So I have farmgirl aspirations. I love barns. Chickens excite me. Compost? So amazing. Alpacas?…read moreNifty beasts. When I was single living in Eugene I had an enormous vegetable garden and lived out there spring till fall.It was my obsession, my haven. I blame my years living in the desert for this fascination with green, growing, blooming stuff. I lived for trips to nurseries, crop rotation, my fresh herbs, collecting salad fixings five minutes before a great meal. Social worker grind by day, earth mother the rest of the time. Bliss. I always had dirt under my nails, tomatoes to share, and I slept really really well. Things changed though when I moved to Portland and got a man, then a kid, then had aging parents to take care of in addition to my day job. I could barely get to the store much less a farm stand or the farmer's market. Enter the CSA. What a great idea. Support local farms, share the risk, reap some of the harvest. My first attempt didn't go so well ( long story about a crazy lady, slugs, and the Sheriff) and expensive. 10 weeks for $780. Ouchie. My kid got to meet the llamas and chickens though. That was sweet. This time we tried Sun Gold Farms. It is way more reasonable, 18 weeks for a full share, less than $500 and the produce is outstanding. I pick ours up every Wednesday evening in my neighborhood. I love the recipes and stories on their website, the people are great, they have honey shares too if you are interested, We have had some awesome dinners and my kid has tried new veggies. (Ex: fresh chickpeas on a chunk of the bush! ) They have an open house ( we unfortunately were out of town) every summer for their csa members which is cool, too. I think this farm really does everything well. Its not certified organic but its spray free and focuses on sustainable green practices. I can't think of anything more to tell you. I'm including a photo of this week's share. ( there are three of us at home plus my brother in law eats here a lot, so we have a fulll share) Oh, it runs summer into fall. You missed it this year. I'm going to go eat some homemade apple pear crisp now ( fruit from my csa basket). I'm a lucky farm girl. Ish.

My contact with Sun Gold Farms is through the Saturday Farmers Market at PSU. Sun Gold Farms has…read moredelicious produce at fair prices and offers Portlanders the market's best sweet corn as well as an amazing variety of winter squash. If you're like me and think butternut and acorn are the only squashes around, talk to Charlie and try the more tasty varieties -- carnival, red kabocha, sweet dumpling, blue hubbard, harlequin, delicata (one of my favorites), Thelma Sanders, red curry. The list goes on and on and on. Charlie's always happy to explain the differences between these types and he and his wife offer tips on how best to prepare the various kinds, either roasting them or turning them into soups. We like all of the produce they sell. Sun Gold is one of the best farm stands at the PSU Saturday market and an absolute must for sweet corn and squash.

So many berries to pick ! Such kind service. They have a little free selection of produce on the…read moreway out (sometimes). Very home feeling farm. You can tell they work hard :)

Today we headed west (crabby tween and I) to visit my mom at her care facility and made a…read morestrawberry detour at Unger Farms. I had to pry her away from electronics and muscle her into the car. No u pick today, her arm is splinted. We grabbed a couple cartons of Hood berries and some jam, a strawberry lemonade, and a strawberry scented candle and took some pictures. It is dead on beautiful out here. A perfect weather day didnt hurt. The food that dressed up older people ( im guessing they came directly from church) were eating (strawberry laden belgian waffle with whip, spinach salad with berries, yummy panini? Oh my!They have good stuff to eat) looked delicious. We are coming back to eat lunch and u pick soon. Princess ate strawberries steadily from Unger farms to my moms. " Mom why are these so easy to bite into and so juicy?" Her mood turned around, yay for strawberries and sunshine! "Because theyre ripe, baby." "We have been missing out!!" Yep. We are totally good at raspberry season but now we have to add strawberries to our agenda. Sweet!! Go. You wont be sorry. Please leave some berries for us though, ok? Only five berries made it home.

I've worked with nonprofits/NGOs all over the world, and know a great one when I see it. Adelante…read moreMujeres isn't a charity - it's an organization that works to transform lives and improve an entire community. Their programs are focused primarily on Latina women and their families, but their programs serve all people in some way in the area. For instance, most people in Forest Grove, Gales Creek, Cornelius, etc. have been to the Forest Grove Farmer's Market, but don't realize that it was founded, and continues to be managed, by Adelante Mujeres. They have programs to develop and grow Latino small businesses, a youth development programs to empower Latina girls to develop their leadership potential, education programs for adults and youth, a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) program, and more. And all of these programs welcome volunteer support. This is a terrific organization I'm proud to support and talk about.

I joined their CSA for the first time this year and I love it so far. We did the half shares, so…read morebi-weekly, which is just right for our tiny family who travel often, and eat out too often. You go to the farm to pick up your CSA goods in a small room. There is always good music playing and it's nice and cool inside. All the veggies (and fruit sometimes) is laid out on tables and there are clear signs as to how much of each item you can take. For instance, you can take two leeks, 3 lbs of carrot, a bag of lettuce, etc. I really like the way they set this up, because if you're not a fan of something, you can skip it and not let it go to waste in your fridge or pantry. They send out emails to go with the week and give you storage information and cooking recipes for the food you are getting that week. It's a lovely touch and I appreciate the information, especially when it's with something I don't normally get on my own. It's a wonderful thing to support local farms and farmers, so I'm thrilled we found Working Hands Farm. I also suggest you follow their Instagram! They have beautiful examples of their weekly hauls and show you what life is like on the farm.

