2018 Survey Summary

Hi All!
Are you used to writing 2019 yet?! January blasted by and included an incredible storm and lunar eclipse. It also included a survey from the farm. Thanks to the 32 shareholders who offered feedback. As a first this year, we are sharing the full summary of the results, which can be found on a link at the close of this post. Here’s a few trends that caught our eye.

Highlights

• We will continue to be a farm that is pesticide, herbicide and GMO free. That ranked the highest in reasons to join the CSA (with strengthening the local food system coming in a close second). That’s great news as we take environmental health seriously and are dedicated to practices that promote soil/plant/people health. littleGrasse promises zero synthetic inputs and a concerted focus on minimizing fossil fuel inputs.
• Flowers: We heard it during the season and it popped up in the results, flowers are fun! We understand the appeal and will plant more this season.
• Garden space for all: Many folks mentioned that their highlight was getting their hands in the soil or seeing their children in the garden, whether it was harvesting veggies, planting garlic or mesmerized with the chickens. A central strength of littleGrasse is this communal landscape: every household can’t and doesn’t have to create their own green space to enjoy the pleasure of some time outdoors, taking a dip into gardening.
• You Pick Share: the summer standalone you pick was expanded from 13 to 18 weeks last season (May-August). Overall it seems that families loved the flexibility to chose which items and how much to harvest. Last season was really hot in the middle and some of our greens plantings suffered. This year, we will plant more lettuce and spinach, with less spicy greens mixes. We will also plant more flowers, snap and snow peas.
• We’re going to partner with 8 O’clock Ranch again this season and offer egg shares as well as self-serve purchases of beef, chicken and pork in the share room from May-October.

Challenges

• Getting the proper mix for share diversity is perpetually a tough nut to crack. There are many crops that grow really well here and they are not equally popular. For example, the brassica family: Broccoli is the most popular member of this family, but it’s comparably troubling: overall yield is low for the space it needs, harvest window is short and it doesn’t tolerate heat stress. Other items in this family, such as cabbage and radish, have a higher yield, longer harvest window, lower fertility requirements, longer shelf life and overall more predictability. As a diversified operation, we continue to re-calibrate the balance between consumer demand and the realities of small-scale veg production in the North Country. That said, we got the message loud and clear: radish and kohlrabi, as practical as they may be, are generally not popular. (even if the farm loves them in salads or pickled!)
• Advance notice on events: With weather, to-do lists and other unpredictable factors, sometimes we announce events with less advance notice than is ideal.  Some field tasks, such as transplanting, will usually be shorter notice. Indoor events, such as the fall group sauerkraut making we’ll schedule farther ahead of time whenever possible.
• “Making it out to participate”: This should not stress members out. The garden is intended as a positive interactive space, separate from the high demands of our daily lives. It should not produce anxiety, that’s why the CSA no longer “requires” a specific monthly participation. Instead we offer the You Pick option for the summer, which engages members on your own schedule. Take a deep breath and come if you can.

Full Survey Results

We plan to announce share offerings in the next couple weeks. We’re working on financial planning and website updates.

winter Rye