Your title here

OK, so it is official.  Pigs go in to the butcher on the 25th of August and Pork CSA deliveries will begin on Saturday September 17th.  Normally the Sept deliveries would fall on the 10th, but I figured if I scheduled for the 17th we would have plenty of time to get everything back from the butcher, including the smoked meats so many of you are looking forward to.  I have included the pricing and delivery details for the Pork CSA below.  It can be ordered with or without egg share participation. 

We will be offering pork deliveries monthly to the regular drop off sites in Rochester and Farmington.  Drops will take place the second Saturday of the month in months with 4 weeks or the middle Saturday in months with 5 weeks.  Pick up times will be in Rochester between 10am and 11am at the Kroger parking lot at Silverbell and Adams and in Farmington from 12:30-1:30pm Saturday afternoon at the parking lot at Orchard Lake and 12 mile at the Orchard 12 plaza.  On the way back up 24 I will be at the Big Boy parking lot from 3:30-4:30pm for my Oxford/Lake Orion customers. For my Frankenmuth, Birch Run, and Lapeer customers, we can set up a time to meet once monthly for you to pick up your meats.  You don’t have to drive all the way up here either :)   The pork will be divided into 20lb bundles.  You will choose which bundle you would like each month so you can adjust as you see fit as the season progresses.  I have written up the pork program to run from September 17th through February 11th, but we will take sign up for the veggie, meat and annual memberships year round.  If you want to sign up mid-season we will simply wrap your annual membership around from the date that you sign up. 

I can not stress enough that this is not supermarket pork.  It is certainly not the other white meat.  I raise three breeds of heritage hog, two of which are on the ALBCs critically endangered list.  My hogs are free ranged on 10 acres of pasture, and are lower in cholesterol and fat than most meats you could buy in the supermarket, including some poultry.  It is dark, rich, flavorful, and superbly healthy.  For more information on the advantages of pasture raised meats - please check out www.eatwild.com.  They have done some wonderful research into the health benefits of grassfed foods.

The bundles look like this:

A) Mixed pork bundle

      1.  4lbs breakfast sausage

      2.  2lbs italian sausage (hot or mild)

      3.  1 ham hock (approx 2lbs)

      4.  2lbs ground pork

      5.  1 (3-5lb) pork roast

      6.  2lbs bratwurst

      7.  2lbs. chops or cutlets

      8.  2lbs spare ribs

B) Sausage bundle

      1.  5lbs. breakfast sausage

      2.  5lbs. chorizo

      3.  5lbs. italian sausage (hot or mild)

      4.  5lbs. bratwurst

C) Tailgater bundle

      1.  5lbs. ribs

      2.  1 (3-5lb.) pork roast - perfect for barbeque or pulled pork sandwiches

      3.  6lbs. bratwurst

      4.  6lbs.  italian sausage (hot or mild)  (or in Dec. on you can substitute 8lbs. fresh natural casing hot dogs or we can do a combination of the two)

Pricing for the meat CSA is $600 and it runs for 6 months.  That is less than $25 per week, or $100 per month, which works out to approx. $5/lb including delivery to the drop points .

Pricing for the meat CSA plus a 4 dozen a month egg share is $685.  Pricing for the eggs is slightly higher during the winter months, because feed costs increase as there is less pasture for the girls to take advantage of, and egg production goes down a bit in the winter, as temps get colder and there is less light.  This puts winter egg prices at $3.50 per dozen for fresh free range large brown eggs delivered.

After speaking with my husband, we also decided that those of you who are going to be year round members should also receive an additional discount, so for those of you who would like to sign up through next year pricing is explained below.  In addition to the discount, this also holds the CSA prices at the previous years rate even if it increases next year. 

Annual CSA membership from now through next season:

A1) Winter pork CSA (from September 17th through February) plus half share vegetable CSA (July 1st - Oct. 31st) - discounted price for early sign up $900   (No eggs included in this option)

A2) Winter pork CSA (from September 17th through February) plus full share vegetable CSA (July 1st - Oct. 31st) - discounted annual price $1100

Annual CSA membership from now until Oct. 31st 2012 including egg share

B1) Winter pork CSA with 4 dozen eggs per month (from September through February) plus half share vegetable CSA plus one dozen eggs delivered weekly from (1 July - Oct 31, 2012) - price w/early sign up $1025

B2) Winter pork CSA with 4 dozen eggs per month (from September 17th - February) plus full share vegetable CSA plus one dozen eggs delivered weekly from (1 July - Oct 31, 2011) - price w/ early sign up $1225

C1) Winter Egg Only shares - 4 dozen eggs per month picked up at one of our two drop sites is $100.

