Several people at work have been getting lovely fresh produce. I was given some lovely asparagus, a butternut squash, 8 sweet chili peppers and a jicama ( how come I had never had a jicama? Yum). They have been getting so much that those participating have been sharing fresh veggies. I found out they were only paying $15 week for a big box of lovelies. All this great produce is coming from a volunteer organization called Bountiful Baskets. You might want to check it out and see if they are in your region of the US. We are definitely signing up. http://bountifulbaskets.org. If they are in your area you might want to find out more. I guess you can even start one in your area if there is interest, but I'm not adventurous enough to look into that. :-?
What a great idea!! I would be joining as a volunteer if they had anything like that over here in the UK. Do let us see the basket you get won't you?
Here's the information from their site about starting something in your area. Starting a New Bountiful Baskets Site Bountiful Baskets Food Co-op is completely volunteer run. Every site has been started by a volunteer who wanted Bountiful Baskets available in their community. We’re so glad that you are interested in starting a site in your area! Having healthy food at affordable cost is so valuable in our communities. We just had a Volunteer Site Coordinator get together down in Arizona and when we were talking everyone expressed how much they enjoy helping other families. It’s about 2 to 4 hours of work for each co-op distribution. Here is a To Do List for starting a site: 1. Participate at an existing site and arrive at the volunteer time as listed in Locations and talk with the volunteer site coordinator about starting a site and mentoring with them! Help as much as you can and stay as long as the coordinator stays. 2. Look for a physical location that you can use. If you live in a snowy area find something that will work year round. Think about schools and businesses as well as space maintained by clubs or organizations! 3. Start finding other people who can help you with this. It’s best to start a site with a Backup as well as yourself! Many hands make for light work! Never fear though, you will have participants who come early to help from your very first distribution. Best, Sally & Tanya Seems very laid back and easygoing.
You can also check out http://www.localharvest.org/ to see what is in your area. They list several food co-ops around the U.S.
Tony, that link was just what I was looking for. My old beds are so shaded and I would like to spend the summer developing the new garden beds. I want a supply for fresh produce. Your link gave me several local farms to choose from for organic veggies. Just need to decide where I want to invest my shares Now I can get wholesale produce year round and local veggies in season.
Well, today was our first pick-up of fruits and veggies. We got their early so helped fill baskets. The morning was frosty so moving felt good. A veggie and fruit basket per share ( photo / image / picture from Jewell's Garden ) The regular share got 10 pounds of potatoes, celery head, 2 large red peppers, box and half of mushrooms, 4 bok choy heads, 2 heads of lettuce, big bunch of bananas, 2 pineapple, 4 Asian pears, big box strawberries, 3 papaya all for $15. I went for the organic box, so didn't get potatoes, mushrooms, bok choy or lettuce, but got fennel, cabbage, the best looking chard I've seen in a while, carrots and broccoli instead. Suited me fine. The organic amounts didn't look quite as large though. :-? They were boxed instead of basket end so I could be wrong. Organic Veggie/fruit box ( photo / image / picture from Jewell's Garden ) We also got an extra tropical box. It has been a cold, damp spring so I travel with my food. More papaya, pineapple, 3 vanilla beans, fresh ginger root, mint, plantain, dragon fruit which I have never tried before, coconut, wonderful granola and fresh fruit wraps Tropical fruit box ( photo / image / picture from Jewell's Garden ) For lunch we had fresh strawberries and fresh hot mint tea. One way to ward of the spring time blahs since it is too cold and wet to get out in the garden yet. Best of all I didn't have to brave the super market looking for the freshest in-season (somewhere) produce. Just another way to shop. Now I have to decide if I want to find a farm I want to buy my summer produce shares from.
What a bargain, Jewell. I actually was amazed at the amount of food in a basket. 10 #'s of potatoes? wow. I think your organic selection will be smaller than a non organic selection. I don't think you are mis-judging that. Since I grow copious amounts and I am not organic...it is because it is more expensive to produce nice produce. Organic does not mean it is not sprayed with anything, It means the sprays they use are organic based chemicals not synthetic based ones. I try to spray as little as I have to to get a nice crop, but I also can't afford to buy the ultra expensive organic sprays, either and I have no buffer zone around our property to be certified even if I was organic...too many other people willingly using synthetics.. Some (and most of them) are expensive. I saw a bottle of an insecticide that is called "pyganics" and it was $700.00 in one of my catalogs. I don't know how much I would have to dilute that or how long the product would last me, but I don't have 700.00 just to try it out. The fewer "tools" in your toolbox or they are much more expensive tools, makes it harder to compete with conventional produce...more bug and disease pressure means you throw away a lot more than a conventional farmer. and the consumer who is willing to buy organic pays more because it is more expensive to produce it.
Carolyn, thanks for all the new-to-me information. I had no idea about the costs of organic sprays or buffer zones. I am pretty naive about all that farmer/growers need to do to get a crop to market. Much different than my little backyard crop. I did spend an additional $10 for organic, but I still feel it was really worth it. Actually the whole experience was worth it. Once my hubby saw all the produce his creative juices got flowing and he made up a great dinner with the fresh chard and butternut squash...and ate his share. Getting him to eat fruit and veggies is no small task. Getting really fresh produce is a treat especially this time of year.. Next we are thinking of a tropical fruit salsa. Have never tried that particular combination. They had a recipe on their website that sounded good. Maybe some vanilla vodka also
Jewell...You sent the money because you felt it was worth it...that is what the perception of value id to each of us. We spend out money on what is important...not because someone else dictates that it is. Enjoy your bountiful basket. Growing organically involves a lot of details that most people have no idea of the "rules and regulations" entails. WE have an organic grower for dairy not far from us and I think he said the buffer zone for his farm must be 300 feet. That takes a lot of help from your neighbor, too. That means he/they needs to help in the effort of that. Not all of us can even begin to even dream of having 300' to work with. Our property is less than 300' wide with a conventional farmer across the road and the dreadful "must spray our lawn come hell or high water" neighbors. I can smell the weed killer at my house in the Spring when the chemical killer comes. . "Oh, look we missed a dandelion...lets spray again?" I also never see birds in their lawn. It is quite sad, actually. Their lawn is beautiful, though. So, no, I could never be certified organic even if I wanted to do it. I just try not to spray anything I don't have to.
