CSA product list

Fresh vegetables

Crop	Quantity	Harvest
Arugula	6-8 oz bag	Spring & fall
Beans, snap	1 lb bag	Jul-Sep
Beans, wax	1 lb bag	Jul-Sep
Beans, edemame	3 plants	Jul-Aug
Beets, red or sugar	1.5 lb bunch	Jun-Nov
Bok choy	1 head	Jun-Nov
Broccoli	1 lb	Oct-Nov
Broccoli, rabe	8-12 oz bunch	Fall
Cabbage	1 head	Spring and fall
Cabbage, chinese	1 head	Spring & fall
Carrots	1 lb bunch	Oct & Nov
Cauliflower	1 head	Oct-Nov
Celery	1 head	Sep-Oct
Celeriac	1 lb	Oct-Nov
Cucumbers	4 pieces	Jul & Aug
Eggplant, italian	2 pieces	Jul-Sep
Eggplant, asian	3 pieces	Jul-Sep
Endive	8 oz bag	Fall
Escarole	1 head	Jun-Nov
Fennel	2 heads	Jul-Oct
Greens, collard	1.5 lb bunch	Sep-Nov
Kale, curly	1.5 lb bunch	Jun-Nov
Kale, lacinato	1 lb bunch	Jun-Nov
Kale, red russian	1 lb bunch	Jun-Nov
Kohlrabi	1 lb	Oct-Nov
Leeks	4-5 stems	Jul-Nov
Lettuce, romaine	1 head	Spring & fall
Lettuce, bibb	1 head	Spring & fall
Lettuce, leaf	1 head	Spring & fall
Mustard greens	1 lb bunch	Spring & fall
Okra	1 lb	Late Jul & Aug
Onions, sweet	5-6 bunched	Jun-Aug
Onions, cooking	4-5 pieces	Jun-Nov
Parsnips	1.5 lbs	Oct-Nov
Peas, shelling	1 quart	Jun
Peas, snow	1 quart	Jun
Peas, sugar	1 pint	Jun
Peppers, hot	1 pint	Jul-Oct
Peppers, sweet bell	4-5 pieces	Jul-Oct
Peppers, sweet frying	5-6 pieces	Jul-Oct
Potatoes	2 lb bag	Jul-Nov
Potatoes, new	1-lb bag	Jul
Radicchio	1 head	Fall
Radishes	0.5 lb bunch	Spring & fall
Radish, daikon	1.5 lb bag	Fall
Rutabagas	2.0 lb	Oct-Nov
Salad greens	6-8 oz bag	Spring & fall
Salad greens, spicy	6-8 oz bag	Spring & fall
Scallions	8-12 oz	Jun-Jul
Shallots	8 oz	Aug-Nov
Sorrel	8-12 oz bunch	Jun
Spinach	8-12 oz bag	Spring & Oct
Squash, summer/zucchini	3-4 pieces	Jun-Aug
Squash, summer/patty pan	4-5 pieces	Jun-Aug
Squash, winter/delicata	2 pieces	Oct & Nov
Squash, winter/acorn	1 piece	Oct & Nov
Squash, winter/butternut	1 piece	Oct & Nov
Sweet potatoes	2 lb bag	Oct & Nov
Swiss chard	1 lb bunch	Jun-Nov
Tomatillos	1 pint	Jul-Aug
Tomatoes, heirlooms	1.5 lb bag	Jul-Aug
Tomatoes, slicing	1.5 lb bag	Jul-Sep
Tomatoes, plum	1.5 lb bag	Jul-Sep
Tomatoes, cherry	1 pint	Jul-Sep
Turnips, baby white	1 lb bunch	Jun & Sep-Nov
Turnips, Gilfeather*	1.5 lb bag	Oct-Nov

*Read more about the Gilfeather turnip and other endangered passengers on the Ark of Taste at Slow Food's website.

Onions sprouting in our greenhouse April 6, 2008.

Fresh herbs

Herb	Quantity	Harvest
Basil	4-6 oz bunch	Jun-Sep
Chives	3-4 oz bunch	Jun
Cilantro	3-4 oz bunch	Spring & fall
Dill	3-4 oz bunch	Jun-Oct
Garlic & scapes	8 oz	Jul-Nov
Mint	4-6 oz bunch	Jun-Oct
Oregano	3-4 oz bunch	Aug-Oct
Parsley, curly	3-4 oz bunch	Jun-Nov

Plus other locally grown foods as available

In adddition to the produce, herbs and eggs listed above, we'll let you know each week about additional local foods that are available. These could include other produce, fruit and apple cider.

