I’ll never forget it – my worker share, Dan, was assisting some other farm members in the activity for the weekend, digging potatoes. I left them temporarily, and when I returned, Dan was telling the children about earthworms, some of which had been disturbed in the digging process. He told the kids about how the “icky” worms are actually important workers of the garden soil. After a while the beleaguered earthworm “flew away” on the “magic carpet” of Dan’s hand to an area of comparative safety on the field edge. It was a golden moment, when the kids were excited about finding potatoes in the dirt, and ready to learn more about how it all works.

Many CSA farmers choose to have farm members visit the farm for a working visit, whether it’s for an afternoon of harvesting potatoes on a member day, or for weekly work. On some farms, members don’t work at all. Every CSA farm needs to make choices about how (and how much) members should be involved. Coordinating members takes some patience and social skills, and it makes sense to think about the process before jumping in.

Most of the information for this article comes from my own personal experience. During 1998-2002, I ran Plowshare Community Farm, a 70-share CSA farm in Prairie Farm, Wisconsin. In my fourth season, I decided that I wanted to initiate a working requirement for membership. Each household was required to contribute one-half day of help per season. I also interviewed some other CSA farmers and working members about their farms.

Right for you?
First, clarify your expectations and goals for the farm. Farmers invite members out to their farm for a couple of different reasons: One goal is to have help with work and to get certain projects accomplished; Another goal is to include farm members in an experience of the farm. This often involves raising their awareness of farm issues and values, and provides an opportunity for farmers and members to get to know one another. Sometimes these two goals are in direct conflict, and sometimes they dovetail nicely. At any rate, deciding what’s important to you in this regard will be key to deciding how you want to structure member event/work days.

Although a few CSA farms do depend almost entirely on members to do the work on the farm, most CSA farms rely on the principal farmer or paid employees. Although it is great to have extra help, volunteers often don’t have the same level of accountability as a paid employee. For most members, a farm visit is not the most important thing in their lives. If a child or adult in the family falls ill, or if a family vacation is planned, these things will come first. Unlike employees, they don’t always feel a responsibility to let you know their plans. Also, if farm members visit the farm only once or twice a year, it’s hard for them to gain a level of expertise with tasks. They’ll always require a higher level of supervision and training, just as a new employee would.

On the other hand, having members working on the farm with you can be a tremendously enriching experience. Last year, when I was having a particularly difficult season, it was great to have members out on the farm working. They both helped me get lots of work done (members hand weeded about 10 beds 350’ long!), and were able to see for themselves why they were getting substantially fewer vegetables than normal.

Another reason I like having members come out to the farm is because there is often a huge gap in their understanding of agriculture. They (and you) won’t really understand how big that gap is until they get there. For example, I find that many children (and adults) are simply amazed to discover how vegetables grow. Potatoes are formed underneath the ground as tubers; broccoli grows on top of the plant and then blooms like a flower; peppers start out green and then ripen to different colors – all these facts are part of my everyday existence and underlie my life like bedrock. But for farm members, this is often completely new and exotic, and it’s refreshing to be around excited people. Better yet, questions like “is this a full time job for you?” completely drop out of the conversation after the first farm visit when they see how big the garden is.

Adjust expectations
In my experience, farm members can make a contribution to the work that needs to get done, and in fact they want to feel that they are making a big difference in your life. For the most part, my working members were very conscientious professional people who had a strong desire to make a difference and do the job right. They care deeply about supporting small farms (at least in theory) and want to get to know their farmer and see how the crops are grown.

However, the most important part of their visit may be the part where they get to know you, the farmer, and see how things are done at the farm. This means that you’ll need to spend some quality social time with them instead of leaving them alone in a field with some beans to pick. At the minimum, you will need to get them started with very specific instructions, help them meet and get to know the other volunteers they are working with, and perhaps share a meal with them and chat.

