(CSA Newsletter: Week 43)
Meet this week’s vegetables:
Well, folks, the end is in sight. Several ends are in sight actually, but most notably for you all, the 2009 CSA ends officially with our final pick-up on Tuesday, December 15 — just two weeks away! After that, we farmers go on our much anticipated winter break until the first Tuesday in February, when we start harvesting for the CSA again.
This year our winter break will be more exciting than usual, thanks to the other ‘end in sight’: our baby is due to arrive on the farm sometime soon, thus ending this farmer’s first pregnancy. My ‘due date’ is technically between this Tuesday and next Tuesday, so we also wanted to remind you about our plans for baby’s birth. If baby does in fact arrive before the final CSA pick-up (which is, again, on Dec. 15), then we will be taking the subsequent Tuesday off — there will be no harvest and no pick-up. At this point, we have no idea when baby plans to make its appearance, and it’s very possible that the next two pick-ups will go off without a hitch. But it’s also highly possible that we’ll be meeting baby in the next few days.
Again, to remind you of how we’ve accommodated for this possibility: each week’s share has been a little more loaded than usual this fall. We’ve calculated the values so that even with a week off, you’ll still receive far more value than the $20/week you paid for. Normally, we would prefer to have happily full shares every single week of the season (and have done so ever since our founding in 2006) — but we’ve decided that the birth of our first child is an extenuating circumstance, worthy of a little compromise in our plans. We thank you in advance for your understanding and patience with this one minor alteration in the CSA season.
Since there is the possibility that we will be missing one of the last two CSA weeks, we encourage you to check for updates on our farm blog (www.oakhillorganics.org/blog.html) before heading into town on Tuesday afternoon. We will keep it as updated as possible so that you don’t waste your time with an extra drive or trip. Just in case, the kind folks at the food bank will also post a sign with news for those who do show up.
A few more end-of-season reminders:
We still haven’t heard from quite a few of you about whether you want to participate in the 2010 CSA season. We have spots left and would love to fill them with returning members! Please let us know this week if you would like to sign up for 2010! You can email me (farm(at)oakhillorganics(dot)org) to reserve a spot immediately, but please also mail or bring us a completed 2010 Commitment Form so that I can put it in my files. Remember: no money is due now — we will bill you for your first payment after the New Year. The 2010 season will run from February through mid-December (45 weeks total) and costs $960.
(Also, if you’re choosing not to return, we’d love to hear why. Your feedback is important as we continue to refine our CSA and farm business!)
Finally, I want to remind everyone to wrap up your 2009 CSA payments soon. For those of you on the $75 monthly payment plan, your final payment is due by December 20. You can bring your check to the pick-up or mail it to us at: Oakhill Organics, P.O. Box 1698, McMinnville, OR 97128.
Several people have remaining balances over $75 — I notified most people of their remaining balances a few weeks ago. Please pay the remainder of your balances as soon as possible, and by December 20 at the latest. If you are unsure of your balance at this point or have questions or concerns about payment, please email (farm(at)oakhillorganics(dot)org) or call (503-474-7661) ASAP.
Ok — I think that’s everything. The next two weeks represent a big unknown for us out here on the farm, and we thank you again in advance for your flexibility and support. As always, enjoy this week’s vegetables!
Your farmers, Katie & Casey Kulla
