CSA Frequently Asked Questions
What is Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)?
In the off-season, our harvest shares go on sale to the community before any food is produced. Once the farm begins growing food, the members of the CSA who bought in get a cut of the harvest throughout the season in the form of a box of produce each week.
The CSA model embodies a reciprocal relationship, where the farm's prosperity benefits its community. Farmers invest in the well-being of the community, nurturing and supporting those they feed and the community supports the farm's success by investing in a share of the harvest. This enables us to cover high early-season expenses and produce healthy, sustainable food. We couldn’t do this without you.
How much does the CSA cost?
For 2025, a share costs $690 for 20 weeks. That's less than $35.00 dollars a week! By the end of the season the value of the produce you got in your box will exceed your investment. This share is enough to feed a small family veggies for a few meals, a veggie heavy couple for most of the week or a single veggie enthusiast. For larger families we recommend a double share. Most of our CSA members also shop the Saturday market to supplement their box. Once you have had super fresh, healthy produce you won't go back. If you shop in the local supermarkets, you know how expensive their produce is and it's not even fresh. We promise it's worth it.
What if I don’t like some vegetables?
We understand that sometimes there are things you have tried many different ways and still don’t like and that’s fine! (Andrew may still try to convince you to give it one more go with one of his recipes, lol) We will send you a list of what we are growing before the season begins and you can choose what to exclude. Keep in mind if there are many vegetables you don’t like a CSA might not be the best option for you. You can always come to our Saturday Market. If you let us know before the season begins what you don’t want then we are good to go. What we can’t do is take requests to leave things out week to week. We are a small farm and we plant very specific amounts of things to meet our harvest requirements. We hope our recipes and tips help you to be adventurous and try new things or even something you thought you didn’t like before.
Here is what a few weeks of our shares looked like for the 2024 season.
Week 1: Asian Greens, Strawberries, Red and Green Lettuce, and Sora Radish.
Week 2: Radish, Hakurei Turnip, Arugula, Pac Choi, Sprouting Cauliflower, Cauliflower Greens, and Red Butterhead Lettuce.
Week 6: Blueberries, Carrots, Magda Squash, Zucchini, Little Gem Lettuce, White Russian Kale, and Asian Greens.
Week 9: German Butterball Potatoes, Baby Greens Power Mix- Washed and bagged blend of red mustard, tatsoi, mizuna, kale, and arugula, White Russian Kale, Blackberries, Cherry Tomatoes, Heirloom Tomatoes, Tropea Onion, and Mixed Summer Squash.
Week 11: Tomatoes, Cherry Tomatoes, Power Greens Mix (Washed and bagged baby greens), Cucumbers, Eggplant, Shishito Peppers, and Sora Radish.
Week 15: Sweet Pepper Medley, Shishito Peppers, Reba Potatoes, Romano Beans, Tomatoes, Eggplant, Kale, and Mixed Greens.
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Who should consider a share? If you eat mindfully and locally, appreciate the work that goes into growing organic, heirloom produce, and want to support a local farm, this is totally for you. You rock!
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Who should NOT get a share? If you are someone who will grumble about getting too many greens in May and wonder why there aren't melons or tomatoes in your Spring box, this is not for you and that's ok. CSA's are for folks who are happy to eat seasonally and understand why their box will be filled with delicious greens in spring and other veggies in Summer. Please understand this before you order. Refunds are not a thing. Ordering is agreeing.
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When does the CSA start?
The goal is for the shares to run from May to September, but that depends on many factors not in our control. We will zero in on a start date as we get closer to the start of the season. The shares run for 20-weeks.
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When and where do I pick up my share?
CSA pickups are every Wednesday from 3:00-6:00 or Saturday from 8:30 to 12:30 starting in May and running to September. Pickups are located on our farm at 44 South Route 47 in Cape May Court House, north of Dias Creek Road and south of Hand Avenue.
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What if I am on vacation?
Please arrange to have a family member or friend pick up your share in your place. We can also donate your share to the Branches in Rio Grande to help feed food-insecure families.
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What if I can’t pick up my share on time?
We strongly urge members to pick up on your assigned pick-up day, but if that is simply not possible one week you may switch to the other pick-up day as long as you contact us ahead of time.
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What happens if something does not grow?
Sometimes weather, disease, seed failure, or insects like to ruin even the best plans. If we are unable to fill a box on some weeks we will source from local farms we work with, but don’t worry, we know the farmers and know how they grow produce. No pesticides or herbicides are used.
Do you grow everything in the boxes?
We work with Wes and Shirley Kline at Happy Valley Berry Farm in Bridgeton and are lucky enough to get their berries for our CSA boxes. We do grow blackberries and blueberries on the farm but the amount we need for the shares is a lot. Happy Valley Berry grows strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries using organic practices, never spraying pesticides, herbicides, or using chemical fertilizers. Shirley also picks berries ripe for the absolute best flavors.
Is your farm organic?
Stone Circle Farm is currently USDA-certified organic and has been for five growing seasons. However, we have decided that this year will be our last for certification for several reasons.
First, we are facing limited organic seed options from seed companies that we can trust. As a small market farm, we aim to grow a wide variety of produce, but we must ensure the reliability of the seeds provided by companies. This year, we experienced the failure of four crops due to poor seed germination.
Second, we have concerns that large corporate farms are compromising the integrity of the organic label. We can always chat more about this when you are at the farm!
Third, the requirement for inspection to demonstrate our adherence to natural and environmentally friendly growing methods sits uneasily with us, especially when farms that use toxic chemicals and pollute the environment can continue their practices without similar scrutiny. We no longer wish to contribute financially to this system. We prioritize forming personal relationships with our customers, who rely on us to grow healthy food and trust us to do so.
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We don't till the soil or use chemical pesticides, herbicides, synthetic fertilizers, or non-food grade materials on our farm. We exceed organic certification standards by using practices such as crop rotation, introducing beneficial insects, crop diversification, pollinator strips, and compost application. We regularly test our soil and plant tissue for optimal health. Our robust food safety plan ensures that the food we produce is free of human pathogens. We sell freshly harvested produce, not produce that has been sitting around for weeks. We go to great lengths to ensure that the food we produce is not only delicious but safe and we not only feed this community, but we also feed our family. If you have any questions reach out or come by the Market on Saturdays from May-October 8:30-12:30 and chat with us. Know your farmers, know your food!