Choosing tasks
Some tasks are inherently easier for members to accomplish than others. On my farm, I let members do the jobs that are both fun and entertaining, and easy. More difficult jobs, like picking broccoli and corn, for example, got done by farmers or employees who received special training. Specifically because most farm members are so conscientious, they’ll feel uncomfortable with tasks that are more difficult. It also works best if you give very precise instructions and supervise their work carefully. High on my list are these activities: harvesting vegetables like potatoes, onions, pumpkins and tomatoes, washing vegetables and packing boxes, and hand weeding.

Mike Racette, of Spring Hill Community Farm, emphasises that after you get to know your volunteers, you’ll have a stronger sense of what they can and can’t do. He thinks that is is important to “plan for success”, meaning that you should give the volunteer a job that you are reasonably sure they can handle.
It’s also a good idea to ask members about what they can or can’t do. It’s not too hard to line up a few sitting-down tasks, like cleaning onions, if you know that someone has a bad back. Pay attention to your farm members if they seem to be pushing themselves. A few of my farm members will work on and on, even to the point of hurting themselves in the process. It sometimes takes careful observation to notice when this happening – especially because you, the in-shape farmer, are way beyond your farm members’ physical abilities. You are far more accomplished at having bugs in your eyes, sweating profusely, and kneeling for hours at a time than they will ever be! For most volunteers, 2-4 hours of work is plenty. Once you’ve clarified your goals, make them clear to your members as well. I always liked to tell my farm members that they were there to help, but also to have fun, and enjoy the experience.

The worker-share
Some farmers partially fill their labor needs with individuals who want to work regularly in exchange for a share. These volunteers have more accountability than casual volunteers, and they also have more responsibilities and tend to be more knowledgeable, since they work 4-8 hours weekly. To find out more about what makes the job satisfying for worker-shares, I interviewed two of them-Dan Bauer and Cathy Long.

During the 2001 and 2002 seasons, Dan Bauer was a worker share on my farm, and loved the experience of being a self described “city boy” who got a chance to learn by doing. He was also a lead volunteer on the farm, able to instruct other volunteers and warm things up socially between farm members who didn’t know each other. He enjoyed having more responsibility and really enjoyed being a trusted and valued volunteer.

Cathy Long volunteers about four hours weekly at JenEhr Family Farm in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin. A partial retiree, she was looking for better access to fresh organic vegetables. In addition, she wanted to get to know the “hard core” farm workers-farmers and apprentices. Cathy grew up on a family farm, and enjoys strenuous physical work. The farm also fits in with her values of health and exercise.
Both Dan and Cathy stressed that the experience was valuable to them not only because of the vegetables they received, but because they like the work and want to interact with people. Thus, their level of satisfaction with their work depends not only on their job performance, but also their social interactions.

Liability issues
If you are concerned about farm members visiting your farm and perhaps working on it, you should be. To find out how farmers should protect themselves, I consulted Bill Oemichen, president and CEO of the Wisconsin Federation of Cooperatives and the Minnesota Association of Cooperatives, who was also formerly the head of consumer protection for the state of Wisconsin. He emphasized that it is very important to “evaluate your property for risks.” You should try to eliminate any dangerous areas, such as an open well, and take any “reasonable precautions” possible. He recommends giving both verbal warnings and putting up signs if your farm has equipment or areas where people could conceivably get hurt. Supervision of children is especially important, since they can’t assess risks as acurately as adults can.

How much liability insurance do you need? The answer is at least $1 million (this is a very general estimate), and perhaps more depending on the size of your farm, amount of risk involved, and number of people who visit annually. According to Oemichen, it’s especially important to find an insurance agent knowledgeable in agricultural properties. They’ll be better able to estimate correctly the amount of risk involved in your business.

Farm member events
Events on the farm often involve a combination of a potluck meal and a work project suitable for many people. Kate Stout, owner of North Creek Community Farm, has become a master at organizing successful farm member events, such as the Garlic Harvest Party and Corn Feed. She sees the events as an essential part of what she provides to her shareholders – in a way, they’re just as important as the vegetable deliveries. As far as Kate is concerned, two main keys to a successful member day are to organize things properly ahead of time, and to make people feel welcome. “I walk up and greet each farm member with the attitude that ‘I am so glad you came’.” She invites farm members to use her home while they visit, and even keeps a stash of diapers under the sink!