As many of you know, I have a genuine heart for our senior customers and we always offer programs to keep this affordable and convenient for our area seniors.  My grandparents raised me, and it is important to me that anyone who would like to take part is able to do so.  Because I have so many seniors and smaller families taking part in the program I have set up an annual ’senior’ package as well.  If you are not a senior, don’t fret, it is available to anyone who feels that 20lbs is more than they could use or afford.  It is a 12lb bundle and subscription for the 6 month winter CSA season will run $360.

S) “Senior” bundle

      1.  (3-5lb) pork roast

      2.  2lbs.  your choice sausage (italian, bratwurst, breakfast, chorizo) or ground pork

      3.  2lbs.  pork chops or cutlets

      4.  2lbs.  pork steak

      5.  2lbs.  spare ribs or an additional 2lbs. sausage (choice)

That makes annual membership for this program look like this:

S1) Senior or small family Annual membership without eggs including Senior winter CSA ($360) and half share senior vegetable membership ($300) - $660

S2) Senior or small family Annual membership with eggs Including Senior winter CSA w/4 dozen eggs delivered each month ($445) and half share senior vegetable CSA membership including 1 dozen eggs delivered weekly ($350) - $795

If you need to set up payments for the annual membership options, that is certainly doable.

Please feel free to call or email with any questions.

Steph 

810-656-2036

CSA Payments can be sent to :

Stephanie Antaya

8231 S. SIlverwood Rd.

Silverwood, MI 48760

Good Morning Everyone!

Just a quick note this week.  Still pluggin away up here to the tune of some really long days, but production off the field is pretty much non-existant.  We are pulling single digit zucchinis off of the fields, meaning out of the 70+ zucchini plants out there I am getting under 10 (most days under 5), and any of you who have ever had a zucchini plant should appreciate how bad that is.  Picked about 2 quarts of cherry tomatoes off of 1000 plants yesterday, no ripe full sized tomatoes at all.  We are losing squash, and a couple of the cantaloupe type melons have also succumbed to what we have always called blight, which is a wilting disease which comes during seasons with extreme heat and drought.  The only cure for it is to pull the plants affected and hope it doesn’t spread to its neighbors.  For the first time in years, I do not think the garden is going to reach a point where it is productive enough to make the deliveries.  The plants are hurting - really hurting.  I am pulling more plants each day than I am harvesting vegetables from, and the heat just isn’t relenting up here.   I am making the difficult choice to call the 2011 Garden season. 

Everyone who is signed up for this years garden will be moved onto next years garden list.  I do need for each of you to reprint and resend in your CSA Commitment Agreements for next year, just the form as there is no charge at all even if the rates increase for next year.  Please include all of your information like you did this season (name, address, telephone, email, and the programs you are subscribed for including egg shares and delivery) and write on top in large letters ‘Recycle for 2012′.  My goal in this is always to get to the other side and be able to say I did the very best I could, and I have.  This season has been incredibly difficult on so many levels.  As disappointing as this is for you, please understand this is heartwrenching for our family.  We have been working at this years garden since December, when the seed catalogs arrived, and we have been planting in flats since January/February.  Harvest is our celebration of a season of working together, and this season isn’t going to bring much to add to the celebration.   That said I am still counting my blessings and I count each of you among them. 

Last year I started pork deliveries in November and we did them through June this year.  Some of you signed up mid-season and still have deliveries to wrap around.  I will be starting pork /egg deliveries mid-September and will post the dates and times in a week or so.  If anyone is interested in taking part in that that hasn’t signed up please let me know.  We had record farrowing numbers this year, and I don’t have to depend so much on mother nature to get the pork deliveries out.  We are still to my knowledge, the only free range hog farm in Michigan, where the animals really do enjoy a wonderful pasture based stress free life.  The meat quality genuinely reflects how well these animals are treated.

