HilltopFarms.org - Sustainable Membership Farm

	HilltopFarms.org	Certified Organic Produce Farm in Willow Springs, NC
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News from the Farm :

Tunnel Vision Tracker
Posted 1/16/2012

Contributions to Date: $4,120.00

Sponsors:
Harmony Farms, Raleigh
Vinnie's Steakhouse, Raleigh
Mary Mueller, Willow Springs
Terrafin Station, Garner
The Produce Box, Raleigh

Partners:
Leila & Steve Goodwin
Jenny & Randy Clay
Sandi Mitchell

2012 CSA
Posted 1/2/2012

We are still accepting new members for next year.
Designated Dropsites:
North Raleigh -Mondays: 4:30 to 6:00 PM - Beth Meyer Synagogue 504 Newton Rd
Raleigh Wine Shop -Mondays: 4:00 Box drop-off - 126 S. Glenwood Avenue
Raleigh -Tuesday: 4:30 to 6:00 PM - Unitarian Church at 3313 Wade Ave
Cary -Thursdays: 4:30 to 6:00 PM - St. Cyril Church 2510 Piney Plains Rd.
The Farm -Saturdays: 10:00 AM to noon and Wednesdays: 4:00 to 6:30 PM -6612 Kennebec Rd, Willow Springs

Tunnel Vision!
Posted 12/22/2011

Year-round production of organic produce is now at the top of my list of ways to grow our business here at Hilltop Farms and provide more product to CSA members, restaurants, farmers markets and the general public.
Currently, we have one heated greenhouse for seed starting and one high tunnel (a greenhouse that doesn't rely on electricity or gas to heat and cool) for crop production.
However, one high tunnel is not enough.Therefore, we are launching a fund raising campaign to build a second high tunnel called ......

Tunnel Vision!

Tunnel Vision is a campaign to raise funds for the construction of a new 96 X 28 foot High Tunnel for the purpose of growing year round organic produce to be sold in the local area>

To become a contributor to the campaign, please email us for the Tunnel Vision Form then indicate which level of contribution you choose. Each contributor will receive an amount of produce from the harvest in the high tunnel or other parts of Hilltop Farms equal to your contribution amount during the 2012 calendar year.

Contribution Levels:

$50 participant - $100 associate - $200 partner - $500 + Sponsor

Note: All partner and sponsor level contributors will be listed on Hilltop Farm’s website.

I am inviting friends, colleagues, past and present CSA members, restauranteurs and anyone reading this post who believes in promoting a local food movement with the key ingredient of year-round availability to become involved.

Please, email us for the flyer with more details and to sign-up for the campaign. We hope that you will want to help support a burgeoning local food system in the Triangle area by getting paid back in fresh organic veggies and that you will get.....Tunnel Vision!

2012 CSA
Posted 11/14/2011

Hilltop Farms is Wake County's first and only USDA Certified Organic produce farm, and we are now accepting new members for our 2012 CSA season. If you are interested in becoming members of the farm through our Community Supported Agriculture program and receive 25 weeks of fresh, certified organic produce throughout the spring, summer and fall of next year, please let us know.
Go the "contact us" page and shoot us an email from the link there. I will send you the 2012 membership form to you. Do not use the 2006 form on the home page. Our website will be updated soon to have it removed as it is outdated.
The cost of the CSA subscription for 2012 is $500 for a 25 week season. You will receive an average of $20 of veggies per week from mid-April through the end of October. There is a harvest schedule on the "about the farm" page that shows you what we try to grow each year. The volume you get each week is based on market prices for the seasonal items available. So, you would get an average of what $20 would buy for organic veggies at a farmers market or grocery store.
A CSA is not about getting the produce cheaper by cutting out the grocery store or middle man. Its more about getting it fresher, within hours of being picked and about supporting a local farm/business in your community. Not one 1500 miles away or even a 100 miles away!
We service the Raleigh, Cary and Fuquay areas with four dropsites to choose from, including a Saturday morning pick-up at our farm in Willow Springs. Members who choose a Raleigh or Cary dropsite are welcome to pick-up at the farm on occassion where they can see the fields, farmstand, greenhouses and barns and visit with our chickens, goats and horses. In the spring we even have pic-yer-own strawberries, where members get first dibbs!
So if eating healthy and supporting local, organic agriculture is right for you, send us that email before we fill up!

