Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)

We're all super excited that Highfield Hall will be hosting a children's cooking and gardening program this summer. Produce from our brand new, 1100 square foot kitchen garden will be incorporated into the curriculum, and while I'm sure we will be able to grow a lot of beautiful herbs and vegetables I know we won't be able to sustain our cooking programs solely on our gardening efforts. That's why I was thrilled to learn that Coonamessett Farm, one of my favorite places on the Cape, has decided to introduce Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) to their farming program this season.

I first learned about CSA back in 1998 when I was doing research for Bitter Harvest (Routledge, 2000), and in the spring/summer of 1999 my husband and I found a farm that allowed us to do a full work share, which meant that if we worked a certain number of hours each week on the organic farm we'd chosen we would get a full share of produce (the value was about $600 for the season) in exchange for our work. It was a great deal back then for two struggling foodies. We worked hard for about eight hours a week and in exchange for our labor we got a delightfully fresh, wide variety of organic produce, some of which we were trying for the first time. That year we were introduced to kabocha squash, garlic scapes, and tatsoi lettuce among other things, and because you don't get to choose your produce, we had to learn to be creative with what we got. We learned some invaluable lessons that year—not the least of which was that organic farming is incredibly labor-intensive and we walked away from that adventure with a much greater respect for farming than we'd ever had.

Luckily for the lazy time-challenged among us, Coonamessett Farm isn't doing work shares, instead, customers buy a share—about 8 pounds of produce plus flowers, herbs, or berries, depending upon availability, each week for 12 weeks (all for $300!) and pick it up on a scheduled day at a scheduled time. Easy! And so popular, the farm's CSA program is already full.

It will be very exciting for us to be growing our own produce *and* enjoying the efforts of Coonamessett Farm. Not only will the children be learning about a wide variety of locally available produce, but they'll be getting to eat it at its peak of flavor, aroma, and natural beauty. I, for one, am looking forward to a fantastic summer season at Highfield Hall!

For more information about our summer programs for children ages 5 to 13, click here. Registrations are being taken now and can be made online.