Getting in Sync with the Seasons
Your local CSA will show you how
By Ilene White Freedman
Joining a Community Supported Agriculture ( CSA ) at a local farm is more than a way to procure your produce . It is a hands-on lesson in eating seasonally . It is your garden harvest , rather than your grocery store . You might grow into the seasonal eating habit and find that it suits you to flow with the seasons , benefitting from the dark leafy vegetables in the spring when we need them most and absorbing the flavors of heat-loving crops like tomatoes and peppers in the summertime . Once you are connected to the process of growing your food , whether it is by knowing the farmers , visiting the farm , or perhaps lending a hand to harvest some garlic , you will notice the adventure in growing food and eating is in alignment with the seasons .
Kids in particular resonate with this connection . The best way to get kids to eat their vegetables is to connect them with the process . Over and over again , I see kids eat kale and cherry tomatoes right in the garden , harvest sorrel leaves to take home , and eat a pepper like an apple if I offer them one as a treat . It amazes their parents but I see it all the time . They are connected to the vibrant process of growing vegetables , which makes eating vegetables into a more vibrant activity too . It works for adults , too .
My husband , Phil , and I established our CSA program at House in the Woods Farm over twenty years ago , not just to grow organic produce for customers , but to connect customers with the food-growing experience and the seasonal flow of eating the harvest . I ’ ll guide you through a bit of what we are growing , doing and eating at House in the Woods Farm throughout the seasons .
12 plenty I spring sowing 2023