Some of you have inquired about egg deliveries.  I spoke to my father-in-law about doing pick ups at their place and I don’t think they can do it right now because of his business schedule; however, if some of you would like to pick up eggs starting in September when I begin the pork deliveries please let me know.  We will get it figured out. 

Thank you so much for your patience and support through a difficult season.  For those of you who are first time members, I know this is a rough way to start off.  This isn’t how things usually go, but it is how they can go.  I will try to offer the best solutions when times get tough, to keep things fair and enjoyable..sometimes my options are limited, as they are this year.  I hope you can stay positive and remain enthusiastic. 

God’s love and blessings!

Steph

810-656-2036

Morning Everyone!

Just a quick update this morning to let you know where we are at at the moment.  I am home filling up my tank for more watering.  We have lost a few things these past few days because of the heat and drought, but there are still a lot of things hanging in there.  They are forecasting rain for tonight and tomorrow, and for the first time in weeks, it looks like we might get it.  What some of you received south of us a few days ago, completely passed us by…so we are desperate for rain at this point.  Still no deliveries this week, and not a lot of activity on the vines.  Production is at a standstill, and each day without water the chances of the season falling short increases.  We are looking at less than a 12 week season if we get some rain and get some after this.  So far the cucumbers are gone, and the noodle beans.  The lettuces are burning, so recovery for them will happen, but will happen slower.  We are going to have to replant most of the root veggies ( carrots, radishes, turnips, rutabagas, beets etc…) I haven’t had enough daylight hours to water the back root patch, so we have been concentrating our efforts on the primary crops these last several days, like tomatoes, eggplants, melons, and peppers.  I would like to get some input from you on how you would feel about restarting for next season.  I think it is the fairest way to go forward if things don’t rebound.  Everyone would just be removed from this years list and placed on next years list for whichever programs you had chosen to take part in.  All constructive input is appreciated.

God’s love and blessings!

Steph

First of all, I want to thank everyone who has been praying for us these last couple of weeks.  I have really felt God’s presence these last few days.  You know its God when you just know in your soul no matter what - it will all be OK.  Its a level of peace I know I do not possess without his intervention.  I would also like to say a special thank you to those of you who have sent me well wishes and encouraging notes.  It really does help.  It has been an excruciating last few days in the field, and without prayer and the friendships I enjoy I am not sure how I would have made it through. 

We did lose a few things out there these past few days, but I am pleased to report, that the things I was most concerned about seem to have been averted.  The tomatoes retained their blooms, which is vital…and the young peppers and eggplants held the heat at bay.  While I will not know for sure how much damage was done for a few more days…I am pleased it wasn’t worse.  You know how you feel when you are outside for an hour in that kind of heat..imagine having nowhere to go to get out of it.   I am glad yesterday was cooler, and I hope we really do get the rain they are calling for.  We have had one 5 minute downpour since Memorial Day..WE NEED RAIN!!

I am not sure at this point what lies ahead.  This is the first year I can remember feeling this baffled out there.  Each season is different, and I definately do not count much of this one in the easy column.  Nothing is aligning quite right for good crops.  The timing of it all is just wrong, and that makes predicting the outcome difficult.  I know you would all like answers, and I will do my best to provide them…today the answer is give her a few days and see how the plants respond to the beating they just took.  Right now the future of the season lies in the timing.  If things bounce back and move forward, we will be OK, but we may still be looking at a couple of weeks before we are pulling enough out of there to deliver.  If they recover more slowly..we need to start talking about options a little.

The CSA model is a good one, and it is based on shared risk/reward; however, I do not believe that the customer shares the same burden as the farm.  Some would disagree with me, but this is my farm…so they can do things their way, but here things are done mine.  Please do not worry that you have spent money and that you will see nothing for your investment.  That has never been and will never be who we are, as a family or a farm.  If, worse case scenario, this season doesn’t become productive in what I feel is a reasonable amount of time..I will call it.  I have never called a season in all of the years I have been gardening, but I can’t as a christian charge you for a 16 week season, and only provide you with 8-10.  If I call the season I will restart everyone on the list for next season.  