Dancing Hen CSA

What is CSA?

Community supported agriculture is a relationship where you, the customer, buys directly from the farmer through yearly membership. In exchange for the membership fee, you receive a weekly share of all produce grown on the farm. All members share equally in the harvest.

Because weather and other factors influence the amount of the harvest, all members accept that share size can vary, and that an entire crop, or crops, could fail altogether. At Dancing Hen, we overplant by 100% to prepare for unanticipated losses.

Should we ever suffer a crop loss, we'll attempt to replace it with fresh organicaly-grown produce from nearby growers. Should we ever have trouble meeting the delivery schedule or supplying the full number of share items, we will let you know as soon as possible.

The structure of CSA varies based on method of payment and extent of shareholder participation in the farm's operation. Some CSAs offer shares in exchange for labor, rather than money. At Dancing Hen we're always happy to have you visit and help on the farm. This could be one visit or a more regular, scheduled commitment. If you're interested in helping out, or exchanging some farm labor for a reduction in your share fee, give us a call.

To learn more about the history of community supported agriculture see links.

Member benefits

• Weekly delivery of healthy, local produce grown without synthetic chemicals, pesticides or fertilizers
• Eating vegetables within hours of their harvest
• Knowing your farmer & how your food is grown
• Access to additional farm-fresh, locally grown or produced foods
• Opportunities to visit and participate in the farm, including special events

2008 membership season

22 weeks, week of June 9 through week of November 10.

What does a membership cost?

See membership options further down this page.

What foods are available?

• Our own freshly picked, organically grown vegetables and herbs, including many heirloom and specialty varieties. See our complete product list.
• Eggs from our own pastured layers through an optional egg share. These are the delicious eggs with the rich, orange yolks and the non-runny whites.
• Other locally produced food, such as fruits, cider, cheeses, grass-fed beef, pork and pastured chicken - beyond the regular CSA shares - as part of our buying club option.

How do I know which items I'll receive?

Member shares will be divided up along vegetable family lines - root crops, legumes, vine crops, fruit crops, brassicas and greens - based on availability and quality. We will do our best to provide variety in the shares that are delivered. One bunch of culinary herbs will count as one vegetable. We will strive to provide herbs all season long.

We are currently traditional CSA, where we, the farmers, determine which items you receive. In the future, we may transition to choice CSA, where you'll be able choose your items. We'll let you know at each delivery items you can anticipate receiving the next week. You may contact the farm directly to ask about the availability of specific items.

See our product list to get an idea of the harvest times for each item.

Current delivery locations

• Bloomsburg
• Lewisburg
• Wilkes-Barre/Scranton
• Contact us if you'd like to host a new delivery site.

Delivery coordinators & market helpers

Most of our work takes place at the farm, but we're always looking for people to help as delivery site coordinators or at one of our farmers' markets. Contact us if you're interested in helping out in any of these ways.

Special farm events

During the year we'll also offer potluck meals at the farm. We'll notify you of these events as they come up.

Membership options

Full share - $525

• 10 items delivered every week during 22-week season
• Equates to $8/week per person for 3 people
• Feeds 3-4 people

Partial share - $375

• 6 items delivered every week during 22-week season
• Equates to $9/wk per person for 2 people
• Feeds 2-3 people

Egg share - $38

• 1 doz beautiful eggs from our own pastured chickens,
  every other week during the season, 12 doz in all

Buying club option - pay as you go

In addition to our regular CSA shares, we're planning to offer other local foods through a buying club option. The CSA members for that particular delivery point would combine their orders and pay week-to-week for the specific items ordered. These foods will include additional vegetables, as well as local fruit, cheeses, grass-fed meats, and other products. We'll let you know as these items become available, or contact us for more information.

Special CSA program for local churches

We'll donate ONE FULL SHARE to any church that lines up 10 CSA share customers from its congregation. This is a great way to help a group or family in need of food. Contact us and we'll provide you a flyer to post at your church.

Sample our foods

VISIT OUR STAND at these farmers' markets.

Forks Farm Market - 2nd & 4th Saturdays 10 am -3 pm, Jun-Oct; Turkey Market Day Tue Nov 25, 1-6 pm

Benton Farmers' Market - see their website for dates and hours

Downtown Lewisburg - Susquehanna Valley Growers Market at Hufnagle Park, Fridays 12 to 5, starting May 16

Philadelphia - at City Hall, Wednesdays 12 to 6, Jun thru Oct

Our own farm stand is open Fri, 12-5, Jun thru Nov

About us

A message
from the farmer
Dancing Hen Farm is a small start-up operation featuring organically grown vegetables and farm fresh eggs from pastured layers. We're currently transitioning to certified organic. Until we become certified, we're using organic growing methods and materials on our farm.