Thanks!

Recent Article
Posted 4/6/2011

I am happy to post a recent article written about the farm by my alma mater, East Carolina University. Please check out the article by EC Alumni at http://www.piratealumni.com/s/722/rdsite/index.aspx?sid=722&gid=1&pgid=1225.

Hilltop Farms Receives Award
Posted 3/14/2011

On December 9th, 2010 Fred & Virginia Miller, owners of Hilltop Farm of Willow Springs, were given the inaugural Pioneer Award from the Wake County Soil and Water Conservation District. The award, given by the Board of Supervisors, sited Hilltop Farms for "leadership and innovation in developing Wake County's first USDA Certified Organic Farm". Hilltop Farms was first certified in January of 2004, shortly after the new National Organic Program was finalized by the USDA in the fall of 2003 and has maintained continual certification ever since. Now in their tenth year of running a full-time sustainable farming operation, Hilltop continues to implement new conservation measures such as an installation and utilization of a solar powered well for irrigation and an approved USDA high-tunnel greenhouse for year-round vegetable production that uses no electricity or fossil fuels. Congratulations to Fred & Virginia of Hilltop Farms!

Farm Tours
Posted 1/20/2009

Updated Post: 1/31/11

We are a working certified organic produce farm located in Willow Springs, NC in southern Wake County, 15 minutes from Raleigh. We also operate a horse boarding business with a new 2,500 sq. ft. barn and now have chickens and goats. We love to host farm tours for any age on Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays and welcome homeschool, pre-school, church or civic groups, ag classes, garden clubs and more.
A tour of our 35 acre farm consists of a trip through the horse barn where participants get a up close, hands on education about equine care including feeding and grooming one or more of the nine resident horses, feeding the chickens and petting the goats.
Next, we load up for a hayride out to the fields where you get to see and taste organic vegetables in production and learn about how things grow and why organics is important. We'll pass the beehive and visit the greenhouse where participants can plant their own seed in a peat cup to take home and watch grow or even plant a seedling in our "Practice Field" where you get to be the farmer!
Our focus is on education and relaxation, but the fun comes naturally as there is something to be learned by everyone, regardless of age. The tours last about two hours and you are welcome to picnic on the grounds, under the shade of 100 year old pecan trees, before or after your visit!
The charge is only $8 per person, 3 yrs. and up, including all adults. During strawberry season, you can even stay and Pic-Yer-Own basket of organic strawberries! Strawberry season runs through the month of May. If you'd like to spend a day in the peaceful setting of a working farm please email us at info@hilltopfarms.org or call Fred at 919 618-5601 to schedule your group's visit! (minimum 10 paid participants, maximum limit, 40).

See you Down On the Farm!

Hilltop Farm Shirts!
Posted 7/14/2008

We have just gotten in a new batch of Hilltop Farm T-shirts that are made from 100% organic cotton. They come in Biodiesel (gold), Mutts Blue and White and feature the Hilltop Farms' logo as see at the top left corner of this home page. The print asks the message, "Do you know where food comes from?" on the front, and displays " Hilltop Farms, Cetrtified Organic Produce, Willow Springs, NC". on the back.
They look and and feel great! They come in Adults sizes small through XXL, ladies cap sleeve S, M and L, and even youth sizes S, M, and L (youth in white only). Adults and ladies shirts are $15.00 each and youth sizes are $12.00 each, and we can ship them to you!
If you are interested in one, please shoot us an email from the "contact us" page and I'll send you a picture and an order form.
Show your true colors by supporting a local farm and the organic industry and wear a great looking Farm Tee that will tell everyone that you know "Where Food Comes From"!

Pics From The Farm
Posted 4/12/2002

This is what you missed last summer!