Because having and running the garden costs even more during a bad season than it does during a good one, if things don’t get better fairly quickly, I can’t afford to do some sort of mass refund.  You need to understand that maintaining that size of a garden costs me a little over $100 a day, and that number doesn’t give me any kind of wage for the hours I spend out there (which this season has amounted to between 12 and 16 hours a day).  That also doesn’t include the initial investment to get everything in out there.  I am not ready to make that call yet, but as most of you know I believe a little preparedness goes a long way, and I wanted to reassure you that you hadn’t tossed money out the window.  It is extremely important to us that this be a good value for those who choose to invest in the farm.  It is what keeps you coming back.  For those of you who feel like you chose the wrong farm…you learn a lot more about the folks you work with and meet in the face of adversity than you ever do when things are all rainbows and rosebuds.  I hope what you chose to see in this situation this year is that you chose a farm commited to what they do, and determined to make the best out of even the most difficult times.  I hope you see a family dedicated to providing you what they promised to, even when mother nature has other plans.  We are so blessed that each of you have chosen to be part of our farm family this season, and we are genuinely looking forward to getting to know you all better.  Please hang on, I know its a bit bumpy.

Steph

Its 2am and I am awake.  I shouldn’t be, but I am.  The water tank is full and ready to head out, and so far in the past 7 days I have logged about 90 hours out in the field behind it.  This heat is unforgiving, and the plants and I continue to push through it.  Like people, some things handle the stress of it better than others.  The tomato rows are stunning, the earliest of them are hip high and about 2 1/2 to 3 ft across, although there has been little color change on the vines in the last week.  More tomatoes are forming, and they continue to grow and fill, but out of 1000 plants we have only picked about a pint of ripe tomatoes.  The basil and oregano are gorgeous and the smell of them is so refreshing out there.  The zucchinis are forming, and picking will begin this week for them.  We lost a lot of cucumbers this last week to the heat.  Their root systems are shallow and even watering everyday is proving insufficient in this weather.   It has been a really rough week.  I am not easily discouraged, and I don’t quit..but I would be lying if I told you I wasn’t feeling frustrated and discouraged this morning.  I have been planting in flats since January and I haven’t had less than an 80 hour week since planting started outside Memorial Day weekend.  It has been a battle so far this season, and without some rain it is going to continue being exactly that.  I am doing absolutely everything I can do to make this work.  I have been growing vegetables this exact same way most of my life successfully, and so far with few exceptions I have been able to keep most of what we planted alive, but the heat isn’t good for anything.  I really need rain up there.  For picking to begin I need rain.  I do not want to push back any further, but I can’t deliver what is unripe or what is not there.  This is officially the latest harvest I have had ever…partially because of the wet fields this spring, and mostly because the plants were so young when this heat hit.  Please feel free to call or email with any questions.  Please do not call and yell at me.  I know what my obligations are, and my sense of responsibility is HUGE.  I know what my end of this is, and I am giving everything I have out there.  The garden is what I do this time of year, and with this weather there has been no time for anything or anyone else.  I have seen very little of my family this season, and that is just how it is.  Most years I have the kids out there with me most of the time, but I can’t ask them to endure this heat.  Although they ask everyday to come up and help, and in the early morning and early evening they have been able to come out a couple of times a week.  I will not give up and God willing we will get there, but not yet.  I will update regularly.   I will begin deliveries as soon as I possibly can.

Steph

810-656-2036

Dear Heavenly Father,

I need you.  I need you all the time, but this week I need your strength, and your encouragement.  I need to see you out there with me.  Please help me to focus on the blessings and not the challenges.  Let me overcome the obstacles and to finish strong.  Help me learn what it is you are trying to teach me.  Help me to stay positive and energized.  Please send us rain this week.  The plants need more than I can provide.  Please help those who are so patiently waiting to have peace and please bless them with abundance.  In Jesus Holy Name we ask and pray - Amen!

Hello Everyone!

