Details

2017 CSA Season Information

How long is your CSA?

Last Week of May to Last Week of October. We have 2 one week breaks in that span of time. Your share will receive 21 weeks of produce within the span of 23 weeks. Our week long breaks happen the first week of July and the first week of September. Why the breaks? We want to be your farmers for the long haul and avoiding ‘farmer burnout’ is a battle. Running a CSA for 5 straight months is intense when it’s just the two of us working to make it all happen. A couple years ago we experimented with incorporating a couple breaks throughout the season to rest and thought it was a great concept for us and the members. We hope you can understand and feel the same.

What vegetables will be in the share?

Each week, we will hand pick the items for your share based on your share size and what produce is ripe and ready for your kitchen. With farming, you never know what Mother Nature has in store for you, so we cannot predict exactly what you will get each week. Here are the items of which you can expect to receive an assortment by season:

Spring Spinach, Mustard Greens, Lettuces, Chard, Kale, Radishes, Turnips, Beets, Carrots, Kohlrabi, Peas, and Fresh Herbs
Summer Tomatoes, Peppers, Eggplant, Cucumbers, Summer Squash, Zucchini, Strawberries, Melons, Potatoes, Onions, Lettuce, Beets, Green Beans, and Fresh Herbs
Late Summer/ Fall Tomatoes, Peppers, Eggplant, Cucumbers, Summer Squash, Fennel, Potatoes, Lettuce, Chard, Kale, Collards, Spinach, Mustard Greens, Green Beans, Winter Squash, Brussels Sprouts, Broccoli, Cabbage, Carrots, Beets, Turnips, Radishes, and fresh Herbs.
(Don’t you love this time of year!!)

What added value products are available?

Each week we will let you know what products are available in the newsletter. You  will be able to purchase eggs, chicken, and pork along with picking up your share!

What kind of shares are available?

Full Share is $700
Feeds 3-5 people
Around 7-10 items each week
Small Share is $450
Feeds 1-2 people
Around 5-8 items each week

*How many people the share feeds is completely relative to how often you cook or eat at home! If you cook at around 4 or more nights a week, you will want the Full Share. If you cook around 2 nights a week, then the Small Share is more your style.

*Our Wednesday On Farm Pick Up is a free choice share! The idea of a free choice CSA is that a member can pick which produce they want and not be stuck with produce they hate. It puts more choice in the hands of our members and reduces the guilt of unused veggies in the fridge! Our model is pretty simple: if you have a Small Share, depending on how much produce is available that week, you will choose between 5-8 items of whatever you want. If you have a Full Share, again depending on how much produce is available, you will choose between 7-10 items of whatever you want. It’s that simple! If you want three heads of lettuce and 5 bunches of carrots, it’s yours! You no longer have to feel the need to take something because it’s on the list. As the season changes there will be limitations and abundance available(the first tomatoes and strawberries being a prime example) but for the most part you get what you want and nothing else.

*Our Wednesday On Farm Pick Up also offers a U-Pick Flower garden. This is our first year offering a u-pick to members. We’re experimenting with a small flower garden consisting of Zinnias, Sunflowers, Cosmos, Celosia, etc. You’ll be able to cut a small bouquet to take home during July-August.

How will I receive my share?

Pick-Up Locations

  • Wednesday from 3pm-7pm at the Farm
  • Saturdays from 8am-12pm at the Charles Town Farmers’ Market
  • Saturdays from 9am-12pm at The Conant Porch in Shepherdstown
Delivery to DC *There is a onetime delivery fee of $70
  • Thursday from 12-1pm at EPE office in Bethesda, MD
Here’s their location MAP


What kind of Payment Plans are available?

To accommodate our members, we offer payment plans of one, two, or three payments:

– The first payment is due within two weeks of registration to confirm your reservation.
– The second payment is due a month after your first.
– The third payment is due a month after your second payment.

We are always willing to work with you. If these payment plans don’t work for you or you have a special circumstance, let us know and we will try to work something out.

Full Share – $700

  Local Pick Up Bethesda Delivery
Payment I Payment II Payment III Payment I Payment II Payment III
Option I $700     $770    
Option II $350 $350   $385 $385  
Option III $250 $250 $200 $257 $257 $256

Small Share – $450

  Local Pick Up Bethesda Delivery
Payment I Payment II Payment III Payment I Payment II Payment III
Option I $450     $520    
Option II $225 $225   $260 $260  
Option III $150 $150 $150 $175 $175 $170

How can we pay?

Make checks payable to:
Green Gate Farm

Mail checks to:
Green Gate Farm
1665 Persimmon Lane
Shepherdstown, WV 25443

You can purchase shares online as well,  HERE

*There is a 2.8% credit card service fee to pay online. Mailing a check has no fee!


What if I can’t pick-up?

Your share must be picked up on your day and at the location designated. If you know ahead of time you are unable to make a pick-up, let us know or have a friend pick up your share for you!

Can I cancel my membership?

When you sign up for a CSA membership, you are committed for the whole season. We plan for the whole year with our members in mind but farming does have uncertainties and our members are along for the ride with us. You are a part of the risk of our tomatoes getting blight but also a part of the rewards when there is a bounty of pounds and pounds of tomatoes (and we plan for pounds and pounds!). If a circumstance happens where you need to pass ‘ownership’ of your membership to someone else, we can work with you, but there are no refunds.

A note about mother nature and the CSA

We try our hardest to plan out the season ahead of time so you’re getting a good variety of vegetables each week. But sometimes the weather will prohibit that from happening. Last year we had a couple cases of severe weather that limited the amount of vegetables in the share for a couple weeks. For example; a hail storm damaged all of our Collards, Chard, Kale, Cabbage, and lettuce that was just ready for harvest. Some of the plants we’re able to bounce back but it took a few weeks. This kind of unpredictability is just a fact of farming and it’s why the CSA model is so supportive for farmers. Becoming a member of the farm means supporting us through those hard moments and being flexible. Our members are the best safety net small agriculture could ask for.