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Foxtail Community Farm is a small family farm in
rural Greene County, New York, about 40 minutes south of
Albany. Our family moved here and started the farm in
2004, with our first CSA season in 2006. With common ties
to upstate New York, we chose Greenville as a wonderful
place to live, farm, and raise our three young children.

We bring strong and varied experience to this endeavor.
Eric has a degree in Agronomy and Sustainable Agriculture
from Cornell University. He interned on several small farms
and CSAs and studied permaculture in eastern Australia
before starting a  successful small-scale CSA in our former
home of Wisconsin. He also has worked in commercial
greenhouses, the cooperative extension system, and with
the Regional Farm and Food Project, a non-profit
organization dedicated to improving local food systems.

Like most modern farm families, we also have off-farm
income from Rachel's job as a public health physician in
Albany. Rachel helps with farm work as much as she can,
coordinates the weekly newsletter, and comes up with lots
of ideas for special projects - some of which we actually get
around to doing! Our three children Malcolm, Garrett and
Clara also help out with farm work (a little more each year!)
and are great critics of new recipes for the weekly
newsletter. Eric's mom Dee does the flowers and helps with
weekly harvests.

Farming is a labor of love that is both a livelihood and a
way of living for our family. It helps us be productive and
healthy, strengthens our connection to the earth and to our
community, and allows us to attain a growing level of
self-sufficiency. Through the CSA we strive not only to
support our farm, but to share these benefits and
experiences with members of our CSA community. We look
forward to getting to know you, and making Foxtail your
family's farm!
Sustainability: Our Philosophy of Food Production

Most people are familiar with organic agriculture as a method of producing
healthy, natural food without the use of synthetic fertilizers or pesticides.
We believe that true organic farming includes and goes beyond these
practices to be part of a sustainable agricultural system that emphasizes
local food production and consumption to support the health of people,
the environment and the economy. We also believe that CSA is more than
the buying and selling of food - it is about building connections between
people, the land around us and the food we eat.  

Instead of synthetic fertilizers we use compost, cover cropping, minerals
and organic materials that nurture and sustain our soil as a living
ecosystem. Instead of chemical pesticides we use crop rotation, hoeing,
beneficial insects, and other physical and cultural methods for controlling
damage from pests. We minimize our use of plastic and other
non-renewable resources in our irrigation and cultivation practices.
Through our newsletters, family farm days, member work commitment
and partnerships with local food pantries and schools we strive to share
the joys, challenges and benefits of farming with all of our members and
our larger community.

A century ago, most of you would have grown your own food. Today
most people have lost that direct connection to the soil. You can use your
power as consumers to support the same values and enjoy many of the
same benefits through supporting local sustainable agriculture.