Our mission at Dancing Hen Farm is to provide farm fresh, top quality, organically grown produce. Our guiding values essential to this mission are sustainability, family, good nutrition and environmental stewardship.

We'll always be a small operation, allowing us to focus on quality. We will always seek to educate and mentor concerning the health benefits of organics and fresh, locally produced foods. We believe in sharing ideas and resources to benefit our customers and will always be friendly, enthusiastic and genuine in all of our endeavors.

Our background includes being born and raised in the Philadelphia region and educated at Penn State. We spent many years moving east to west, and west to east, across the country. I have been in restaurant management for over 20 years and my wife, Joan has been involved in agriculture for the same.

Our choice of farming in Columbia County is two fold; one for Joan to have a home office, and second, for me to pursue a dream of farming in the same vicinity my ancestors farmed in the early 1800’s. I retired from my restaurant management career in February of 2007 and began my farming business.

While we were searching for our farm, I interned at Red Earth Farm working with Michael Ahlert, gaining the knowledge, experience and confidence to venture out on my own. Those of you who know Michael and Charis will understand what I gained by spending the entire season working on their farm. Red Earth Farm is a first class, organic farming operation. To broaden my horizons, I also worked for John Hopkins at Forks Farm in Orangeville. I learned much about pastured poultry, grass-fed beef, woodlot pork and a sense of community at Forks Farm.

We've been members of PASA - the Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture - for 5 years and have enjoyed the many resources and friends we have made through this valuable resource.

- Don Hess
Dancing Hen Farm

Farm hours & directions

Directions

Dancing Hen Farm CSA is located in the rolling hills of Columbia County, 15 miles northeast of Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania. We're about halfway between Williamsport and Wilkes-Barre.

Links

Learn more about local foods, nutrition, and CSA

• Forks Farm Market - a local farmers' market close to us
• Farm to City - promotes local foods in the Philadelphia area through support for buying clubs, CSAs, & farmers' markets
• Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA) - promotes profitable farms and healthy food through educational programs & networking for farmers and consumers
• Weston A. Price Foundation - dedicated to restoring nutrient-dense foods to the human diet through education, research and activism
• eatwild.com - provides information about the benefits of raising animals on pasture and maintains a directory of pasture-based food growers
• Robyn Van En Center - at Wilson College in Chambersburg, PA - history of comunity supported agriculture

News

MORNING HARVEST - July 15, 2008

We harvest your lettuce first thing in the morning, before the heat of day. As soon as we take it from the field, we dunk the lettuce in cold water to prevent wilting.

After cutting the lettuces and salad mixes, we harvest the more wilt-resistant crops, such as chard, kale, mustard greens, and finally the squashes.

How do we decide what to harvest each day? In the morning, we walk the rows to check plant maturity and taste-test samples of every crop.

PACKING LINE - June 17, 2008

We pack your CSA shares in sturdy boxes the evening before, or the morning of, your delivery. Last week, we packed in the candlelight as we had no power due to the storm.

We pack peas and other loose items in plastic bags, rubberband the stalkier items such as herbs and Swiss chard, and carefully lay in heads of lettuce.

We strive to pack your box so its contents arrive in excellent condition. If you ever encounter an item that was not packed carefully enough, let us know.

We've bought in some items for our first few deliveries from other growers, including Tuscarora Organic Co-op. These items replace crops that were damaged in last week's hailstorm. In a few weeks, we should be back to "normal," if there is such a thing.

HAILSTORM - June 10, 2008

The gardens are recovering from the inch of hail that tore through the farm on Tuesday, June 10. Whatever wasn't under row covers - including lettuce, chard, onions, tomatoes, broccoli and peas (photo left) - was shredded. But we march forward, nursing the injured, replanting, and receiving support from other growers.

The marble-size hail was part of intense thunderstorm activity that peeled up metal barn roofs, splintered big trees, and cut power to lots of folks in this part of PA.

We try to prepare for losses like this by planting 100% more than what we'll need to supply our markets and CSA memberships. So despite Tuesday's storm, we anticipate being able to fill all your orders fully. If we encounter difficulty meeting delivery schedules or supplying the full number of share items, we'll let you know ASAP.

ROW COVERS - May 27, 2008

The white row covers at left keep flea beetles off tender plants, and help block the cold and wind. Just as importantly, they shield the plants from the foraging, dancing hens.