Fifth Crow Farm Subscriptions/CSA

Subscribe here!

Subscription Menu

*all prices are per delivery, billing weekly*

How does it work?

After subscribing, each week you will receive an e-mail with a list of what will be in your box and you have 24-48 hours to make any swaps or adjustments you want before we pack and deliver it to a site near you. View pickup sites here. What will be in your box? From dry beans, to baby greens we grow a huge assortment of what can be grown here on the central coast and are known for having the highest quality and tastiest stuff out there. More info about what we offer can be found under the “what we grow” tab on this website.

We are proud to grow EVERYTHING in your box. We don’t buy in produce.

We offer many adjustments to make CSA work for our diverse clientele:

  • Every week too much? Choose pick up every other week.
  • Don’t like what’s in the box? Swap items.
  • Want a bit more for family visiting?  Easily add on extras.
  • Want the box just like it’s always been? Don’t select preferences and get the “farmer’s choice” CSA box you know and love.

For more info, please view our FAQs.

Not ready to be a regular committed weekly or bi-weekly member? Register and order from our online farmstand and you will get e-mails when we have produce, flowers, and special items for sale. There is a minimum purchase of $35, and these shares are available for pick up at any of our current Farmers’ Markets or here at the farm in Pescadero (Sundays from 10am-5pm).
The order window for farmstand is Wednesday morning-Friday 5:30am.

We also offer a needs based, 100% subscriber funded reduced cost share – please see the FAQ for info about applying or donating. 

 

What is CSA?

CSA stands for “Community Supported Agriculture.” Customers invest in the farm by committing to buy a weekly or biweekly box of produce for the season early in the year. Our CSA model here at Fifth Crow is that of a single-farm CSA; meaning we grow 100% of the food included in every share. Everything we produce is Certified Organic by CCOF. Our flowers are also Certified Bee Friendly and our poultry production is also Animal Welfare Approved.

By choosing to be a Fifth Crow CSA member, you are making a commitment to help support a small, sustainable, local business that feeds, clothes, and houses 30+ farmers and their families. In addition, the longer term commitment between farmer and customer leads to a more personal relationship and greater community building between producer and eater as well as between CSA members who share an interest in sustainable agriculture and good food.  Want to preserve the beauty of San Mateo’s Coastside? You can do it one bite at a time by forging a connection between your family and our sustainable, organic farm. 

 

How does Fifth Crow Farm’s CSA work?

We have a fully customizable CSA, add-on subscriptions to our flowers, eggs, and more, and partnership with other local businesses!

You sign up for whichever size and frequency of produce share you’d like, and we set up a varied box weekly. Then, you can go in and customize what items go into your box. We deliver CSA boxes to neighborhood sites on Thursdays, and to our weekend farmers’ markets. For more info on location and times, as well as more detailed explanations of how this all works, please see below. 

Please review the subscription options below before registering, as you will not be able to view our “menu” on that site until you officially create an account. All boxes will be pay by the box, and you’ll be required to enter a credit card to subscribe. FAQ’s are also located below. If you have any additional questions or concerns, please contact [email protected]

Our CSA signup site is located HERE

Perks of being a CSA member

  • Save money (we value CSA produce at a discount from our market prices)
  • Get first priority on our eggs and flowers by getting a regular add-on subscription.
  • Exclusive seasonal offers through our CSA website 
  • Opportunity to try foods that may never be available at our farmers’ market stall or seen in grocery stores
  • Building real community with your farmer and neighbors
  • Learning about your food and where it’s coming from
  • Access fresher and higher quality food than the grocery store!
  • Keep your hard-earned dollars in your hyper-local community
  • Receive a weekly newsletter that includes fun facts about your food, preparation ideas and tips, farm happenings, and shared photos & recipes from fellow CSA members

 

 

Frequently Asked Questions

Reduced Cost Shares - Donate or Access

We want to improve access to the nutritious food we grow. We know that the cost of joining the CSA is prohibitive for some. Our “Reduced Cost Share Fund” is a needs-based discount (25% or 50%), completely funded by member donations. In addition to elective donations, if you need to cancel a delivery for any reason, you can donate the cost of your box to the fund. 

To apply, please fill out this form and email [email protected] with any questions. We do not currently accept EBT for subscriptions, but you can shop with EBT at farmers markets (systems vary by market). 

What's in a CSA box if I don't set preferences?

Each box includes 8 – 10 items, rotating within the categories below depending on what’s in season:

  1. Baby head lettuce (varieties vary)
  2. A root crop (carrots, beets, turnips, radishes)
  3. A bag of pre-washed baby greens (baby arugula, baby kale, spring salad mix, mesclun salad mix, or spinach)
  4. A brassica (broccoli, cauliflower, kohlrabi, cabbage)
  5. An allium (leeks, onions, shallots, spring onions, chives)
  6. Fruit (strawberries, raspberries, rhubarb, and from July-November apples from our 27-variety heirloom orchard, and pears when possible).
  7. An herb (dill, cilantro, basil, thyme, oregano, sage, etc.)
  8. PLUS another 1 – 3 seasonal items: bunching greens, summer squash, winter squash, parsnips, Brussels sprouts, potatoes, tomatoes, baby artichokes, poblano or sweet peppers, green beans, cucumbers, and more…!
  9. You will also receive a pound of our heirloom dry beans monthly (which you can swap out of the box if you choose)
Where can I pick up my weekly box?

