Is this your first time joining our CSA or are you an existing member with questions about our CSA options? This is a page with our most commonly asked questions. Feel free to comment about your CSA experience and ask questions.
How long does the CSA run? The full season shares run for 16 weeks (mid June-late September). Summer Shares run for 8 weeks (early July to the end of August).
How much does it cost and where do I sign up? please go to our membership page for current prices and options.
How do you determine your share price? Our goal is to make your share worth more than you pay for it, meaning that if all goes well, you will receive more fresh produce than you could buy for the same price at the farmers market. We are also a very small farm using very little machinery, hand crafted techniques and the quality is reflected in our veggies. We feel that our taste surpasses the farmers market and other CSA’s due to the attention and care given from seed to harvest. Our prices reflect the true cost of producing veggies at this scale in a sustainable manner. It takes two full time people, an intern, and many loving volunteers to help run our 100 member CSA and we want to keep doing this for many years to come.
How many people does a full share feed? This question is very dependent on your family’s vegetable needs. Generally a full share will easily feed a family of 4 with some leftovers for freezing. If you are vegetarians, vegans, raw foodists, or just love veggies you should easily consume a full share. A full share averages out to be about $28 of produce a week (a little less in the first few shares and a little more in the later season shares). Our best advice is to look at your weekly vegetable costs and make your decision from there, keeping in mind our veggies taste so good you may want to eat more!
How many people does a half share feed? This question is very dependent on your family’s vegetable needs. Generally a half share will feed a vegetable loving family of 2 or a larger family who is just looking to supplement their existing vegetable needs. A half share averages out to be about $15 of produce a week (a little less in the first few shares and a little more in the later season shares). The half share generally gets a little more than half of the full share, but keep in mind bunch sizes on certain items may be smaller than full shares. Our best advice is to look at your weekly vegetable costs and make your decision from there keeping in mind our veggies taste so good you may want to eat more!
What kind of vegetables will I get? Click here to see a list of all vegetables we grow and their expected availability. Click here for example boxes for each season. We put a lot of thought into each weeks’ box in regards to menu planning and how certain veggies can be used in multiple meals throughout the week. In each box (for both half and full shares) you will get something to make a salad with, a root crop, a cooking green, a fruiting crop (when available), a type of onion, and a few other surprises. We also grow some fruits and make sure that everyone gets fruit a few times throughout the season. We strive to keep the boxes full of familiar vegetables and throw in some unusual ones too.
Will everything you grow be in the box each week? We grow over 50 different types of veggies and they are all ready at different times throughout the season. So you will be receiving different combinations of vegetables each week. Our members love seeing the progression of vegetables from spring to fall. Starting with early greens and quick growing roots to Brussels sprouts, winter squash, and carrots. Full shares will generally get 10-12 items in their box and half shares will get 6-7 items.
What if we don’t like some of the produce we get? Unfortunately, for the classic shares, members are not able to have choice in their vegetables. We give an abundance of vegetables that most people like, we put recipes in every newsletter focusing on some of the more unusual varieties, and I will also post recipes on this blog often. If you don’t like a certain vegetable consider giving it away to a friend, or asking us what to do with it. Keep in mind that our produce is fresher and will taste better than any grocery store vegetable you’ve had so if you’ve had a bad experience with a certain vegetable in the past you may want to try again with EverGood veggies. You may also be more interested in looking at market credits which you can use at our three weekly farmers markets.
What happens if I cannot pickup on my pickup day? We realize summer can be a busy time for our members so we try to be as flexible as possible with you. While we cannot give credit for missed or forgotten shares we are happy to switch your pickup once or twice a season if you know ahead of time you won’t be able to pickup. You are also welcome to have a friend pickup for you. Please give us as much notice as possible keeping in mind we cannot change your pickup on your scheduled pickup day.
What happens if I forget to pick up my share? Again we try to be as flexible as possible on this. We are all human, right! If you forget to pick up your share, your pickup location will keep it for 24 hours from the start of the pickup time. After 24 hours it belongs to the pickup host. If you forget your share call us as soon as possible and we will do all we can to make sure you get your box!
What if I go on an extended vacation throughout the summer? We encourage those people who are out of town a lot in the summer to purchase market credits which can be used at our three weekly markets and at the farm stand on Wednesdays. Those who are only here seasonally may want to consider our eight week summer shares. More information can be found here.
What are the pickup procedures and what do I do with my crop box? In 2013 we made the switch to recyclable plastic crop boxes. These were lighter weight than our old boxes and better than waxed boxes which are not recyclable. Our current boxes are sturdy and meant to last many seasons. When you pick up your share you may take the box home with you and the following week you can bring back the empty box and exchange it for your new one. We really love our new boxes and would love it if you take good care of them!
What if it’s a terrible growing year? In the past if you purchased a CSA share there was the assumption that the consumer was taking a shared risk in the success of the farm. Most modern day CSA farms have enough vegetable diversity that they can handle if some crops fail. That being said we do live in northern, WI and have experienced variable growing conditions. Some years are great broccoli and cauliflower years, and some are terrible tomato years, but we seem to always have awesome greens and enough variety to keep the boxes full and interesting. In the event of a huge farm-wide crop failure we would most likely give people the option to have the remainder of their season refunded or the balance carried over to next season.
How will EverGood Farm communicate with it’s members? Every sunday night throughout the growing season we will email out the weekly newsletter which will have the week’s vegetable list as well as recipes and tips and tricks. In the newsletter will be information about upcoming farm events too. I will also be updating this blog at the same time. We use email as our primary form of communication.
How can I get more involved? We are always looking for dedicated volunteers who are willing to work in exchange for an education and produce. A commitment of 4-5 hours a week will pay for a full share. If you are interesting in volunteering please contact us.
What will happen to extra produce throughout the season? We are a small farm and generally everything we grow goes to the CSA, our wholesale accounts, and finally the farmers market (in that order). Our CSA members are always the first to know about buying produce in bulk and we always seem to have a bounty of kale!
Can I split my share with someone? You are welcome to split your share with someone and we are happy to add both of you to our weekly email newsletter list, however you are responsible for splitting your share when you pick up your box and any other issues dealing with splitting your share.
Is everything in our box grown on the farm? All of the vegetables are grown on the farm and their taste and freshness reflects this. In the past we have supplemented our rhubarb from the Nellis’s here in Sugar Camp, and have given all our members blueberries from Camp Four Farm also in Sugar Camp. We expect to do this again in 2015.
Will my produce always look perfect? As a society we have been trained to look for perfection in the produce we buy at grocery stores and farmers markets. Because of this there is a huge amount of waste in the produce industry, which is a shame. Vegetables don’t always grow perfectly, but that doesn’t mean they don’t taste great. If you get a two legged carrot, double celeriac, or a heart shaped potato just consider yourself lucky to be experiencing nature’s diversity. Plus kids love funny vegetables! All of our vegetables are produced without any synthetic fertilizers or pesticides so occasionally you might find some bug damage on your greens, a little spot on your tomato, or a hole in your radish. We do our best to weed out the really ugly produce, but occasionally some slips past our eyes. Please contact us if you ever unhappy with the quality of produce and we will make sure to get you a replacement.
Do you use plastic bags? Yes, we do use plastic bags for our salad mix and loose greens. We try to limit the use to only these items, and appreciate when our members at the market and here at the farm bring their own grocery and produce bags. We cannot reuse your bags or containers but we encourage you to reuse them yourself. Most of our greens come in thick freezer ziploc bags. We try to be as sustainable as possible in other aspects of the farm and have chosen to use reusable landscape fabric mulch for our long season crops instead of plastic mulch.
EverGood Farm 