CSA stands for community-supported agriculture and is just that. Establishing a CSA assures farmers a market for their crops by pre-selling their produce and guaranteeing fresh, usually organically grown food to the subscribers in their community.
For more than 25 years, CSAs have provided a way for consumers to buy local, seasonal food directly from farms. From grassroots groups like Local Harvest, we learn that more than 4,000 CSAs are now operating in the U.S. Many small CSAs exist on Hawaii Island and a few larger ones are open to new subscribers.
In most CSAs, farmers offer a certain number of farm produce “shares” to members of their community. Buying a share usually entitles the shareholder to a box of fresh farm products every week. The arrangement serves both the farmer and the consumer.
Pre-selling their crops relieves farmers of time spent on marketing and sales and allows them to spend more time in the field where they can focus on growing good crops. Because they receive some or all of their payment before they have to buy seeds, fertilizers and other supplies, the system helps with the farmer’s cash flow. Farmers often live and work outside of town. The bonus that CSAs offer to them is a chance to connect directly with members of their community. They can get immediate information about what their consumers like and want while making solid friendships with their subscribers.
CSA shareholders also get many benefits. They get a guaranteed supply of very fresh food with all the flavors and vitamins that fresh produce provides. CSA members often get the added bonus of trying new vegetable or fruit varieties that are not ordinarily sold in the markets. Shareholders are often encouraged to visit the farm giving families an opportunity to learn how their food is grown. Kids are often more interested in eating vegetables from ‘their farm’ once they have seen them growing. The relationships that develop between community members and farmers often benefit the entire community by opening up discussions about the integration of agriculture into residential communities to mutual benefit.
In most cases the CSA model goes beyond the usual commercial transaction because members and farmers share the agricultural risk. The result is a feeling of “we’re in this together”. If things are slim on the farm, members are not typically reimbursed. The shared risk helps create a positive sense of community among members, and between the members and the farmers.
One of the larger CSA offerings in West Hawaii is Adaptations Fresh Feast. The ‘feasts’ include certified organic crops grown on Tane and Maureen Datta’s two farms, as well as island-grown crops from more than 100 other area growers. Fresh Feast is a well-established CSA that has been in existence for several years. They are still open to taking on new members in their efforts to offer high quality food each week for reasonable prices. For more about the Fresh Feast CSA go to adaptationsaloha.com and select Fresh Feast.
Greg Smith recently started a new CSA selling produce from his three-acre Earth Matters Farm in Ka’u. Greg is an experienced organic farmer dedicated to growing good, healthy food. He and his wife Gail share a desire to connect with their community and to have the community connect with their farm. They want to get to know the people who eat their produce. They are hoping to develop a community around their farm that shares recipes, holds potlucks and joins the effort to ensure the survival of small scale farms on Hawaii Island. Their CSA box is a mix of veggies including greens, herbs, tomatoes, cucumbers and squash all picked and packed the same day. Their CSA now has more than 30 members who come to the farm to get their shares every Tuesday. The pickup offers a chance to see the farm’s progress and connect to what is being grown. Their email address is gailandgreg@mac.com. Check out the garden club visit to the farm at youtube.com/watch?v=x-qoCN7zNV4.
Supporting a small veggie farm or purchasing a Fresh Feast box can make a small impact toward lowering the fact that 85 percent of the food consumed in Hawaii is imported. CSAs offer a model for creating change. Growing, buying and supporting locally grown produce and the farmers who grow it is a step toward maintaining agriculture in Hawaii. CSAs are not only a viable economic model but also a good choice for food lovers and farmers alike.
Tropical gardening helpline
Holly asks: I have several young plants in my nursery that have a grey powdery coating on their leaves. I’m not sure what is causing this. If it is a disease, is there a cure or should I give up on the plants and start new ones.
Answer: Your plants appear to have the fungal disease, powdery mildew, on their leaves. This mildew can occur in dry as well as damp locations as it does not need moisture to grow.
Powdery mildew is a very common, widespread, and damaging plant disease. The fungi produce those grey powdery spores that are easily dispersed by air currents. The disease is host specific, however, and is not likely to transfer to plants that are not in the same genus.
To control powdery mildew you can start by removing as many of the infected leaves as you can but no more than 1/3 of the plant’s foliage. Dispose of the leaves away from the garden area. Try spraying the remaining leaves with this effective spray that can be made at home.
1 to 2 tablespoons baking soda (Sodium bicarbonate’s alkalinity retards the fungus’ growth.)
1 to 2 tablespoons cooking oil or a light horticultural oil as a sticker. Neem oil is a good one to use.
1 teaspoon liquid soap or an insecticidal soap as a wetting agent that helps combine and spread ingredients. Safer insecticidal soap works well.
Mix in 1 gallon of water and apply to infected foliage late in the day so as not to fry the leaves in hot sun.
This formulation can be applied weekly until all signs of the disease are gone. It can also be used regularly as a prophylactic treatment. Spray every other week to keep fungal diseases at bay.
Relatively safe chemicals can also be used effectively. Wettable sulfur works well as does potassium bicarbonate (organic product is Kaligreen). Read and follow the labels carefully. Note that sulfur should not be applied in temperatures over 90 degrees or within two weeks of any product containing oil. Some crops may be sensitive to sulfur. Check the label. Serenade is a bacterium, Bacillus subtilis, that helps prevent powdery mildew from infecting a plant and is registered for organic use in Hawaii.
Spacing plants well apart and having good air circulation can help control this disease by reducing humidity. Other ways to fight powdery mildew include frequent pruning, removal and destruction of severely affected leaves or fruits, intercropping, and the use of resistant plant varieties where available.
E-mail plant questions to konamg@ctahr.hawaii.edu for answers by certified master gardeners. Some questions will be chosen for inclusion in this column.
Diana Duff is a plant adviser, educator and consultant living on an organic farm in Captain Cook.