Thinking Beyond the Box: A Letter to Prospective CSA Members from Longtime Members Carol & Bob

If you are new to the concept of CSA and/or new to our farm, this letter is for you!  It was written by longtime CSA members of our farm, Carol Wilson & Bob Philbin.  We hope you’ll take a few minutes to read it and consider their insights as you think about joining a CSA for the 2019 season!  We did not ask them to write this letter, this is something they chose to do on their own as a way of sharing their perspectives of their CSA experience over the past 20 plus years. 

--Richard & Andrea 

Spring 2019

Dear Prospective Harmony Valley Farm CSA member,                                   

Pollinators planted alongside crops.

You have a bewildering number of choices about which CSA is right for you – length of season, variety of vegetables, cost, convenience of pick up location, day of the week for pick up, etc.  Another topic to consider is what the farmer(s) of the CSA are doing to address the health of our environment.  Richard de Wilde and Andrea Yoder, the farmers of Harmony Valley Farm, are conscientious stewards of the land.  They have a system of land management that both produces healthy and nutritious food for their members, and provides healthy habitats for insects and animals that are part of their comprehensive organic growing practice.  In addition their processes also address climate change by planting cover crops that sequester carbon thereby reducing the carbon in the atmosphere.  Farmer Richard has been planting cover crops for over 40 years, well before carbon sequestration was being talked about!  His farming practices are informed by science as well as by his decades of experience as an organic farmer.

As the plight of bees, monarchs, and other pollinators has become known, Harmony Valley Farm has included “pollinator packs” in the CSA share.  These packs have native flowers and grasses that offer “habitat and food sources for a variety of species that provide pollination services, help control pests, and contribute to keeping our ecosystem healthy and in good balance.”  Because of these packs, we now have a lovely patch of anise hyssop, silky wild rye, and other flowers and grasses to offer our neighborhood insects. 

Cover crop growing in our fields.

Harmony Valley Farm (HVF) has been our source for vegetables, beef, and pork since our adult children were young.  Richard and Andrea do not rest on their laurels, though they could!  They are always learning about and trying new vegetables, new varieties of vegetables, and new ways of helping their members to make good use of their CSA share. There are so many things to appreciate about being part of HVF including the informative, educational, and practical newsletters, the variety of vegetables, the value of the share, and the length of the season.   As part of the HVF CSA, you receive all of this AND the knowledge that you are part of the environmental and climate change solution.

You can learn more about HVF by visiting their website and by reading their blog.  Check out a newsletter or two to see how Andrea shares ideas and recipes for making use of all of the veggies in the box.

Good luck with your decision and we hope to see you at HVF Strawberry Day!

Carol Wilson and Bob Philbin