August 1, 2011

It is so easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of high summer and forget to think any further into the future than the next order deadline. I know the last thing I want to do right now is look ahead to next spring, UGH! But in truth, now is the time

In the past few issues, I’ve profiled the equipment choices of three farms from 16 acres to 90 acres. I don’t want to leave out the smaller farms, though, and one farm I work with that falls into that category is Skyline Farm with about 1.5 acres in mixed vegetables plus small plantings of small

Turnips and rutabagas are reliable root vegetables in the brassica family. Traditionally grown as winter storage vegetables, they are now also available in gourmet varieties, to be eaten small, young and tender. A cool-weather crop which has no trouble germinating at high temperatures, turnips do best in much of the U.S. as a fall crop,

The last several years we have planted strawberries on black plastic in the fall for harvest the following spring. This is the standard commercial technique in California and Florida. Recently this method has become popular in several other states. We will discuss how we have used this practice on our farm, a 6-acre certified organic

This is the information sheet visitors to Waterpenny Farm can use to show themselves around the farm. We have been cultivating 10 acres of ecologically grown vegetables here in Sperryville since 2000. Our farming methods are all ecologically based and sustainable, and we use only organic inputs (no synthetic pesticides or fertilizers). In addition to

For us, having visitors on our farm is a double-edged sword. We love to have people come learn about ecological farming by seeing what we do.  It’s exciting when people are inspired to go pesticide-free in their own gardens or keep their own flock of egg-laying chickens, or when they’re wowed by how great our