Winter holiday wreaths have been a side venture of our farm for many years. They add color, interest, and value to our late season markets. And, after most of the food crops have been gathered into the cooler or root cellar, making wreaths is an enjoyable way to spend the cold, low light days of […]
Dried flower wreaths for year-round sales and reduced waste Read More »
The south-central United States is a region historically characterized by erratic weather. Dry Arctic air sweeps down the plains to collide with warm, humid Gulf air. Hail, straight-line winds, flooding, drought, and even tornadoes are a part of life, including farm life. It is notoriously challenging to predict the weather here. People in Oklahoma like to quote native son
How farmers in the south-central U.S. are adapting to a changing climate Read More »
How to ensure customers have good experiences on your farm One sunny fall day, laughter and happy chatter filled the air at our Oregon farm, Oakhill Organics. Bluegrass musicians played on our farmhouse’s covered porch, and my husband Casey took customers on tours through our fields. Between the music and tours, people were invited to
Hosting on-farm events Read More »
One of the keystones of organic growing methods is crop rotation. On a market farm growing many different crops, it can be a real puzzle to figure out effective rotations. Over the past couple decades I’ve worked on a number of market farms and set up rotations for numerous conditions. I’ve also modified rotations as
The why and how of crop rotation planning Read More »
I wrote about the mysteries and complexities of soil microbiology and why it’s vital to care for the incalculable number of microbes below our feet in “Soil: A living, breathing ecosystem” in the January 2022 GFM. An entire ecosystem exists within the soil and is in constant flux — eating, breathing, communicating, and adapting to
Improving soil biology: Cover crops, compost and inoculants Read More »
NOSB engagement by small farms is important If you market as organic or grow using organic methods, regardless whether you’re certified, the USDA’s organic rule-making process affects you. Customers have an expectation of what organic means, and they likely associate those expectations with you. That’s why learning about organic rules and how they are created
Why organic rules matter, whether youre certified or not Read More »
Farming an acre of vegetables in Wilton, Ontario, Evan Quigley has always aimed to bring the highest quality and consistency to market with a keen eye on profitability. Evan has achieved high quality and yields with a combination of techniques and careful management at The Kitchen Garden farm. “After a lot of trial and error,
Farming small with a recipe for profit Read More »
“Well, I heard seven of ‘em can eat as much as a cow,” one fellow told us. Another person said that three of them could eat as much as a sheep. Seems like everyone had some sort of story on this new menace. No one was surprised that we had trouble. Our new nemesis was
Tricks of the trade for starting flower seed Read More »
Agriculture is expanding in the subarctic and arctic of Alaska and Canada as temperatures in those northern latitudes rise two to three times faster than on the rest of the planet. Crops are started earlier and remain in the ground longer. In Whitehorse, Yukon, farmer Sarah Ouellette harvested field herbs and greens in the later
Subarctic climate change: Agricultural opportunities and threats Read More »
Newsletters aren’t just for CSA farms From 2006 to 2020, my husband Casey and I operated a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program as the core marketing outlet for our farm, Oakhill Organics. Over the course of those 15 years, I wrote a newsletter to accompany every week’s share — 614 newsletters in total. A weekly
Write newsletters people want to read Read More »
