about it, and for the general public, the community supported agriculture concept seems to be a well-kept secret. For those who are unfamiliar with the idea, it is somewhat like a co-op. Individuals subscribe by purchasing a “share” of a given farm’s (or group of farms) harvest for the year. Usually this is done before the start of the season, so you make a one-time payment, and then collect your shares weekly or monthly throughout the harvest season.

Traditionally the concept has been mostly done with vegetables. However, there are all kinds of CSAs cropping up these days, from vegetables & fruits, to dairy and even meats. Here in Ohio, where the growing season is not that long, I subscribe to a vegetable CSA in the summer, and a meat CSA (with one of the same farms) in the winter months, so at least I know I am eating locally in part throughout the year.

One of the farms I am subscribed to is organic. The other has mostly naturally grown produce, except for the fruit. One share I pick up at a local farmer’s market. The other is delivered right to my office!

Right now I am overwhelmed with the summer’s bounty. My refrigerator is filled to overflowing with amazing, fresh vegetables (and my freezer still contains some organic meats from the winter share). It’s been years since I lived on a farm, and with all the years of shopping at supermarkets and just picking up whatever I felt like, I had forgotten what a bounty the summer truly brings…. It makes me feel so much more connected to my environment to only be eating things that are in season. It also forces me to cook more creatively!

Right now, in my fridge I have turnips, turnip greens, sweet corn, green beans, red cabbage, white cabbage, red onions, white onions, tomatoes, cucumbers, green peppers, three kind of hot peppers, eggplant, summer squash, patty-pan squash, zucchini, broccoli, cantaloupe, and honeydew melon…and probably some other things I’m forgetting. And all of it is organic or naturally grown, and was picked within the last 2 days.

I feel truly blessed. And I am happy to feel like I am contributing to helping others as well — not just the farmers I have come to call friends, but those who use our limited resources and will inhabit our beautiful planet in the future.

I encourage you to look up a CSA in your area today, and see how easy (and delicious!) it is to start making a difference.

For more info on CSAs, as well as my favorite resource for finding local farms in your area, visit our website at http://www.newholisticliving.com/csa.html

Happy eating!

Growing Tomatoes: To sucker, or not to sucker?

Last week, a passing neighbor commented on my exuberant garden. He then offered some words of wisdom, apparently from his non-apartment-dwelling youth, when he grew tomatoes himself. “Do you know how to remove the suckers? That is what will make them produce more tomatoes.”

Having grown up on a farm, I was surprised and a little embarrassed to admit I was not even familiar with the concept. My mother was (and still is) an avid gardener, and I don’t remember her ever mentioning such a thing.

Image via WikipediaA little research on the internet quickly revealed there are two schools of thought on the topic: Remove the suckers vs. Don’t remove the suckers. (Or if you prefer, the Suckers vs. the Non-Suckers.)

The Sucker camp says you should sucker your tomatoes (remove the new, small stems that grow up in the joints of your plants) in order to make the fruit grow larger (I didn’t actually find anything about the plants then producing MORE fruit, as my neighbor had claimed).

The Non-Suckers say you should not sucker the plants, as the suckers may actually grow more tomatoes themselves, and increase your yield.

(Apparently this also depends on the type of plants — if your tomatoes are “determinant” or “non-determinant”. Determinant plants grow to a certain size and then stop, and produce all their fruit. Suckering these would not really make sense, as when they are done growing, you would want as many branches as possible to produce fruit. Non-determinants continue to grow, adding more leaves and stems even as they are fruiting.)

I have never tried the suckering method, and I don’t believe my mother ever did either. I just removed a few this week, on one plant, so we’ll see if I notice any difference.  I just removed the small ones, as the larger ones looked like they may be planning on blooming, themselves…
.
I would love to hear comments on other’s experiences with this — do you sucker, or not, and what have your experiences been with either method?

(For other ideas on sustainable gardening or related topics, feel to visit our website at http://www.newholisticliving.com/sustainablegardening.html ).

Have a great week!
Rose.

Welcome to our new sustainable gardening blog!

Thanks for visiting our sustainable gardening blog!  We will try to post news or interesting information on various aspects of organic or sustainable gardening, how-to tips on growing your own garden, and other related aspects here on a regular basis.

Sometimes we will post reviews of books or products. Other weeks we will summarize interesting articles on sustainable gardening. And sometimes we will just throw something out there to get interesting feedback from our readers.  (You can also always find information on these topics, as well as helpful tips & recommendations, on our website, New Holistic Living.)

Thanks for visiting, and please come back soon!
Rose.
www.newholisticliving.com

Related articles by Zemanta

• Living a holistic lifestyle (teachstreet.com)
• HealthierOrganics.com: An Online Community and Blog about Living Organically (prweb.com)