We offer many pickup sites throughout the bay area, including Thursday (3-8pm) pickup at member-hosted sites and weekend pickup at our farmers’ market booths (9-1 or 2pm). An interactive map of our pickup sites is available here. If you have any questions or if there isn’t a site in your neighborhood, please email [email protected] . Interested in hosting? We need a minimum of 8 – 10 people to add your site as a delivery/pick-up location, and site hosts receive a discount on their share.

What if I take a vacation?

In order to consistently grow the produce for our customers we have to plan months in advance. For this reason and the complicated logistics, we do not refund boxes if you decide to cancel. However, we offer options:

1. Find a neighbor or friend who will pick up your box in your stead (makes a great bonus for your house-sitter).

2. Give us a full week’s notice and you can cancel a box and schedule an extra box at a later date

3.  With a full week’s notice we will donate your box to a local non-profit.

4. If you know your vacation dates at the time of registration, you can give us those and we will prorate your invoice accordingly. We allow up to 8 weeks to be prorated for the May-Nov. season. We must know the dates at the time you register.  Fill out the registration and pay the minimum amount, then e-mail us with the dates and we will adjust the remaining balance.

What is the pick-up etiquette?

Each pick-up site has specific hours for pick up. Farmers’ Market pick-ups happen during market hours; private site hours vary depending on the specific host but most pick-up hours are 3pm to 8pm.  The site hosts are volunteers and are not paid. Please respect the hosts and only pick up during specified times. They are not required to make special accommodations if you can’t pick up your box or forget. Boxes that are not picked up during pick-up hours will not be available or held for later.

Is this right for me?

A CSA can be a wonderful learning experience but, is it right for you? Before committing you should consider the following: Can I use 8 – 10 vegetable items a week? Can I commit to picking up my weekly share during pick-up hours?

If a CSA share isn’t right for you there are still ways to support a local farm. Come to the farmers’ market! Choose locally produced food over imported items at your grocery store. Support organizations that help out small farms like CAFF, OFRF, and Wild Farm Alliance and teach your kids about where their food comes from!

Can I visit the farm?

We encourage and welcome your visits to the farm. We hold an annual Open House which is a great time to meet us, see the farm and meet fellow CSA members and Fifth Crow eaters. That said you are always welcome to stop by and see where your food is coming from.  Bring good shoes and be prepared to walk yourself around- we’re pretty busy so we likely won’t be able to tour, but we want you to know this is your farm too.

CSA Add-ons

Pasture Raised Organic Eggs

Eggs will be available as add-ons depending on supply on a weekly basis. We currently have a waitlist for subscription egg shares. If you would like eggs, please e-mail [email protected] to be added. We will re-distribute egg shares that become available by order on our waitlist.

    Flower Shares

    Receive $18 worth of organic flowers each week at the discounted rate for members. Our bouquets typically sell for ~$24, subscribe for the deal and to support our local, organic flowers

    Farm Preserves Share

    Get a weekly or biweekly jar of delectable jams, pickles, and more, custom-made from Fifth Crow produce by (mostly) Happy Girl Kitchen. We offer most of these unique hand made products as extras each week, but if you know you enjoy them and want to get something each week and also try some of the limited items we don’t have listed, this share might be for you. By signing up, you also receive a roughly 20% discount off the retail price. What might you get? Jam (strawberry, strawberry-rhubarb, mixed berry), canned apple cider, fresh live sauerkraut, dilly beans, pickled carrots, garden bouquet pickles, salsa, crushed dry-farm tomatoes, and more.

    Bean Club Share

    While beans are always available as extras, and 1-2 varieties are available for swapping each week, some of you are major bean lovers! Want to be sure to get beans in your box? Consider signing up for the Bean Club. You’ll receive a different variety every other week for a total of 14 lbs for the season. Eat them right away or stock them up for the winter months. The share costs $90, a roughly 20% saving off retail price. Save a bit of money and get to try some of the special varieties of limited quantity that won’t be available online.

    Meat Subscriptions

    Note: meat delivereies are only available for Thursday delivery and must accompany a produce box.

    Choose from a variety of boxes from Markegard Grassfed or Root Down farm to recieve amazing, locally and sustainably produced meat alongside your produce. These boxes can be subscribed to for monthly or biweekly delivery, as well as added on without subscribing. For more info on box options and availability, please register and browse on LFM. 

    Companion Bakeshop Bread

    Note: bread subscriptions are only available for Thursday delivery. 

    Subscribe to get a sourdough loaf, freshly baked on the day of delivery, alongside your produce box! Companion bakeshop makes great boules out of organic ingredients, with a rotation of seed mix-ins. 

    Partner producers:

    Members can get more of their weekly shopping done through our CSA because of our partnerships with local businesses. We deliver products from the following Partners to your Thursday pick up site. You can sign up for these add on shares on our website at the time of registration.

    *Add-on products from our Partner Farms are not all Certified Organic