Everyone deserves to eat healthy, and enjoy it. That is also why we joined the Department of Agriculture’s WIC and Foodshare Program.

Another factor, we always had, and still have our young children with us, whatever we do. They are in very close physical contact with farming - so it has to be "clean" even if they roll in the dirt, and eat vegetables right off the plants. So do we (eating off the plants, not the rolling in the dirt..) We want good and healthy food, the way it’s supposed to be. Strong chemicals, or a lot, are not even an option. You see, very personal reasons.

But no, we’re not "organic," not "natural," not "conventional," not any label anyone else could officially attach to themselves. Nor do we want to be. Over used for all the wrong reasons, much has become meaningless. How can certified organic growers shop at the Regional Market? Just one example - and no, it's not just one or two. Some are rather quiet about it, others are very proud to be organic - and I'm thinking... "what are you doing here then?"

I have been thinking for a long time, how to best describe us. Maybe Minimalistic-Eclectic. The main goal to build the soil mostly, and plants minimally. Since once the soil is healthy, IT will give the plants all they need. Minimal help for the plants, but enough for them to be able to produce good quality food, until soil is optimalized. Not enough will result in dying plants and disease, since the plants aren't strong enough. Too much will produce more produce, but the quality is just not there. Everything is pushed too hard to develop in a healthy way. This again causes disease to the plant, results in tastelessness, and quicker spoilage - just for starters. We rather use not enough, then too much. Instead we focus on building healthy soil by spreading compost each spring, Rye in the fall. Crops are small batches of this and that, which rotate regularly, and don't see the same spot for years.

We use a very small amount of 10-10-10 fertilizer -getting less each year, as the prices go through the roof (even a little still adds up depending on the amount of acreage). This is sprinkled sparingly on fresh planted plants, or seeds just put in. Then the plants get just a little more once they’re a little bigger, a couple weeks before they start producing. And that’s it for chemicals.

No pesticides of any kind. If something has issues that kills the harvest, we harrow it under and plant another batch. Works every time. Not profitable, but effective, and the extra plant material builds up the soil.

Since we’re working with a relatively small amount of land, we have to carefully plan our planting, to make room for everything. We constantly evaluate the soil condition, and plant needs. Companion planting and rotation is a default, since we just don’t have the room (or help) to plant a large amount of anything. After all, it’s going to be just us maintaining it, picking and processing it. And if we have two plantings of squash or pickles coming in at the same time, four rows for each, we’re already in over our heads. Even with two week apart plantings, weather conditions makes this happen at least once or twice a year. We tried to fill the resulting "blank" by planting extra two row sections, which end up being extra, or come in "between" - works, if we have a little extra land. If not, we’ll have to deal with waiting for the next planting.

We compost whatever plant material possible. Leaves, branches, all extra vegetables, along with plenty of our own chicken manure. This gets spread on the field in the spring, after the rye is worked in, but weeks before planting.

Weed control is manual - very. The tractor with cultivators helps a great deal, but only to a point. When plants start to send out runners, or get tall, they still need more weeding, and the only way is by hand. The family joke is "Hoe, hoe, hoe - Merry Christmas" I know, not very funny, but it kind of is, when your hands are covered in blisters, and hoes are a permanent fixture in your trucks until mid July. Very much not Christmas, but it’s a reminder, that "this too, shall pass."

I'm always deep in research and experiments, on how we can apply even more methods (and sometimes madness) to eventually eliminate all chemicals (only fertilizer, but still..) building the soil the way I know it can be done. The first problem however is, we can only do it right on property we own, or the long term lease field (to a better degree anyway) - in always new fields, it often seems like only a tiny drop on a really hot stone. The second is closely tied to the first - resources... but all that does not belong here. Maybe I'll talk about it on the Blog some time.

I think this about covers everything. Except maybe picking-washing-packing. Everything done by hand, one piece of produce at a time. No exception. Everything gets hand washed and sorted before packing. And even though we often wish we had some help, doing it all by ourselves allows for optimal quality control.

If you would like to know more, or find I didn’t cover something, feel free to contact me, and I’ll be happy to explain.