FAQ’s for 2024:

  • The CSA has two size options and two ‘delivery’ options:
    • Personal Share – $25 week. Usually enough for two people, or four when not everyone is a veggie fan.
    • Full Share – $35/week. Literally twice the size of a personal share.
    • Home Delivery – Limited to Friday, no more than 10 members.
      • It is very possible that a second delivery day might open up based on developments.
    • Farm Call – Saturday or Tuesday. lets you point-and-shoot to select what goes in your box. It also permits you do to gleaning of things like berries. Saturday is nominally from 10-2, Tuesday is nominally from 3-6PM. Farm Call requests that you either make a crisp appointment (always Tuesday at 5, for example, or give at least an hour pre-arrival text.
      • Farm Call can be less than full season. That is, you might reserve 12 of the 20 weeks. If you are partial season then you should make a specific target calendar (“We won’t pick up in July”) rather than surprising the poor farmers.
  • Starting? Generally the preference is that you start at the beginning of a season. That said, this is open to negotiation. 
  • Organic? Yes and No. Yes, the CSA uses organic techniques. No, it is not certified organic. The overhead is just too much for a small CSA. Please enquire if this is a major concern.
  • Bonus Boxes: During the season some large volumes happen due to ripening and demand. An example is Peaches. A personal share box gets two peaches. If there are more peaches than boxes, people who love peaches can buy a bonus box that may have roughly 6-8 peaches. Tomatoes are very popular this way. The charge for a Bonus Box varies; Corn is cheaper than Peaches.
  • Signing up: Email. You send an email to shiloh.farm at gmail.com confirming your preference for size and delivery. You make arrangements on how you want to pay (no pay pal: checks or cash are good) either by the season or by the month or every two weeks or…
  • The Poll: When you sign up, a poll will be sent to you that allows you to specify the things you really love, really hate, and the rest is farmers choice. This does two things: first, it helps with planning. There are fewer Turnips planted because of the poll, for example. It also becomes a pick guideline. Most weeks there are more types than your box will have room; in that case your box is prioritized around your favorites.
  • Handling: The veggies are picked within a few hours of showing up at your porch. Some types such as Chard start to wilt within moments of being picked – it is important that you wash and bag and chill the wilt-prone veggies. The second reason this is important is that the veggies are only given rudimental cleaning. Most members at some time will find a passenger or so on greens, especially greens.
  • Missing time: You have bought a share of a season crop, which is planned around your consumption. The preference is that you share your missing day with a deserving friend, or ask the farm to feed it to the cows. There is some room for long (multiple week) times that you know at the start of the season you will not be using, please discuss.
  • Grocery List: There have been several people who found that ‘what is ripe’ doesn’t match ‘what I want.’ So, the portion to choose from may be limited. If your preference is that you really don’t like salads, and you want all carrots and potatoes and cabbage, well, a CSA is probably not a good fit. The rule of thumb is that if you enjoy the surprise factor, and like to experiment with some new veggies, you will enjoy the CSA. 
  • Flowers and Fruits: The CSA has made a significant investment in flowers. When things get going, there are flowers cut for each box. There may in the future be a larger bundle that you can arrange – a kind of ‘bonus bouquet’ but that is still to be determined. Fruits are a big deal as well. However, the share you get isn’t going to be several large flats of raspberries or strawberries. There just isn’t enough resource space to do that. Peaches and Apples are the exception; there are several apple trees and a full extra covered greenhouse for Peaches.
  • Seasons: There are four ‘seasons’ for the CSA:
    • Winter: Eight weeks starting mid-February with farm call small boxes only. Limited membership.
    • Green: Eight weeks starting beginning of April, mostly salad stuff, also small boxes only unless special arrangement. Delivery is available.
    • Main Season: 20 weeks with traditional ‘garden’ produce that works in Summer – potatoes, beans, corn, summer squash, etc. Full share or Personal share. Delivery is available.
    • Extended Season: 4-6 weeks TBD based on when the dreaded first frost comes, an such. Usually ends a week or two before Thanksgiving, and is big on things like Squash. Delivery available.
  • Farm Visits: Farm visits are encouraged, and enjoyed – but we ask for notification. There are lots of tasks that are going on with the farm, and it is best if you do come that we can spend some time with you. Kids seem to either love pulling carrots or hate getting dirt on their hands. It is a a kick to let them learn that dirt is part of veggies. 
  • FarmCrafts: Mentioned here because these are made available first choice to members. These include planters, geraniums other flowers in FarmCraft pots, embroidery on towels or display frames.