FABULOUS FRUIT from hepworth farms!

We structured the Fruit Share in two parts this year. That’s because climate change is making the spring weather increasingly unpredictable in the Hudson Valley. We can’t predict in April (when we launch the new CSA season) if a late freeze will occur when Hepworth’s peach, cherry, and plum trees are in bloom. If a late freeze destroys the blossoms, then the tree will not produce fruit that year. (In 2023 Hepworth lost most of its peaches, cherries, and plums because the buds on the trees froze in mid-April.)

So we decided to be prudent and divide our Fruit Share into two parts. Part 1 was a 15-week Fruit Share for $310, and Part 2 is a 7-week Fruit Share for $145. (Our 2024 CSA is 24 weeks, but there were two weeks during the summer when we did not get fruit. You were, of course, not charged for those two weeks.) Part 2 of the Fruit Share is on sale now for $145 ($20.71 per week) now in the Check Store. Part 2 runs from October 8 to November 19.

Part 2 of the Fruit Share will include a variety of apples (Gala, Honeycrisp, Jonamac, McIntosh, Empire, Cortland, and Pink Lady), pears (Asian, Bosc, Devoe, Hosui, and Seckel), Concord grapes, and maybe even blackberries. Because of a crop failure, there will be no ground cherries in the fruit share this year.

You can check out photos of our 2022 and 2023 veggie/fruit shares here.

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Here’s the kind of variety you can expect throughout the entire 2024 season: BERRIES: strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, and gooseberries; CHERRIES: sweet and sour; PEARS: Bosc, Devoe, Clapp, Seckel, and Asian; APPLES: Gala, Sweeties, Golden Supreme, Cortland, Empire, Mystery Red, Mutsu, Fuji, Macintosh, Ginger Gold, Honeycrisp; GRAPES: Concord, Niagara, and Cayuga; plus ground cherries, watermelon, and cantaloupes.

​The melons are organic and so are most of the berries. But the humid weather in the Northeast typically requires some spraying to grow apples, peaches, pears, plums, grapes, and cherries. Hepworth Farms practices Integrative Pest Management (IPM), which means they spray only when necessary, using small amounts of targeted synthetic pesticides, which are less toxic to the microorganisms that live in the soil.

Please note: You can register for a Fruit Share without getting a Vegetable Share. Fruit-Only share members must work three volunteer shifts, just like all veggie share members, and purchase a membership fee. Please check out Volunteer Info for details.