March promo: Meet your Farmers Farm-Hop Tour

01 Mar March promo: Meet your Farmers Farm-Hop Tour

It’s March Madness down on the farm, and we’ve got an exciting proposition for you! Register for either the Blooming Glen Farm CSA or the Hershberger Heritage Farm CSA during the month of March and take part in an exclusive “Meet your Farmers Farm-Hop Tour” in late May/early June. Exclusively for those who register in March, we’ll start the tour with the entertaining Farmer Tom in the strawberry patch at Blooming Glen Farm, and then move 7 miles down the road to Sellersville to chat with Farmer Nate and meet the menagerie at Hershberger Heritage Farm.

Blooming Glen Farm and Hershberger Heritage Farm are neighbors, friends and fellow certified organic producers in your foodshed. One of the really awesome things about joining Blooming Glen Farm CSA is that not only are you picking up delicious freshly harvested vegetables, we are also making it convenient for you to access other local producers while you are here. Those local producers include bakers and coffee roasters, bee tenders and grain growers, herbalists, orchardists, and livestock farmers like our neighbors at Tussock Sedge Farm and Nate and Shelah at Hershberger Heritage Farm. When you join Blooming Glen Farm CSA and pick-up your produce and flowers at the farm in Perkasie, Nate of Hershberger Heritage Farm will be there weekly, selling his certified organic pastured chicken and eggs and other pastured and Non-GMO meats.

We believe strongly in the connection between CSA members and their farmers. One of the many advantages of joining a farm is that your food has a story behind it- the story of the soil, the land, and most importantly the people. Both Blooming Glen Farm and Hershberger Heritage Farm have many hands involved in the magic of their respective day to day operations- on this tour it’s your chance to get to know those fuzzy bearded farmers behind YOUR local food.

For example did you know that Farmer Tom at Blooming Glen Farm was a rower in college? He sees a big connection between the athleticism of sports and the act of farming. Not only is there an element of endurance to the physical demands of vegetable farming- stooping, bending, lifting, shoveling; there is also mental strategizing- “200 more feet of carrots to weed…how fast can I go while still maintaining an efficient body posture” and mental stamina- “okay, its rainy and cold today, but we have a job to get done.” Tom likens himself to a coach when motivating and encouraging his farm crew. Another fun fact: At the beginning of the farm journey for Tom and his wife Tricia, they lived in a geodesic dome in Oregon with no electricity for 3 years while farming in the fertile Willamette Valley.

Farmer Nate is a fourth generation farmer and the founder of Hershberger Heritage farm with his wife Shelah. Nate spent 8 years in the US Air Force; the rigid schedule of the military helped prepare him for the unforgiving schedule of livestock farming- there’s no missing a feeding or a watering.  Nate returned to his roots when starting Hershberger Heritage Farm- his grandfather Pap Hershberger had an 800 acre dairy farm in Pennsylvania- it’s his handsome mug that the logo for Hershberger Heritage Farm is modeled after. Some other fun facts: Nate has a passion for wood working and fly fishing.

Register for any size share from either the Blooming Glen Farm CSA or the Hershberger Heritage Farm CSA during the month of March and take part in this exclusive “Meet your Farmers Farm-Hop Tour” in late May/early June. Have your burning questions answered. What type of chicken lays a blue egg? What is the role of a farm dog on a livestock farm? What is Farmer Tom’s favorite and least favorite crop to grow? What is Farmer Nate’s favorite and least favorite chore each day? What led to each of these farms becoming certified organic and what are some of the challenges that come along with that choice?

Register for a Hershberger Heritage Farm CSA share here: https://www.hhf.farm/membership or shop online at https://www.hhf.farm/shoponline

Register for Blooming Glen Farm vegetable and flower CSA shares here: http://bloomingglenfarm.csasignup.com/members/types or learn more about our CSA on our website https://www.bloomingglenfarm.com/csa/

Already registered for our CSA’s? Don’t worry- we’ll keep you posted about future collaborations between our farms. Still on the fence? Reach out with your questions- we’re happy to chat! And should you choose to register in March, we’ll see you at the Farm-Hop Tour!

Post by Tricia Borneman, Blooming Glen farmer and co-owner. Tricia and her husband Tom have been farming together since 2000. Blooming Glen Farm is celebrating its 13th season bringing high quality certified organic vegetables, herbs, fruits and cut flowers to our local community. (Additional photos contributed by Shelah Layton of Hershberger Heritage Farm and Blooming Glen Farm CSA member and photographer Vanessa Lassin)