For a time, growers who wanted to differentiate their produce in the marketplace often used the label “organic” to suggest better quality to consumers. Now that “organic” has become a federal program that many growers aren’t willing to participate in, growers who want to focus on flavor can use Brix as a marketing tool. Just […]
Brix: The new label for quality Read More »
I’d bet many of you are like us: by the time you have good, ripe tomatoes and cool cucumbers for salads, the heat has “done the lettuce in.” Our customers love our lettuce, and we have been able to offer it to them most of the year. But mid-June through mid-September, lettuce hasn’t been “growable”
Lettuce all summer, despite heat Read More »
The heat first caught up with us on the East Coast in mid-April. Five straight days of temperatures in the mid-90s broiled the broccoli, lettuce and other early, cool-season crops in greenhouses and fields alike. It was only the first of six heatwaves to sweep the area during the season. The first heatwave struck just
Are we having fun yet? Reasons to laugh about farming Read More »
The British company Haygrove was started in 1988 as a strawberry farm, with a little over 2 acres of production in poly-covered high tunnels or hoophouses. Since then, Haygrove has expanded to nearly 250 acres of soft fruits, including strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, red currants and cherries, grown under plastic in England and Eastern Europe. Along
British company introduces inexpensive high tunnel system Read More »
When we farmers genetically improve our crops, we are usually enhancing potentials already present in at least some of the individuals of that crop. This contrasts strongly with inserting foreign genes, as in GMO corn or soybeans. So we need to set realistic goals based on what we have occasionally seen in our crops in
Seed saving, Part 3: Genetic management Read More »
