Reviews for: Grassfield Farms LLC

I cannot say enough about the quality of products that Howard and his family provided last season. He is dedicated to providing his members with the bounty from Mother Earth even when she is not so cooperative. I bought a two person share which provided plenty for the table, as well as some for freezing and sharing with family.

Things don't get much fresher than picked right out of the garden. Most of the vegetables were picked while I waited. Along with the vegetables came stories, recipes and just good friendly conversation.

This was my first experienced with a CSA. I picked the right one. I will be anxiously waiting for the next season to begin.

Thanks Howard for all you grow!

If you're looking for a CSA, Grassfield Farms is the way to go.

I had never done a CSA before, but I read feedback on many sites before I made my choice. Grassfield Farms, and its owner/operator, Howard, was not very close to my home in Virginia Beach, but from prior customers' feedback, it was the clear choice.

Howard is a knowledgeable farmer who takes pride in his harvest and the service he provides to his CSA customers. He is happily tied to his farm and I have never arrived there, even on an off day, when Howard wasn't outside in the field or outside of his home, taking care for his land. His friend, Billy, a faithful neighbor and helper, Howard's grandchildren and Marley, the dog, always lend the visit a personal touch.

The vegetables and fruit you receive are all grown on Howard's farm. You can walk in the fields to see the food growing and, many times, Billy or Howard will pick things while you wait, to ensure the freshness of your share. There is no third party vendor to subsidize your CSA. I have learned to ask at farm stands now if the vegetables were grown on their farm or brought in. I have been surprised at the responses. At Grassfield Farms, you are getting local grown, fresh food.

I tried to make a list of the things I received, but failed because there is so much! I've received, herbs (spearmint, peppermint, lemon balm, oregano, sage, chives, sweet basil), rainbow chard, spinach, mixed salad greens, broccoli (the most delicious I've ever eaten!), kale, green tomatoes, red tomatoes, tomatillos, cherry tomatoes, onions, round zucchini, regular zucchini, acorn squash, regular squash, watermelon, butternut squash, cucumber, jalapeños, green/yellow/red peppers, pattypan, hot peppers of all sorts, cantaloupe, and more that I've certainly forgotten...and we are still moving into the fall harvest!

If you get a CSA share, expect to spend a bit of time washing, chopping, preparing and freezing your harvest, because there will certainly be more than you can eat. I thought I ate a lot of vegetables until I bought this CSA. Now I eat A LOT of vegetables. I bought a two-person share, but it is just for myself and my teen who doesn't care for vegetables (but will gladly try them if she knows they came from Howard). I've found myself freezing many things for winter and am dedicated to learning to jar some things too.

As a result of this experience, I am far more knowledgeable about where my food comes from. Before this, I had no idea there were three times for growing in the year and that the harvest would change depending on the month. I've started a home garden and will attempt growing my own vegetables next year. It's a learning process and Howard has freely shared knowledge and tips to make it successful.

To Howard, Billy, the grandkids and Marley: thank you for your hard work and service. You are all core members of your community and I appreciate your skill and dedication to your customers!

-Michele and Lennox

We joined Grassfield farms CSA last year for the first time and we have joined again! The vegetables are super fresh and taste delicious. My favorites are the Russian Kale, broccoli and tomatoes. Our family tried fresh figs for the first time and loved them. You can see many of the vegetables growing at the pickup sight. Sometimes they are picked fresh for you when you come. When you support Grassfield farm, you are truly supporting a local family farm. Howard is thoughtful and personable. It is fun talking to him and his grandchildren. Howard aims to use no pesticides and works hard to make sure that all have a positive experience. We have been very happy.

For Years I read about CSA Farms but they are in California and the Northeast and in stories in magazines. BUT,,one day I thought about doing a search on the internet just to see if there was a CSA Farm within driving distance to me. We live in Moyock. Surprise, I found we DO have some CSA Farms in Hampton Roads.. I read all the reviews and decided to call Grassfield Farms, the closest one to me. I spoke to Howard and liked him. I sent him a check for a couple share and waited for spring to come.. No more gardening in our back yard plot.. I would let the expert do the farming. Although we had a weather disaster last year, we still ate quite well all year with plenty for the freezer. My favorite is Kale and Mustard greens and yellow squash. And best, we made a friend and enjoy talking with Howard and getting to know him.. ( He is quite a smart man). Most of all, I like the idea that Howard uses minimal chemicals and only when necessary. When I make my Kale and Bean soup I know I have something really healthy. I will be sharing my veggie recipes with everyone and hope they are well liked... Pray for a cool summer and lots of squash.

2013 will be our fourth year with Grassfield Farms. If it wasn't fantastic, we wouldn't be coming back year after year.

Howard is incredibly knowledgable about the local area (what grows and doesn't) and makes sure we get the freshest produce. He tries to make the farm very family-friendly and encourages us to try something new. (Howard, I'm still not going to eat okra. No way!) We always have enough to can and freeze, but there are always enough fresh goodies to eat your fill.

I personally think that this CSA gives you a lot of bang for the buck. The location is convenient and the produce is divine, even the ugly tomatoes. Here's to a wonderful 2013 season!

