Frequently Asked Questions
Why CSA?
Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) is an opportunity for you to connect directly to the farm where your food is grown. Your contribution funds the health of the land, enabling the farmers to carefully tend the homestead and all that live there, both plants and animals. In return, your farm provides you with a steady supply of healthy, locally-grown produce that’s been minimally handled and only briefly shipped, enabling you to eat fresh, seasonal, gourmet food.
Why Circle M?
Every CSA farm is different and offers a unique experience to members.
The Circle M Mission is to care well for this beautiful little piece of earth and share that beauty with others in the form of both food and farm life, feeding body and soul.
To achieve that mission, we deliver veggies June through October to alternating Saturday Farmers Markets in Argyle and Blanchardville, starting the first week in June. As Kriss gets more involved with local goverment, we find that there may occasionally be times when Saturday morning won't work for us, and we will find an alternative time for you to pick up veggies at the farm. We have an active facebook community and encourage Members to share recipes, pictures and tips with each other. Circle M is Certified Organic through MOSA.
At Circle M, we offer only what we pick here or what we forage from nearby fields and woods. We are not a subscription-style CSA that congregates food from various sources. That means our Members might get watercress from the creek, should it be a good year for that, but never oranges. We have an open-farm policy. Our Members can visit at any time (phone calls first, please:), observe their food growing and see exactly what sort of of care and management we practice. We also offer work-for-food events, community farm festivals, classes on various homesteading skills and the opportunity to soak up the peace and beauty of the farm for a day-long retreat or a longer stay in our bed and breakfast rooms.
At Circle M, we tend only 20 acres, only about 2 of which are ever under cultivation, and 1/3 of our cultivated area is under cover crop at all times. The rest is in pasture, woods or wetlands. We tend the gardens very thoughtfully, using a combination of small tractors, hand cultivation, cover crops, pollinator borders, animal rotations and heavy mulching to insure that our husbandry constantly improves the land. We own the land, rather than renting it, so we have a financial as well as a philosophical interest in keeping it healthy for the future. We also are investing more resources and time every year into stream restoration work along Gordon Creek, an exceptional trout stream that crosses our wetland acres on the way to feed the Pecatonica River. This stream can be accessed by the public through our place, so just contact us if you want to fish here!
At Circle M, we raise animals as well as vegetables. We think one of the most joyous aspects of this little farm is that we’re based on a sustainable small homestead model in which animals, pastures and vegetables grow in a continuous circle of nurture. Each aspect of the farm has a specific purpose in the circle. We care for the animals, they feed the soil, the soil feeds us and we feed you. That means life here is a vibrant circus of sheep, cows, pigs, goats, horses, chickens, ducks, dogs, cats, geese and occasionally turkeys! It also means you can order Circle M homestead beef, pork, eggs and wool products to pick up at Market, as well.
Because Circle M is such an utter delight for us, we think it’s a community you’ll want to be a part of, too. Children especially appreciate the interaction with animals, particularly in spring when the babies are born! And as a former homeschooling family, we certainly appreciate children taking advantage of their visits to the farm by exploring, learning and asking lots of questions. Members are privy to the whole life of the farm, and we think a key benefit of our CSA program is the opportunity to get to know the land and livestock. Members also get a 10 percent discount on farm stays at our Bed and Breakfast and to wellness, gardening and fiber workshops held at the farm.
What’s In the Share?
Contents vary according to season, but we generally start with potted herbs, lettuce, rhubarb, spinach, arugula, Asian greens, radish, pea shoots, snap peas, then add turnips, strawberries, carrots, pak choi and kale; progress through raspberries, currants, mulberries, beets, beans, kohlrabi, cabbage, carrots, cucumbers, collards, summer squash, corn, eggplant, garlic, fennel, tomatoes, peppers, raspberries and melons; and finish with potatoes, edamame, okra, leeks, onions, hard squash, pumpkins and sweet potatoes! We aim for you to recognize most of the vegetables in your share, but hope to surprise you with something new or different every week. Our veggies are exceptionally clean, colorful and chosen for excellent flavor, and our on-line resources are designed to lead you on an eating adventure through the season.
Where and When are Deliveries?
The season kicks off with the first Argyle Farmers Market on June 4 and the Lambs and Lettuces Spring Farm Festival on June 5. Saturday Market dates, times and locations are posted under 2015 Pickup and Delivery Schedule.
How Do I Join the Circle?
Email us at [email protected] to request a contract. Partial reimbursement is available through Dean, Unity, Physicians Plus and Group Health Care. Read through the Memberships page to find out about Share sizes and pickup options.
Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) is an opportunity for you to connect directly to the farm where your food is grown. Your contribution funds the health of the land, enabling the farmers to carefully tend the homestead and all that live there, both plants and animals. In return, your farm provides you with a steady supply of healthy, locally-grown produce that’s been minimally handled and only briefly shipped, enabling you to eat fresh, seasonal, gourmet food.
Why Circle M?
Every CSA farm is different and offers a unique experience to members.
The Circle M Mission is to care well for this beautiful little piece of earth and share that beauty with others in the form of both food and farm life, feeding body and soul.
To achieve that mission, we deliver veggies June through October to alternating Saturday Farmers Markets in Argyle and Blanchardville, starting the first week in June. As Kriss gets more involved with local goverment, we find that there may occasionally be times when Saturday morning won't work for us, and we will find an alternative time for you to pick up veggies at the farm. We have an active facebook community and encourage Members to share recipes, pictures and tips with each other. Circle M is Certified Organic through MOSA.
At Circle M, we offer only what we pick here or what we forage from nearby fields and woods. We are not a subscription-style CSA that congregates food from various sources. That means our Members might get watercress from the creek, should it be a good year for that, but never oranges. We have an open-farm policy. Our Members can visit at any time (phone calls first, please:), observe their food growing and see exactly what sort of of care and management we practice. We also offer work-for-food events, community farm festivals, classes on various homesteading skills and the opportunity to soak up the peace and beauty of the farm for a day-long retreat or a longer stay in our bed and breakfast rooms.
At Circle M, we tend only 20 acres, only about 2 of which are ever under cultivation, and 1/3 of our cultivated area is under cover crop at all times. The rest is in pasture, woods or wetlands. We tend the gardens very thoughtfully, using a combination of small tractors, hand cultivation, cover crops, pollinator borders, animal rotations and heavy mulching to insure that our husbandry constantly improves the land. We own the land, rather than renting it, so we have a financial as well as a philosophical interest in keeping it healthy for the future. We also are investing more resources and time every year into stream restoration work along Gordon Creek, an exceptional trout stream that crosses our wetland acres on the way to feed the Pecatonica River. This stream can be accessed by the public through our place, so just contact us if you want to fish here!
At Circle M, we raise animals as well as vegetables. We think one of the most joyous aspects of this little farm is that we’re based on a sustainable small homestead model in which animals, pastures and vegetables grow in a continuous circle of nurture. Each aspect of the farm has a specific purpose in the circle. We care for the animals, they feed the soil, the soil feeds us and we feed you. That means life here is a vibrant circus of sheep, cows, pigs, goats, horses, chickens, ducks, dogs, cats, geese and occasionally turkeys! It also means you can order Circle M homestead beef, pork, eggs and wool products to pick up at Market, as well.
Because Circle M is such an utter delight for us, we think it’s a community you’ll want to be a part of, too. Children especially appreciate the interaction with animals, particularly in spring when the babies are born! And as a former homeschooling family, we certainly appreciate children taking advantage of their visits to the farm by exploring, learning and asking lots of questions. Members are privy to the whole life of the farm, and we think a key benefit of our CSA program is the opportunity to get to know the land and livestock. Members also get a 10 percent discount on farm stays at our Bed and Breakfast and to wellness, gardening and fiber workshops held at the farm.
What’s In the Share?
Contents vary according to season, but we generally start with potted herbs, lettuce, rhubarb, spinach, arugula, Asian greens, radish, pea shoots, snap peas, then add turnips, strawberries, carrots, pak choi and kale; progress through raspberries, currants, mulberries, beets, beans, kohlrabi, cabbage, carrots, cucumbers, collards, summer squash, corn, eggplant, garlic, fennel, tomatoes, peppers, raspberries and melons; and finish with potatoes, edamame, okra, leeks, onions, hard squash, pumpkins and sweet potatoes! We aim for you to recognize most of the vegetables in your share, but hope to surprise you with something new or different every week. Our veggies are exceptionally clean, colorful and chosen for excellent flavor, and our on-line resources are designed to lead you on an eating adventure through the season.
Where and When are Deliveries?
The season kicks off with the first Argyle Farmers Market on June 4 and the Lambs and Lettuces Spring Farm Festival on June 5. Saturday Market dates, times and locations are posted under 2015 Pickup and Delivery Schedule.
How Do I Join the Circle?
Email us at [email protected] to request a contract. Partial reimbursement is available through Dean, Unity, Physicians Plus and Group Health Care. Read through the Memberships page to find out about Share sizes and pickup options.