Just wanted to take a quick moment to drop everyone a note regarding start up this season.  As you know in most seasons deliveries begin right at the start of July and run through Oct for 16 weeks.  This year is going to run a little differently.  Because of the very heavy rains this spring we were unable to get the equiptment on the fields until Memorial Day weekend.  Usually I have about a third of the garden in by then, but this season that just wasn’t an option.  Everything is in and growing well, but we still have a little ground to make up because of the rain.  As a result, we will be starting deliveries on the 13th of July in Farmington, the 16th of July in Rochester/Oxford, and the 18th of July in Caro.  Deliveries will run through Nov 1, which is a Tuesday.  I figure since Monday the 31st is Halloween, I will finish up the day after in Caro.  This still gives everyone the full 16 week season because we have an extra week in both July and Oct this year.   I know some of you will be disappointed, and I sincerely apologize.  I do have one of those jobs that is at the mercy of Mother Nature, and there really is not anything I could have done to get the veggies out in that field any sooner than we did.   It was so wet out there I couldn’t even push the tiller through because it was too heavy, let a lone the tractor.  This is going to be a phenomenal season of abundance and flavor!  We have over 1000 tomato plants this season (more than twice what we had last year), and almost as many peppers.  The lettuces are looking fabulous! And the dragon tongue beans have breached the surface and are standing tall.  We received a donation from Swoish’s, one of our local greenhouses.  He had planted too many onions this season, so I am in the process of planting about 5000 onions..yes I said 5000.  If you would be interested in extra onions this year, please let me know.  We have a little bit of everything from leeks to pretty much every onion color you can think of.  So a special thanks to Jerry Swoish for thinking of us this year!!  If you have any questions please feel free to shoot me an email.  I will get back with you.  I am in the field a lot this time of year, so it may take me up to 24 hrs to answer you.

Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank you Lord for the rain last night, and for the opportunity to do what I love and to share it with so many people.  Please continue to bless us this season as only you can.  You are the great grower.  All creation answers to you, and we just pray this morning Dear Lord that you would put your hand upon our garden this season and bless it with abundance and vigor.   Help it to thrive under our care and your provision.  Let all who see the garden and reap the benefits of it to call it truly blessed.   Help me Lord to be all that you have called me to be.  Please bless our children, farm, marriage, and family, and the families of all of those who choose to share in this adventure with us.  Please continue to provide us your peace, your grace, and your guidance.  In Jesus Holy Name we ask and pray - Amen!

As many of you know, this is our first year as a CSA.  I have been selling produce down in Rochester for the last couple of years out of a 3 acre garden we had always kept here on the 10 acres where we live.  CSA is just a little larger scale then what I was doing before.  I have had family members and friends ask why Community Supported Agriculture makes sense for their family.  So I thought I would take a little time and address that here this morning. 

The United States isn’t the same kind of country it was when our grandparents were growing up.  In the 1930’s when my grandparents were young, each family supplied much of what they consumed.  My Great-grandma Myer had 9 children of her own, and she raised 2 young indian girls as well.  They grew a large garden.  When berries were in season, everyone picked berries.  My grandmother used to take me out berry picking when I was a girl.  I was astounded how fast that woman could fill up a berry bucket.  When I asked her how she could pick that fast, she responded “When I was just a girl, my father used to take us 9 kids out to pick berries.  He would tell us when we got there how many we would be picking, and we would stay until we met his quota.  Everyone picked.  When the older children had what they needed - they helped the younger children.  When we were done, my father would pick my mother a bouquet of daisies, and we would all head home.”  They had a milk cow too.  And my grandmother tells me now, that her father raised the meanest pigs in all of God’s creation, which they butchered to help feed their bustling family.  Living off what you grow, taking what you work for, and nothing more -  that is who we used to be as a nation.  We have lost some of our collective identity.  We stopped working as hard for what we needed, because we no longer had to. 

We need to again - its that simple.  Michigan has one of the worst state economies in the country right now.  We have many more people moving out then moving in, and the welfare rolls are growing.   People feel lost.  We are hurting, and now more than ever, we should be supporting each other.  The people who worked for Ford and GM, who no longer have a job due to downsizing and relocations, would tell you that if you live in Michigan and you are driving a foreign made car, you are choosing to take money out of the pocket of your neighbor.  That is money your neighbor won’t spend at your local business.  Taxes he won’t contribute to the local school system that both of your children attend.  Taxes that could make a broken system better.  We are all a web of choices and consequences in our lives, our families, our state, and our country.  Our choices positively or negatively affect one another.  Taking from the teaching of Randy Carlson - we all need to live intentionally.  Evaluating each decision carefully and making the very best one.  

