The other day we heard on National Public Radio that southern California was being hit by a “major winter storm”. “Some areas had received as much as an inch of rain,” they reported, “and another inch of rain is possible.” A major winter storm? Oh come on now! Just the day before we had 2 […]
Poinsettias come back in style as cut flowers Read More »
Onions are one of the most important crops on a direct market farm, and it behooves you to learn to grow them well. What’s so great about onions? They can be sold at virtually any stage of maturity, they give you some leeway about when to harvest them, they don’t have to be thrown in
Grow great onions – Part One Read More »
If you’re looking for a real alternative crop, take advantage of one you might already have – leafcutter bees. You may not know it, but if your peonies, lilacs or roses show missing half-moons in their leaves or if you have woodpeckers demolishing your shingled outbuildings, you probably are being visited by leafcutters, and may
Leafcutter bees can be raised for profit Read More »
As implausible as it may seem, Anchorage, Alaska now has its own winery. In fact, every state in the union hosts at least one winery, most with vineyards attached. In recent years, small vineyards and wineries have made inroads into the wine industry in similar ways that small produce farms have developed markets within the
The small winery: another direct marketing enterprise Read More »
The Whole Farm Cooperative sells vegetables, grains, meat, eggs, cheese, maple syrup and a myriad of other farm products produced by about 50 family farms in Central Minnesota.We started three years ago in a basement. We’re still in a basement. A bigger basement. In our first year we sold about $30,000 worth of products. In
Churches support helps co-op thrive Read More »
A few weeks ago Frank went out to till up some beds in preparation for planting. The tiller was soon impacted with a strange, sticky, soil-like material. This substance was entirely new to us, so we sent a sample off to Texas A&M’s soils lab. After much deliberation, the lab said that it hadn’t seen
Specialty Cut Flowers: New varieties are worth a try this year Read More »
As market farmers mature, many find themselves ready to slow down or to change their focus. But they are loathe to abandon the business they have built up, the relationships with customers, the farm system, the improved soil. And what if they don’t want to move away from the farm? Here at Growing for Market,
Life estate: A model for retirement Read More »
David and Barb Perkins bought their farm, Vermont Valley Community Farm, seven years ago, in August 1994. Since then, they’ve grown the 40-acre southern Wisconsin farm to a 500-member CSA, one of the largest in the nation. “We knew we wanted to farm 15 years ago, but just didn’t know what to do on the
Editor’s note: The following article is reprinted with permission from Novii Sadovod i Fermer (New Gardener and Farmer), the Russian-language magazine published by the Rodale Press. The translation was provided by the author, George DeVault, who is editor of the magazine. George, his wife, Melanie, and their adult son, Don, grow vegetables and flowers at
Rodale Press allows farmer to sell at the office Read More »
The CSA model in which the consumer shares the risk of production with the farmer presents each farm with a tricky situation – how do we share the reward, if there is one in good times. This might seem straightforward, except when the reality of “too much food” sets in. We have seen time and
Too many tomatoes! Read More »
