Yes, technically CSA Day is Friday, but we’ve been celebrating CSA Day all week! And I want to thank everyone who has signed up for the Crooked Row CSA and sent in their payments so far. You are paying off the seed bills and for the new plastic on the greenhouse, the potting mix and the tomato stakes.

You are what makes my season bloom!

For those of you who aren’t familiar with the term CSA, it stands for Community Supported Agriculture. It’s the idea of investing in a farm before the season begins in exchange for a weekly share of produce through the duration of the season. CSA members pay for an entire season of produce up front so your farmer can plan for the season, purchase new seed, make equipment repairs and other necessary moves for a successful year.

This will be my 5th year running the Crooked Row Farm CSA, and I’ve loved this growing model. It gives me, a farmer without a permanent farm stand (yet!), and without a really solid place to share my fields with you, to make  lasting relationships with buoyant, excited area residents who love and appreciate local food.

It also allows me to work with amazing food producers like Lehigh Valley Kombucha, the Wayfare Baker, Monocacy Coffee, The Nesting Box, and the other folks who help provide you the best cheese, eggs, meats, desserts, fruit and other edible delights that I can track down.

And you get to meet the folks at your pick-up locations – the beautiful West End Yoga, the welcoming Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center, the warm Vitality Natural Healthcare, the delicious Jumbars, the spirited ladies at Beleno, my parents at Wagner’s Auto Body, and so many others.

This guy needs a little hair to be me, though! 🙂

“2015 was my first time ever as a CSA member. Little did I know of the adventure that awaited me, learning to identify veggies I never heard of and how to prepare them. Farmer Liz’s blog was so helpful with what to expect in each weekly share and links to delicious recipes. Every week I anticipated each delivery to explore more savory flavors for my family meals.”  – Karen, from Mertztown, and a to-be three year CSA member

Whether I see you at the pick-up locations, or we respond over the weekly CSA e-mails, or you come to visit me at my markets, I feel the connection. We are invested in shaping the food community of the Lehigh Valley, and I thank you so much for your support, your constant encouragement, and your patronage.

And if the Crooked Row CSA isn’t what you’re looking for, check out the CSA Day website for other options, or research local CSAs on the Buy Fresh Buy Local Greater Lehigh Valley site – it’s a totally beautiful site and really simplifies your farm research.

Once you’re signed up for a CSA Share, whether it’s with me or another farmer, take one of these graphics below and POST THEM PROUDLY on all your social media outlets. We’re so thankful for and appreciative of you, and we want you to feel that acknowledgement! And we want your friends, family, and co-workers who haven’t yet tried out a CSA to see these and  join our movement. We want to share these connections.

#csaday #csaday2017

This one is a square graphic for Instagrammin’

Yours in Love and Greenhouse Seedlings,

Farmer Liz