Vegetables
Potting mixes should support developing seedlings. Most potting mixes are soil-less to avoid soil borne diseases and promote good drainage. A mix of peat moss, vermiculite or perlite and compost or organic fertilizers can provide a suitable environment with sufficient water holding capacity, nutrient content and aeration for plant growth and development. However, because organic nutrients are supplied slowly over time it can be difficult to meet seedling nutrient needs. The following outlines basic recipes for potting media and research on organic transplant production.
As organic producers, we try to mimic nature in order to grow food with a minimum of external inputs. If we plan to mimic nature, we need to understand as much about the biology of plants and ecological systems as we can. The following introduction may be a review for some, but will hopefully give new producers an understanding of seed and seedling biology and a framework for analyzing cultural practices for producing healthy seedlings. Part of a 13 part series of articles for new organic vegetable producers.
An overview of transplant production at Eckerton Hill Farm. Farm Profiles are designed to give new producers ideas and advice from experienced producers. Individual products are mentioned as examples not as an endorsement.
An overview of transplant production at Red Cat Farm, Germansville PA. Farm Profiles are designed to give new producers ideas and advice from experienced producers. Individual products are mentioned as examples not as an endorsement.
An overview of transplant production at Shooting Star Farms. Farm Profiles are designed to give new producers ideas and advice from experienced producers. Individual products are mentioned as examples not as an endorsement.
Figure out which strategies and what equipment fit with your scale, your finances, and your style with this overview.
Steps for designing a vegetable crop rotation. Having a good plan, laid out in an easy to read map makes it possible to quickly do what needs to be done during the season, know what my contingency plans are, and the avoid major problems with pests, weeds and fertility that are more common with haphazard plantings.
If you have not done it yet, now is the time to finish up your crop plan for next year. Soon it will be time to start seedlings and the whirlwind will begin. At a recent CSA day organized by Lehigh County Extension’s Brian Moyer, I shared some tips for crop planning. What follows is a teaser, just the first few steps of the crop planning procedure I put together based on the great crop planning information Josh Volk from Slow Hand Farm recently shared with us. For the full procedure and example spreadsheets click the links below.
Successful weed management can make or break a new organic farm. These steps will help you get the upper hand on weeds.
An overview of weed management at Branch Creek Farm. Farm Profiles are designed to give new producers ideas and advice from experienced producers. Individual products are mentioned as examples not as an endorsement.
Learn what plant diseases are, why they're important, what causes them and how they work.
Something is wrong with your plant. What is the cause? Don’t assume you know the answer and accidentally treat for the wrong problem. Use this step-by-step method to narrow down the possibilities.
In order for a plant to become diseased, there are three conditions that must be present. There must be a pathogen, a favorable environment where the pathogen can thrive, and a susceptible host. All of the strategies that we use to manage plant diseases work to remove or limit one of these factors, thus breaking the plant disease triangle.
Cornell Cooperative Extension, NY State IPM, and the NY State Department of Agriculture and Markets teamed up to product Organic Production Guides for: Snap Beans, Carrots, Cole Crops, Cucumbers, Squash, Lettuce, Peas, Potatoes and Spinach.
Plant, weed, hoe, cultivate, water, plant, fertilize, water. . . .No time to stop and take a close look for pests and diseases? Take a few minutes. It could save your crop.
Mark and Judy Dornstreich have been farming for over 30 years in beautiful Bucks County, PA. They produce baby greens, specialty vegetables and edible flowers year-round in 3 greenhouses. Come summer, they shift their attention out to the field where they grow unique vegetable varieties on about 5 acres. They provide Philadelphia and New York City restaurants with only the highest quality, mouth-watering produce.
An overview of insect management at Branch Creek Farm. Farm Profiles are designed to give new producers ideas and advice from experienced producers. Individual products are mentioned as examples not as an endorsement.
Quiet Creek Farm shares their transplant production system in new video. John and Aimee Good run Quiet Creek Farm, a certified organic CSA raising vegetables, berries, flowers and herbs for 200 members. The farm is located on eight acres of land leased from the Rodale Institute in Kutztown, PA.
As part of the Penn State Start Farming Farm Profiles Quiet Creek shares their experience with weed management. John and Aimee Good run Quiet Creek Farm, a certified organic CSA raising vegetables, berries, flowers and herbs for 200 members. The farm is located on eight acres of land leased from the Rodale Institute in Kutztown, PA.
John and Aimee Good run Quiet Creek Farm, a certified organic CSA raising vegetables, berries, flowers and herbs for 200 members. The farm is located on eight acres of land leased from the Rodale Institute in Kutztown, PA. As part of the Penn State Start Farming Farm Profiles John shares his experience with insect management.
