Genesee Valley Organic Community Supported Agriculture Program (GVOCSA)

By Christine Kray, Apr. 13, 2010

Elizabeth Henderson is one of the founders of the Genesee Valley Organic Community Supported Agriculture Program (GVOCSA) and the author of Sharing the Harvest: A Citizen's Guide to Community Supported Agriculture (Chelsea Green, 2007).  On February 10, 2010, she spoke with our class about community supported agriculture and organic farming.

GVOCSA is based at Peacework Farm, a certified organic farm, in Newark, Wayne County.  It began in 1989, the first CSA in the Rochester area, while now there are fifteen.  CSAs are becoming so popular in the region that last year, all CSA programs were filled to capacity.  People enjoy knowing the farmer and they like that the produce is fresher, organic, and less expensive than supermarket produce. 

One of the basic principles of organic farming is biodiversity.  The farm should have a variety of crops, trees, and room for wildlife.  This diversity helps establish a healthy balance on the farm.  A healthy balance of nutrients in the soil and a healthy balance of wildlife will help you grow better crops.  Peacework Farm grows 250 varieties of vegetables and herbs each year.  The biodiversity of organic and CSA farms benefits the customers; no matter what the pest and weather conditions are during the season, there are always a few crops that are happy.  For example, during 2009, when late blight attacked the tomatoes and heavy rains reduced yields in many crops, Peacework Farm enjoyed the best crop of garlic in many years!

What does organic mean?  It's more than just the absence of synthetic herbicides, pesticides, and fertilizers. Instead, it entails a positive approach, that of creating the healthiest possible soil, through the annual addition of vegetation to the soil, aeration of the soil, and the encouragement of beneficial insect life.  Each year, the farmers plant rye and vetch as cover crops, cut them down before they are fully mature, and till them into the soil.  A single rye plant can create twenty miles of root hairs, providing a large amount of organic matter to the soil.  Vetch is part of the legume family, which takes nitrogen out of the air and fixes it into a form that benefits the crops.  The farmers also grow buckwheat as a cover crop; buckwheat has elephant ear-shaped leaves that crowd out would-be weed competitors.  The buckwheat flowers attract hundreds of thousands of beneficial insects, including bees and other pollinators.  When tilling the soil, the farmers use a spader, which moves the soil backward, without inverting the top layer, as do moldboard plows. This action is gentler on the microorganisms in the soil.  A healthy soil, filled with beneficial microorganisms, will break down and absorb the cover crops in a few weeks, just in time for planting.  A good soil will have millions of microorganisms in a single handful.  The farmers also add some compost, made from hay and other vegetation, and some horse manure from nearby farms.  Another technique the farmers use to protect the soil is to have wide grass strips between the planting beds.  These grass strips reduce soil erosion, and the equipment used goes over the grass strips so that the planting beds do not become compacted.

Rather than using synthetic pesticides and fungicides, to reduce loss of crops to plant diseases and other pests, Peacework Farm practices crop rotation and works with the surrounding ecology.  They never plant crops from the same family in the same space two years in a row.  For example, to protect potatoes from Colorado potato beetles and broccoli and cauliflower from the Swede midge, they move these crops in subsequent years one mile from the current location.  The farm also relies on allies such as spiders, snakes, bats, birds, and beneficial insects to eat insects that feed on the crops.  The farmers will also use row covers to protect against insect damage, and bags of dog hair to keep away deer.  Some non-chemical sprays are also permitted under government-approved organic regulations.  For example, colloidal clay, which is very mild and harmless, may be sprayed on members of the cucurbit family and copper may be sprayed on potatoes and tomatoes against the late blight.

Peacework Farm uses other sustainable farming techniques, such as trickle irrigation. Trickle tapes, which are special hoses of different thicknesses with tiny holes at set spaces, deliver a small trickle of water directly to the root of the plants.  This technology was developed in Israel for growing vegetables in very arid regions, and it is much more efficient in its use of water than overhead irrigation. 

To reduce crop loss due to weeds, the farmers use a basket weeder, which kills weeds before they have started, along with hand tools.  Some "weeds" on the farm, including lamb's quarter and chickweed, are actually delicious, highly nutritious, and are added to the CSA baskets for use in salads and other dishes.

The farm also uses innovative technologies to extend the growing season.  All of the plants are started in the greenhouse, the seedlings may be moved to a cold frame early in the spring and then hardened off for a week before planting in the fields.  Hoop houses, which consist of tall hoop frames covered in plastic, are used for growing many crops, such as lettuces, Asian greens, peppers, eggplants, basil, and cherry tomatoes; a greenhouse effect is created, keeping the soil slightly warmer.  For these reasons, the first crops are available in the third week of May and the harvest extends through late November. 

Peacework Farm is also committed to fair labor practices.  The farm partners (Greg Palmer and Aimee Chickering) train new interns each year, rather than hiring hourly workers.  By hiring interns, people who are interested in establishing organic farms, the farm partners make a commitment to teach what they know to the next generation. 

The CSA season is kicked off with a May Day party.  May Day is an ancient Anglo-Saxon pagan festival for soil fertility.  CSA members enjoy a potluck dinner, a dance around the May Pole, and then a walk in the nature preserve.

GVOCSA members join the farm and then receive a share of the harvest weekly throughout the six-month growing season.  One of the basic principles is that the risks and the rewards of the farm operation are shared between the farmers and the members.  Members pay for their share up front or in installments. They participate in the farm work, too, and most comment that they appreciate the opportunity to "play in the dirt," to learn more about where their food comes from, and to meet other CSA members.  Members who receive a full CSA share complete three, 4-hour shifts at the farm each season, and there are special days during the calendar when children can participate.  For people with bad backs or disabilities, there are sit-down jobs, too.  The work shift ends with a potluck lunch. 

One concern that many people have about eating locally is whether it will be more expensive for them.  The organic produce from the Peacework Farm represents significant savings as compared with supermarket prices.  Peacework can offer these lower prices, and at the same time ensure that its workers earn a fair wage by cutting out the middleman.  In the United States, 60% of farmworkers are undocumented immigrants, many of whom could be called agricultural refugees, small farmers who have been driven out of farming due to dumping of agricultural commodities as a consequence of free trade agreements.  For example, an estimated one million Mexican farmers have been displaced due to NAFTA (the North American Free Trade Agreement). In contrast, all of the work at Peacework Farm is done by the farm partners, interns, and CSA members. 

Elizabeth Henderson noted, though, that in considering the costs of eating locally, you must take into account the fact that you probably eat differently than before.  So, you might pay more per pound for local, grass-fed beef than for feedlot beef at the supermarket, but you are also saving money by not eating prepackaged, processed foods.  Local eaters can save a lot of money by learning how to cook, trying new recipes, buying in season and then putting up surplus for the off-season.  Over the lifetime, too, you spend less on healthcare by eating whole, nutritious foods.  GVOCSA also tries to help its members by providing recipes in its newsletters and it has compiled a cookbook of favorite recipes over the years.  Cornell Cooperative Extension also offers a series of lessons and food preservation for the public. 

Elizabeth Henderson has retired from full-time farm work but now dedicates herself to public education, promoting organic and sustainable agriculture, and helping new CSA programs get started.  Meanwhile, she has left an indelible legacy on the Rochester food community, and GVOCSA thrives from her years of dedicated service.