Another important factor is to find the right balance of work and rest. The rest period should be well defined so that people feel comfortable relaxing. One example Kate gave was her enormously popular Garlic Harvest Party. Members harvest the garlic, and then feast upon roasted garlic, French bread and brie, and red wine. There’s something about the combination of work and the meal that makes everybody happy. After the work is completed, make sure you give thanks to your volunteers. It’s important for them to know that they’ve helped. Kate admits that things have gotten easier over the years – particularly because she has returning members who know how to cook in her kitchen and feel comfortable assisting other members.

At Spring Hill Community Farm, Mike Racette and Patty Wright built a small community building, which provides space for members to hang out during events and on their regular weekly delivery days. In addition to having a small commercial kitchen space, the community building has a bathroom and tables for eating meals. Although the building cost them between $20,000 and $30,000 to build, Mike feels that it has more than repaid itself in the continued member support that they receive. The farm members appreciate that there is a well-defined space for them to relax.

Children on the farm
Children on the farm require special consideration, both in terms of safety and activity plans. Often they have much shorter attention spans than their parents, and I like to make it clear at the outset that kids are free to play after they’ve worked for an hour or so. Swing sets and sandboxes are a great place for kids to hang out and have fun while waiting for adults to “get over it” and move on to lunch. Remember to compliment your young volunteers on their hard work. You’ll see the kids perk up and the parents relax with a few well-placed compliments. When “melt-down” time comes, as it sometimes does with small children, make sure the parents know that it is OK to leave, even if they need to leave early.

Jen Bush, of Lake Country Land School in Connorsville, Wisconsin, has become an expert at coordinating children’s on-farm work. The Land School is owned by a Montessori School in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and students are required to come out twice per season to volunteer. Jen emphasizes that planning is very important for activities to go well. For example, this spring she had a group of children plant potatoes. The day before, she and her partner Andy Gaertner pre-dug furrows. Then they cut a piece of rope the same length as the rows and marked it with tape every 12 inches. The next day, the children worked in a team, two of them stretching the rope out over each furrow. Then one child would toss the seed potato pieces in at every marked spot. Other children were responsible for fertilizing and filling in the furrow. Other activities that Jen has found work well for kids are mulching, pumpkin washing and counting out vegetables for delivery.

Safety is also important. In Sharing the Harvest: A Guide to Community Supported Agriculture, Elizabeth Henderson and Robyn Van En make the point that guidelines should be clear, and some areas should be off limits for kids. This includes farm equipment, sheds with sharp tools, electric fences, and areas with animals. “Never underestimate the amount of mischief that unsupervised children can get into,” says Kate Stout. She emphasized that a low adult-to-child ratio is the best way of ensuring that nobody gets hurt or causes mischief. At my farm, when families come out together, one parent will often work while the other does childcare.

Member coordinators
I found that having a member coordinator was key to getting members to come out to the farm. For two years, Margarita Mac was my member coordinator and did a great job. I traded her a full share of vegetables for scheduling member visits. She would call each shareholder and arrange a time when they could visit the farm. She also oriented them on the farm basics – directions, things to bring, and general expectations. With a farm member coordinator, my participation soared from about 25% to 70% of my membership base – and I had more than enough help for the season.

It’s important to give your member coordinator all the tools she or he needs to do the job effectively. I had each household fill out a volunteer application and return it with their share reservation paperwork. They were asked to choose activities and indicate when they could volunteer. Although most of the important work was done over the telephone, the application form provided a starting point for Margarita. I also gave her a computer printout from my member database with names of family members, phone numbers, email addresses, and special notes. In conversations I had with Margarita over the course of the two-year period, she emphasized two things – first, that she had to be fairly persistent in order to schedule some people, calling them two or three times before they would respond. Secondly, in-place social networks and members who know each other help a lot.

Most CSA farms have member visits of some kind. Although working farm members can’t replace employees, they can provide valuable assistance with certain tasks. If you have the patience and social skills to coordinate their efforts, you’ll be rewarded not only with tasks accomplished, but also with well-informed farm members who support your efforts wholeheartedly.