Auction Ends: Apr 16, 2015 09:00 PM EDT

Food & Gourmet Items

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Pleasant Valley Gardens Community Supported Agriculture 1/2 Share

Item Number: 121

Live Event Item

This is a Live Event Only item.

Item Description

CSA Half Share Valued at $400! Enjoy fresh, locally grown vegetables and produce from mid-June through mid-October!

The Harvest

Seasonality affects the size of your share. PVG grows a great variety of vegetables. The following is an example of what to expect. June/July: leaf lettuce, romaine hearts, rhubarb, kale, beets, parsley, summer squash, and zucchini. They also plan to supplement the June shares with flowers from their greenhouses. August/September: all of the above plus peppers (sweet and hot), eggplant, tomatoes, cucumbers, sweet corn, melons, carrots, and okra. October: they typically lose all the fruiting vegetables but still have lettuce, kale, beets, parsley, winter squash, leeks. In October, they plan to supplement the weekly shares with hardy mums, corn stalks, and pumpkins. As time and the weather permits, they will try to add to this mix. Their current plan also includes some cut flowers each week as the season progresses.

Pleasant Valley Gardens celebrated its 100th growing year in 2009. Started by Clementi Bonanno in 1910 on 100 acres along the Merrimack River, The Bonanno Family Farm has had many faces over the years. The farm has been involved in dairy, swine, vegetable, and flower production. It is hard to believe that prior to World War II, over 4000 pigs lived on the property.

Currently, Pleasant Valley Gardens is operated by Richard Bonanno, his wife LuAnne Bonanno, and his father Angelo Bonanno. They now own about 35 acres and lease another 15 acres at the DeLucia Farm also in Methuen. Vegetables are produced for wholesale markets which include Market Basket, Whole Foods, Trader Joes, Associated Growers of New England, and many local farm stands including Mann Orchards of Methuen.

Item Special Note

Recipients must pick up their share weekly at Pleasant Valley Gardens, The Bonanno Family Farm, 255 Merrimack Street, Methuen, MA on Tuesday or Saturdays from Mid-June to Mid-October.

Visit www.pleasantvalleygardens.com to learn more!