Everyone reading this can choose to go down to your local grocery and pick up your vegetables there, and yes you will be supporting your local store, but please don’t be mistaken into thinking that you are supporting your local farmers by making that choice.  Even the Whole Foods in Rochester, who claims to be a provider of local meats and produce, purchase and import their ‘free range’ chickens from Chicago, where they are grown in a dome.  I promise you, there are plenty of Michigan farmers raising genuinely free range birds here to meet their needs.  Choosing to support CSA is the best way to get the freshest produce at a price better then you will get at your local groceries.  And anything in your share is guaranteed grown in Michigan.  Next time you are in Krogers, pick up one of their black hand baskets - the wire ones, fill it with as much organic produce as it will hold and take it to the checkout.  One of those wire baskets holds less than half a bushel of produce, which is the amount we provide as a half share from our farm every week.  I promise you it will cost you more than $20, and the varieties available there are nowhere near as diverse as what we offer from the farm.  That basket of produce from Krogers will benefit farmers in Mexico, Chile, and Brazil.  There might be some Michigan produce in there, but probably not much, and definately less than half.  That isn’t good enough.  In supporting your CSAs, you are supporting your neighbors, and your state and local economies.  As Michiganders, we need to be very conscious of how much of what we make is staying here.  Please consider supporting your local farms through their CSA programs.  Your family and theirs will benefit greatly.

Steph

Prayer for the day: Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for our friends, our family, and our farm.  Help us serve and represent You well in all that we do today.  Help our work be fruitful, and our faith be strong.  Keep us focused and diligent.  Help us to set goals and accomplish them, and to meet our obligations.  Please provide for our needs as only you can.  Help baby Livy feel better and help Lucas’ stuffy nose to clear up.  Thank you for hearing and answering our prayers.

Amen

I know that some folks have had a hard time opening the docfile for the CSA Commitment Agreement on the Garden Goodies page.  I had emailed the webtechs and asked them to fix it, but they haven’t gotten to it yet.  I decided this would be a quick fix in the meantime, so that everyone could access the agreement.  We would love to have you and your family take part in our CSA this year! Here is our CSA Commitment Agreement, all CSAs have them. Ours is pretty basic. If you have any questions, just let me know. I will be happy to explain anything.  To the door delivery for the season is $75 - if you live in Farmington or Birmingham there is a $100 delivery charge.  I hope that helps.  Have a blessed day!

Steph

CSA Commitment Agreement

By signing this agreement I (we) understand that I (we) am (are) making a commitment to the Antaya Acres Heritage Farm CSA program.

I understand that I am purchasing one season’s share in the harvest of produce by Antaya Acres and that my vegetable share does not include the livestock or the products produced by this farm (although discounts on such items will be offered to subscribers). I am not purchasing any ownership rights to Antaya Acres Heritage Farm its property or equipment.

I realize that although this farm is protected by signifigant garden experience as well as all natural farming practices, that there is no guarantee in farming. Amounts of vegetables and varieties of produce available will vary throughout the season, and according to the weather.

I agree to share in both the rewards and the risks of the growing season along with the other shareholders and growers.

I understand that the season for fresh produce will run from the beginning of July through Oct for at least 16 weeks, but its exact beginning and ending will depend primarily on the weather.

I agree to contact Antaya Acres Heritage Farm and let them know if I will be unable to pick up my weekly share, and to make other arrangments to pick up if the weekly distribution is missed. I will not hold Antaya Acres responsible for my not receiving my parcel if I do not make the pick up at the designated time and location.

I understand that once the season has begun, I may not be able to get any refund of money if I change my mind.

___________________________________________ _____________

Shareholder’s Signature  and Date

Also please be sure to include your address, phone number, and email address. Please note on your agreement if you are signing up for a full share / half share, or senior share, egg share, and if you need delivery.

