A Farmer’s Perspective by Jackie Manchester-Kempke

…. Continued
 

I asked Pam if she and her husband do all the seeding and harvesting themselves and found that they do handle all the offseason
work: Planning, ordering, starting and caring for hundreds of flats of transplants, and establishing/caring for all the crops in their hoop houses. By mid-April, she said, a small crew begins working for Homestead Hill and the strawberry
crop.

Her sister-in-law and nieces (along with some long-term employees) have helped grow vegetables and flowers. A few of the
members of the CSA have worked part time to help in May and on harvesting/packing days. This year Pam hopes to restart a paid
internship for horticultural students to work and to learn, a program halted by the pandemic.

Not all CSA’s offer fruit as part of the share but Homestead Hills does plus shareholders have the opportunity to make a few
specific choices rather than just get a predetermined box. (The CSA my daughter and husband belong to offers an egg share which
is very nice.)

Pam enthusiastically shared a few of her favorite varietals with me:
Heirloom tomatoes: Prudens Purple, Green Zebra, Tie Dye Pink, Berkely, Cherokee Purple.
Hybrid: Big Beef, Sungold.
Zucchini: Costata Romanesca.
Favorite bean: Dragon’s Tongue. Also, Provider.
Pam prefers Red Cross lettuce

Thank you, Pam, for sharing those and for giving us a farmer’s perspective on CSA’s.