March 1, 2004

By Joan Vibert A recent discussion about commercial kitchens on the market-farming email list made me realize that there is a lot of interest in the subject. Excellent questions were raised, and good, valid answers began coming in from all over the country. It soon became apparent that there are few correct answers that serve […]

By Bill Clark I’m president of the Vermont Farmers’ Market in Rutland County, Vermont. For more than 25 years my wife, Sue, and I (and, at times, our four children) have been vendors in local farmers’ markets. For several years, we have also been involved in three holiday markets in November and December. The holiday

by Scott Mathieson & Leslie Gardner Like most of you dedicated fellow growers out there, we find a great many things to inspire us at our farm. In our case, it’s 30 acres of vibrant organic veggies, a site adjacent to a seasonal wetland with wildlife habitat, a beautiful region in a supportive community north

As the sun just begins to show its face over the horizon, things are already heating up at our booth at the Farmers’ Market. It’s the first Saturday in June, and we have the first local tomatoes arrayed on our table. Their bright red glow can be seen from either end of the market, and

This is the second of a two-part series about how to find and recognize the best soils for market farming. By Brett Grohsgal Rarely will a farmer find land with perfect soil, so it’s important when buying or renting land to know what kinds of soil problems can be easily remedied, which can be fixed

A deep mulch around highbush blueberry plants increases growth and yield, according to Virginia Extension specialist Charlie O’Dell. Writing in the American/Western Fruit Grower in December, O’Dell describes trials in which he mulched blueberries with 6 inches to 12 inches of sawdust. He cautions against using black walnut sawdust, because of its allelopathic effects on

The Organic Consumers Association (OCA) submitted a formal Complaint to the USDA’s National Organic Program (NOP) against the California-based company, Bayliss Ranch, and the organic certifier, Quality Assurance International (QAI), for illegally counting ordinary water in Bayliss Ranch’s water extracts as “organic.” This scheme enables Bayliss Ranch’s customers – manufacturers of food and body care

USDA officials raided two pet stores and a residence in Wisconsin recently and confiscated more than 80 giant African snails. The snails are banned in the U.S. but are still being imported for sale in the pet trade. Scientists consider the giant African snail, Achatina fulica, to be one of the most damaging land snails

    I admire Carl Benson’s quest for an environmentally responsible fuel to heat his greenhouse, but his praise for biodiesel may go too far. It is theoretically true that biodiesel is carbon neutral, but I don’t believe it has any effect on the problem of global warming. If I switch from fossil fuel to biodiesel

I’ve been planting overwintering spinach for a few seasons, based on an article I read in GFM. The spinach performs fairly well, but I seem to notice a lot of striped cucumber beetles hanging out in there during the first few cuttings. I wonder if I’m inadvertently providing winter habitat for the SCB, which is