2011 Plant list
Tomatoes:

Hybrids: Sunstar, SVR 1400

Beefsteaks and X-LG tomatoes: Henderson’s Crimson Cushion, Rose, Kentucky Beefsteak, Giant White, Huge Lemon Oxheart, Purple Calabash, Gypsy, Big White Pink Stripes (stuffer)

Cherries and grapes: Black Pepper, Snow Fairy, Sungold Select, Italian Ice, Snowberry, Pearly Pink, Thai Pink Egg, Gajo de Melon, Black Cherry, Hssiao His Hung Shih

Pears: Yellow Pear, Red Fig, and Black Pear

Paste/ Roma varieties: San Marzano, Cream Sausage, Orange Icicle, Roman Candle, Striped Roman Candle, Purple Plum, Japanese Plum

Heirloom Misc: Furry Yellow Hog, Pink Accordian, Ananas Noir, Striped Cavern, Tsar’s Royal Gift, German Red Strawberry, Bison

Large Cherry (2-3 ounces): Violet Jasper, Orange and Green Zebra, Turkish Monastery, Tigerella, White Zebra,

Peppers:

Sweet: Red, Orange, Purple, Yellow, and Green Bell Peppers

Italian Grilling: Red Marconi, Yellow Marconi, and Green

Hot: Scotch Bonnet, Gigante Jalapeno, Fish peppers, Chinese 5 color, Pablano, Romanian Hot

Greens:
Collards, Spinach, Red and green mustard, and Swiss Chard

Lettuces:
Parris Island Cos, Red Romaine, Lollo Rosso, May Queen, Rossa Di Treviso Precoce Radicchio, Castelfranco Radicchio, Rubin, Tango, Grumolo Rossa di Verona, Grumolo Biondo Golden Chicory, Batavian Escarole, De Louviers, Mascara Lettuce, Big Boston Lettuce, and Brun D’Hiver lettuce. The goal for this season is to have a different green or lettuce in the baskets for all 16 weeks, thanks to the new Lettuce box garden my husband made for us this season.

Beans:
Dragon Tongue Bean, Green and Red Noodle Beans, Grenoble Green Beans

Radishes:
Pink Beauty, Purple Plum, Sicily Giant, German Giant, and White Hailstone,
Round Black Spanish Radish (giant), and China Rose (giant)

Carrots:
assorted Colors of heirloom carrots including: purple, red, white, orange, yellow, and light green

Rutabagas: Wilhelmsburg and Laurentian

Turnip: Golden Globe and White purple Tops

Beets: Bull’s Blood, Chioggia (striped), Golden beets, and salad leaf beet for salad greens

Summer Squash: Table Dainty (green and yellow striped 6oz.) similar to a tiny zucchini, Romanesco Zucchini (deeply ribbed -star shaped slices), Camoflage Zucchini, Butterstick Zucchini (yellow), Odessa, Ronde de Nice (lg round stuffer), Scallops (white, yellow, and green)

Winter Squash: Stripetti, Buttercup, Butternut, Australian Queensland Blue, Australian Butter, Banana, Red Kuri, Table Queen Acorn, Marina Di Chiogga, L’Estrella, and Melonette Jaspee Vendee

Brussel Sprouts, 3 colors of Cauliflower, Broccoli, and green and purple cabbage

Pumpkins: Winter Luxury Pie Pumpkins and Jumping Jack (large carving pumpkin)

Cucumbers: Delikatasse (8″green and white), Juane Dickfleischige (8″ long yellow), Sikkim (up to 4lb. Asian Cucumber), Lemon Cucumber, Parisian Pickling Cucumbers

Watermelons: Orangeglo, Sugar Baby, White Sugar Lump, Black Diamond Yellow Flesh, and Ali Babba

Cantaloupes: Banana Melon, Honey Rock

Honey Dew types: Golden Honeymoon, and Lazzatti (banana shaped honeydew)

Small melons: Tigger, Hero of Lockinge, Early Silver Line, Missouri Gold, Green Machine, and Sakata’s Sweet

European Melons: Petit Gris de Rennes and Chartenais

Potatoes: red, yellow, blue and purple

Sweet Potatoes: Evangeline (the sweetest variety)

Onions: Candy and Red Defender

Leeks

Herbs: Sage, Thyme, Marjoram, Rosemary, Chives, Dill, Oregano, Cilantro, and 4 different Basil