We did our first CSA pick up last week. Everything was well communicated and an easy pick up. At…read morefirst I was overwhelmed with the amount of green stuff but then used their descriptions and recipes to feed my family some wonderful delicious meals. Great fb page too.

Outstanding CSA and worth the drive from Portland. I like the choice of share veggies and the…read morelimitless salad greens. The system is easy to navigate, and I appreciate that I'm empowered to select the veggies that I like and eschew the ones--I'm looking at you, kohlrabi--I will never eat again. This farm also brings in other vendors for fresh eggs, breads and treats, and meats. Highly recommend!

With so many CSAs in Portland, why on earth would you venture out to Helvetia? Because it's truly…read morethe best, and worth the 20 minute drive from downtown Portland. After having been a member of several other CSAs in New York City and Australia, I can say with confidence that Stoneboat is truly as good as it gets. The owners, Jesse and Aaron Nichols are brothers who bring a tremendous amount of varied experience to their farm which emphasizes sustainable growing practices. (While not yet certified organic, they practice entirely organic methods of agriculture.) Stoneboat is the epitome of excellence in small farming - innovative practices to make the most of the season, as well as utilizing old world wisdom and husbandry, such as using draft horses for many tasks that would otherwise require use of their tractor. They are also vibrantly creative and passionate about what they do, which is infectious to their customers. Even their CSA highlights their creativity - each week, they put something fun and unexpected in, from dried smoked chilis to dehydrated hibiscus flowers. Their vegetables are always beautiful, clean and as fresh as they come. Each week, they send out a recipe to use their widely varied produce, and as Aaron is a chef, the recipes are pretty darn delish. They also raise heritage and standard turkeys, although I have yet to purchase one (but I am sure they will be wonderful.) If you're looking for a CSA, I couldn't recommend them more highly. If you're not, be sure to check them out at either of the Hillsboro Farmer's markets. Things I love: - Sustainable growing practices - Draft horses to do some of the work of tractors - Thorough attention to detail, from making sure the produce is clean to a thoughtful weekly update to the customers letting them know the goings on on the farm as well as a recipe to use the produce. - Creative and unusual vegetables balanced with the old favorites - The sweetest guardian dogs in town (although I'm sure they think they're very tough) - Partners with Adelante Mujeres, a Forest Grove nonprofit, to help educate immigrant farmers to grow organically and sell their produce locally - I'm sure I'm missing hundreds of other things to love, but these are the highlights that come most easily to mind. Things I don't love: - For once, I'm at a loss for words!

I've enjoyed my first box of fresh produce from Lil' Starts: 3 bags of spring greens with fresh…read moreherbs mixed in; a dozen eggs, a colorful bouquet of irises, columbine and other spring flowers that I couldn't identify, a handful of edible flowers and farm made herbal tea. I picked my box up at the farm, but I had my choice of two farmers markets for pick up, too. It's convenient and fast. Lily, one of the owners, greeted me and showed me where my box was waiting for me. Lil' Starts' communication is clear and consistent: I receive an email every Sunday before my Saturday pick up on what to expect in the upcoming box. I signed up for a full share for every other week, which seems perfect for 2 people. I'm glad that participating in Community Supported Agriculture is so easy and delicious with Lil' Sarts--it's a prepaid up front in January affair, so it can feel like a bit of a risk. Trust me--it's a risk I'm glad I took because the pay off is wonderful, fresh food, and I'm supporting a local farm. Yes, I could do the same through farmers' markets, and I have. But this experience, and getting to see the farm and meet the farmers is important to me-- it's also a glimpse into how I grew up. The website for this farm indicates that the CSA shares are sold out for the 2018 season, which stretches from May to October. I can hardly wait for my next box and to see how the growing season expands into the next eating adventure.

I LOVE Luke and Lilly's farm. We signed up for our very first ever CSA share after purchasing their…read moreproduce at Kenton's Farmers Market. I was able to request no kale (my least favorite food in the whole world!) in my share which was not a problem for them. Great people, great veg and the best pickled carrots by far. They also offer Bread and Herb, egg, flower bouquet and plant start CSA's.

Mmm...Egg Nog! Mmm...Chocolate Milk!…read more Mmm...but it all starts with amazingly fresh, full fat MILK! A great little farm experience where you can usually walk around behind the shop and see cattle in the barn. We love getting milk from the source...so Moooove it and hoof it to Schoch's! Just don't take the last Egg Nog...

Been coming here for years my daughter loves petting the baby cows in the back but we also go…read morethrough 3 bottles of milk here a week. Love this farm!