Farmer’s Pick Half Share: 1 bunch kale, okra, 1 bunch green onions, bunch red radish
Farmer’s Pick Full Share: 1 bag Salad mix, 1 bunch collards, 1 bunch beets OR salad turnips, 1 bunch kale, 3 daikon radish, 1 bunch green onions, 1 bunch cilantro
To be completely honest with you this was a pretty boring week. Things went as smoothly as they ever do, nothing weird happened, even the weather was kind of dull, neither sunny nor cloudy nor hot nor cold (well, until the rain I guess!). We’re still in transition between summer and winter gardens, but things are starting to take on a decidedly cool season aesthetic with roots and leaves being more common now than fruits. So let’s take a moment in the doldrums to elaborate a little more on our growing practices.
The one sentence explanation of what we do is that we are organic and no till. OK great, what do either of those words actually mean though? And are you regenerative?? What does that mean either?? It may not surprise you to learn that we have a lot to say about all of that.
Let’s start with the word “organic”. We actually don’t put this term on any printed signage or advertising because it’s a regulated term, technically using it would attract a drone strike from the USDA command bunker unless we pay like $10,000 to use it. But for academic purposes I am using it here to refer generally to any agriculture practices that do not involve dangerous chemicals. Notice I didn’t say we don’t use pesticides! In general we believe in a “plant positive” approach and see that time and time again healthy plants in good soil in the appropriate season easily withstand all manner of pests and diseases. However, this is a business, and we won’t stand by as our livelihood evaporates in a cloud of flea beatles or swarms of cabbage loopers when they do arrive. So we do on occasion use certain pesticides that are certified for use in organic agriculture. These are BT (bacilis thuringensis), neem oil, spinosad and Beauveria Bassiana. End of list. These are all either naturally occurring bacteria, fungi or extracts that are toxic to certain insects but are extremely safe for human consumption. So, when we say organic, know that we mean it.
While organic may be a term you’re familiar with, “no till” is a bit more technical. This is where we get a little “beyond organic”, so to speak. Tillage is almost as old as agriculture is, and is so ubiquitous that we almost take it for granted as part and parcel of growing food. But in the past few decades research has shown that tillage is not only environmentally harmful, but counterproductive to boot. On the environmental side, when we use a plow on the land we’re contributing greatly to soil erosion. Erosion is a problem for the environment because it pollutes waterways. Erosion is also a huge problem for humans as well since every tablespoon of soil lost makes the remaining land that much less productive for growing crops. On the practical side, tillage also disrupts the intricate and dimly understood underworld of interconnected plant roots, bacteria and fungi that help produce healthy plants. There are alternatives to tillage that can create huge potential for agricultural productivity. For us, it is as simple as killing off the existing plant cover with a tarp for several weeks or months before adding an extremeely thick layer (3-5 inches!) of compost right on top of the soil. This accomplishes several things at once. First off, it physically smothers any weed seeds in the actual soil, meaning you have a weed free bed from day one. Second, it adds a tremendous amount of organic matter and biological activity to the soil. We think of compost sometimes as “feeding” plants, but the reality is much more complex. Yes, they need nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium that chemical fertilizers provide, but they also need all sorts of trace elements and minerals in addition to organic matter, fungi etc that compost provides. It’s true that a plant can thrive with only depleted soil and some chemical fertilizer, but things are greatly simplified and even more productive with compost.
Lastly let’s address “regenerative”. This has no official regulatory meaning, and that’s the point. Many farmers and consumers have seen how “organic” has become co-opted by Big Ag and now really only means that certain dangerous chemicals are no longer used. It doesn’t say anything at all about soil health, scale or anything like that. So, regenerative has emerged in the last few years as a bit of a fuzzy term to mean something that uses organic practices but is not certified.
That’s more words than I intended to write so we’ll sign off for now. I’ll probably have even more to say later!