There is not more to say that hasn't been said already by the other reviewers. This was my first CSA experience and I absolutely loved it. There is no way I could go back to buying strictly "conventional" produce! All the vegetables were delicious and I tried a lot of new things that I normally wouldn't. Even my 3 year old daughter could taste the difference and would often ask for things in the car as we were leaving the farm! Howard was so friendly, personable and knowledgeable about everything, picking up my share was always a pleasure. Thank you for such wonderful service and I look forward to this year's season immensely!

This was my family's first CSA experience and we are so glad we signed up!! Farmer Howard is awesome and you can tell that he is passionate about his work. As for the produce...absolutely delicous!! Some of our favorites were tomatoes, spinach, and broccoli. We were also introduced to new veggies that we really enjoyed. We are super excited for the 2011 season!! Thank you Farmer Howard for all your hard work!!

This was our first experience with a CSA and we have been very pleased. Howard is always very friendly, greeting us with a smile every week. We were happy to see that this was a very family friendly farm. My children (2 boys) loved coming out to see Howard and to explore the farm. We have very much enjoyed the vegetables. Our share was more than enough for us to be able to eat plenty during the season and freeze enough to last us through the winter as well. He also took care of us as customers by accomodating our personal preferences. My husband loves jalepenos and he gave huge amounts of jalepenos throughout the season and whenever we requested. He went out of his way to make sure that we were happy. I would definitely recommend this to anyone!

When I heard about CSA I knew I wanted to join. I went to a presentation from one farm, and I was not exactly convinced that I had found"the one". So I called and Emailed several. I was not impressed. I saw Grassfield Farms listed and I called. Howard answered. I spoke to Howard himself! And he answered all my questions, knew what he was talking about, sounded helpful, friendly, and ready to start me on the way. From the first pick-up I enjoyed the process. And it has been a process. I knew I would get fresh food, and a variety of fresh vegetables, grown as they should be grown, picked fresh and ready to eat. There is nothing more delicious than a ripe tomato fresh from the vine, or a pepper (all colors) the same way - I learned to fry Green tomatoes. Haven't had them in probably 50 years. But I didn't know the rest of it, or I hadn't thought it all through. I learned and re-learned quite a bit about the vegetables - when I had questions about how to cook them, keep them, store them, or freeze them, Howard was a great teacher. I had eaten most all of what I received at some point in my life, but I hadn't done all of what I just mentioned above. I have enjoyed so much fresh food this year, learned to cook so much of it, and freeze the leftovers - yes Howard, there is Okra Creole over Rice (my favorite) in several packages in the freezer. And there is that Zuchini Caserole that I used so much this year, frozen and ready to eat. And there are the fresh vegetables - corn, spinach, various squash, and many others in containers in the freezers. And as someone else mentioned, we've all become friends of the family and always feel welcome. Big Max sure does! And it's a great family! Thanks, Buddy! Now I'm not so great with fresh herbs - I can use them, just don't seem to have the patience to dry or preserve them. I have a feeling I'll get there! Can't wait until the buds start forming, the blooms set and the good stuff grows! And by the way Howard, I need to tell you I'm 72 years old! (That's an old inside joke!)

My husband and I were reading so much about artificial growth hormones and pesticides in vegetation and their negative effect on children (we have three young daughters 8, 6, 2). We decided to look for a local CSA farm. But with research, we knew there were still some questions that needed to be asked. We wanted specific information such as, whether they used rock dust to obtain fertile soil and if pesticides were used.

We contacted five farms in the area, only Grassfield Farms knew about rock dust and they also gave us a thorough scientific answer of pesticides stating that, they practice, "Integrated Pest Management which harbors beneficial insects as well as attracts pollinators." Not only has Mr. Flenner's family been farming for over 100 years, but he has a Bachelor's degree in agriculture. He also continuously takes courses yearly to stay on top of pest management. He also mentioned that he too, feeds his family from the crops that he harvests,

Grassfield Farms was also one of the few CSA's that started in early spring and ended late in the fall. At that point, I knew we had to join! We have been more than satisfied with all of the questions that we aksed.

Every week, we are exposed to new vegetables and herbs and when asked, you will be told how to store and cook them, which I have found to be quite helpful. Also, if there is something that you especially like they will make sure that you have a good amount of it and you are never given anything that you do not want.

I think my most satisfaction comes from the large bag of fresh herbs that I receive weekly, herbs like, dill, oregano, parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme,peppermint, lemon balm, chives. Mr. Flenner also told me how to store them for the future. This was great for me because in the grocery stores, fresh herbs are very pricey to the point where I had to buy dried herbs for affordability.

Last Saturday, Master Carver Jim Calder visited the farm and taught the CSA children how to carve using a sweet potato. This just proved to us that Grassfield farms was concerned with building relationships coupled with educating their members.

We are so excited to be a part of this farm so much that we drive 45 minutes (with no traffic) from Hampton to Chesapeake every week. Yes, there are CSA's closer to us, but Grassfield Farms is the best and well worth the travel!

This has to be the most family orienated farm I have ever seen. Everyone is a joy to speak with and get to know. They have the whole family working and playing there from a 2 year old up to kids in their 20s. They were extremely helpful and and knowledgable. I can't wait to visit again.