Reviews for: Carpenter's Greenhouse & Organic Produce

I believe that this is the best choice for the ann arbor area. I like calling all the farms and asking them important questions about quality. Certified organic doesn't always mean good quality.

Here is the info i received while talking with Carpenter's: - Certified organic - does not use green manure withing 6 months of harvesting (to protect consumer toxicity) - Has a wonderful way of keeping bugs off. If a plant becomes taken by pests, they will simply spray a natural/organic soap on the plant. The soap attracts moisture and essentially suffocates the bugs (or the jump off) before they can get close enough to eat the produce. (very cool way of dealing with pests!) - Also offers some hydroponic produce (which is CLEARLY marked)

Another awesome feature is that you don't get a pre-made basket of veggies. Instead they have implemented a "pre-paid" punch card for getting produce. So basically when you go the the market you simply choose what you want. The website explaines it http://www.carpentersorganic.com/CSA.html

I think the major bonus to the punch system is that even if you miss a week you can still get your produce on another week. no more wasted money!

Lets break down the price. (20 weeks) - full share is $17/week (feeds 4 Adults) - half share is $8.50/week (feeds 2 adults)

Wow. how amazing is that?! Most other places in the area charge $25-35/week. And most are not even organic certified!

When we were researching CSAs, what we found was that every other place we researched gives customers a box each week of what the farm has harvested that week. Carpenter's was different - we could select our share each week from their complete farmer's market selection. We were able to pick the veggies and fruits (and eggs!) we preferred, so that we knew none of the amazing produce would "go to waste" as it might if we had gotten more limited selections. To clarify, a friend shared with us that with her CSA, some weeks she got a huge supply of one vegetable with few other items, which was hard to consume unless she canned or froze it. We never had this problem with Carpenter's because they allow customers to select what they want in their share. Moreover, the folks who run the farm (and man the tables at the Ann Arbor Farmer's Market) are just plain great people. We had an amazing experience, and will be joining the CSA yet again this year!

Signed up since the farm permitted purchase of half shares, and I felt a greenhouse offered some insurance against ruined crops. Performed pickup at the Ann Arbor Farmer's Market.

CSA members receive a punch card. Each card may be punched up to 20 times. Once all punches are, the card is worth 15% off of each subsequent purchase at the booth. For full share members, each punch is worth $20 of goods. For half share members, each punch is worth $10 of produce. Offers a discount on most "ugly" produce. Definitely a good deal.

A wide variety of produce was almost always available, although I do have some basic recommendations. If you want a broad selection, attend earlier in the day, or attend the Wednesday market instead of Saturday. If you don't see many produce items you want on a given week, postpone purchase, or select only what you need. The farm allows balance transfers from week to week, and during the 2009 season continued to attend the market until early December.

They had an abundance of tomatoes throughout the year, on into the winter months. They consistently offered beautiful large onions, peppers, a mass of truly delicious melons, and a broad selection of sturdy salad greens. Some of the other produce wasn't present weekly, but I didn't always show up early. Eggs were also a great perk, but again, were not always available.

Overall, an amazing variety of produce was seen throughout the season. A couple other CSAs seemed to have a broader selection, but this one definitely was the best value for my money. It also prevented me from receiving more than what I could use at any given time.

This is the first time I have purchased a "share" of someone crops and I am delightedly surprised by my new adventure. The place of pickup is located on US-12 and was small but well supplied ad even included a walk -in refrigeration section! My lettuce was crisp and washed, asparagus was wonderful and potatoes ..... the list is endless! The prices were very reasonable and as a member I also received 15% off my other purchases. They had a variety of additional items like honey, flower flat and baskets and vegetables plants. The staff was polite and very helpful giving me the impression that everyone loves their job! I consider this to be my wisest investments!