Winter CSA!

I’m very happy to announce that Cool Beans will have a winter CSA this year! “Very happy”, actually, doesn’t scratch the surface.  The new hoophouse at Stoney Creek, just six weeks after completion,  is already producing beautiful greens, and has been the site of exuberant happy-dances performed by your farmer.  Raising good healthy food is always an awesome process; doing so in the ‘off season’ is nothing short of miraculous.

For this first winter CSA, the price is low – $200 for ten deliveries.  (Winter CSA prices tend to run higher per delivery because of the added challenges / costs of raising the produce.  Since I might slip off the learning curve a time or two, I’m keeping the first year price low.)  The first delivery is Tues. Dec 18; the second is Tues. Jan.8, and then it will be every second Tuesday until late April.

There are several pickup options:  in Camp Hill near the Fredericksen Library, in downtown New Cumberland, in downtown Mechanicsburg, in Hbg. close to Progress and Walnut Sts, and at the farm on Stoney Creek in Dauphin. For employees at Conrad Siegel Actuaries, bags can be delivered to the office on Wednesday mornings.  The Tuesday drops will be made early enough that you can pickup your bag during daylight hours, but they’ll be placed in insulated coolers, so you’ll have a comfortable window of time.

We learned this past week, during Hurricane Sandy, that sometimes weather interferes with CSA pickups………and we can manage when that happens.  The nice thing about a small CSA is that we have a lot of flexibility.

You have two add-on options:  a dozen eggs per delivery for an additional $40 (feed prices have skyrocketed, and the price increase is sadly unavoidable) and/or a quart of soup made from local ingredients, made by Chef Steve Dunlap from Mountainside Supper Club, for an additional $80.

Shares for this first season are limited to 25, and I opened this up to current Beans first and filled about half the spots.  So, while I loathe the hard-sell approach, the reality is that available spots will go quickly.  Want in?  There’s no formal signup process – just shoot me an email at katie@komta.com with your vital statistics:  name, address, phone, email, pickup location, and whether or not you want eggs / soup added on.  (Can I just plug the soup again?  I’m personally buying a soup share, and I make great soup myself.  But the idea of having dinner once a week for the two of us for $8?  Made by a chef of Steve’s caliber?  I’m in.)

Then, you’ll need to send me a check; you can do a partial deposit to hold your spot and pay the rest before the first delivery if you wish.  I’ll get that info to you in response to your email.

One additional perk, and I’m not joking:  WinterBeans may visit the hoophouse for sunlight / warmth therapy during the winter.  Come up, take off your coat, roll up your sleeves and enjoy the warm sun while you pull a few weeds from the beds.  It’s good for your soul. 

9/20/12, almost finished

10/9/12, first sprouts are coming up

10/18/12 - two harvests of microgreens so far!

10/30/12 hoops ready for extra layers for the cold weather ahead