6 types of eggplant: Ukrainian, Turkish Orang, Chinese Long Purple, Japanese White Egg, Rosa di Bianco, and Applegreen Eggplants

I just wanted to take a few minutes to welcome those of you who are considering taking part in the 2011 CSA program. Below you will find a list of the drop sites and times, general info on what you can expect in your baskets, and details on program pricing and how to get signed up. If there is anything else you need please don’t hesitate to email me or give me a call. I will be more than happy to walk you through it.
Drop sites:
Rochester - Kroger Parking lot at Silverbell/Adams on Saturday mornings from 10-12
Oxford - Big Boy parking lot on Rt 24 just N of Drahner from 4:30-5:30pm on Saturdays
Southfield - bldg 2000 at Evergreen and 10 mile on Wednesday afternoon at 3:30-4pm
Farmington - Orchard 12 Plaza at Orchard Lk Rd. and 12 mile from 4:30 - 6pm on Wednesday afternoons

To your door delivery is also available throughout our service area. It is $75 for all areas N of Rochester and $100 for the Farmington/ Southfield area.

Pricing for the Garden Goodies Summer Program is as follows:
A)Half Share Program - half bushel weekly or full bushel bi-weekly Garden Goodies Only - $385
B)Full Share Program - Full bushel weekly Garden Goodies Only - $600
C) Senior Share - half bushel weekly w/ delivery $300

Egg shares- Available to CSA customers only at this point
E1) one dozen farm fresh free range eggs delivered weekly $50
E2) two dozen farm fresh free range eggs delviered weekly $95
Last year we sold out on the eggs just for our CSA customers. I purchased more chickens this year, but I don’t expect to have Egg shares available to sell to the general public. The best way to get eggs from us is to sign up for the CSA program.

Please keep in mind if you are interested in grass fed meats that there is a discount for signing up for the annual shares that include pork bundles through the winter months. There is a seperate post that deals specifically with these programs and their pricing. Please let me know if you have any questions.

I will divide the plant list up into groups of the items that you will find in your baskets for early, mid, and late season. You won’t get all of the items in every basket, but it will give you and idea of the progression. Half a bushel is about the size of the black wire baskets you get at Krogers that go over your arm.  A bushel is about the size of a square milk crate, or Family Dollar sells bushel sized laundry baskets in a variety of colors.  Also, I am there when you pick up, so if there is something that you or your family won’t eat - just let me know. I will do my best to substitute it for something else that is available. I don’t want to waste anything, and there is always someone else who will take it By August, you are getting more than your half bushel because some things are just big like the cantaloupes, cabbages, watermelon and some of the squash. I had banana squash last year that I had to can, because they were too big to do much else with. It was like stacking logs in the back of the truck. They are an interesting variety: we had some that were 12 inches long and some that were 4 feet long growing right next to each other.

Early basket - cucumbers, radishes, carrots, zucchini, scallop squash, greens (we are aiming for a lettuce or green in every basket this season), tomatoes (maybe not in the first basket, but probably the second, definately the third), green beans - Dill

Mid season basket - cucumbers, radishes, carrots, zucchini, scallops, greens/lettuces, tomatoes, peppers, sweet corn (I delivered corn 7 times last year throughout the season), melons, broccoli, dragon tongue beans, onions, winter squash, egg plant - cilantro, basil, oregano

Late season - tomatoes, still more corn, winter squash, pumpkins, greens, melons, peppers, cabbage, turnips, rutabagas, beets, brussel sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, herbs, potatoes, sweet potatoes, egg plant, onions

To sign up for the 2011 CSA Program simply print out the CSA commitment agreement, which can be found linked on our Garden Goodies page, or typed out on the blog for your convenience, sign it and send it in with your check or MO for the amount of the program you wish to participate in. Some folks had trouble getting the page to open last year, so I just typed it up on the blog to make it easier.

We are really excited about the program this season. Winter can be so isolating it will be nice to see everyone again and to get to know our new members.
Have a blessed and wonderful day!
Steph

Please make checks payable to:

S. Antaya

Antaya Acres Heritage Farm

8231 S. Silverwood Rd.

Silverwood, MI 48760