By C.J. Walke, MOFGA’s Orchard Program Manager At this year’s Common Ground Country Fair, the Hayloft Tent was packed with educational talks, abuzz with fruit enthusiasts hovering over our heritage fruit displays, and brimming with curious fairgoers looking to learn about topics such as beekeeping, beneficial plant propagation and permaculture, among many other things. However,
By Jacki Martinez Perkins, MOFGA’s Organic Dairy and Livestock Specialist The knowledge base for all farming endeavors needs to be extensive, but one major difference we see between livestock production and crop production is the year-round care and maintenance of a key source of revenue: the livestock themselves. Good quality feed and water keep them
By Aleta McKeage Those of us in Maine often spend time in the woods, and many people in the state steward woodland areas, whether small or large. One of my own passions is hiking in the Maine woods, especially areas with mature forest. Recently, I was out with a friend in one of my favorite
By Roberta Bailey At the end of each year, I evaluate what I have grown and how I will shift strategies for the following growing season. If I had a bumper crop of tomatoes, and the larder is now flush with canned tomatoes and salsa, I know that I can grow fewer tomato plants in
By Javed Sidiqi, Eric Bishop Von Wettberg and Valerio Hoyos Villegas Why Chickpeas? Chickpeas (Cicer arietinum L.) are an annual grain legume known for their high nutritional value and nitrogen-fixing properties. Chickpeas can provide benefits to agricultural rotations by reducing fertilizer inputs, in addition to producing a marketable crop. Chickpeas are widely loved in dishes
By Will Bonsall Considering that potatoes are the fourth biggest food crop grown by humans (after corn, wheat and rice), that they are so simple to grow, and so productive, it seems strange they aren’t more common in backyard gardens. I suppose it’s partly because, like the other staples, they are so cheap to buy,
By C.J. Walke, MOFGA’s Orchard Program Manager For decades, fruit enthusiasts, explorers and experts have worked tirelessly to determine the identity of varieties found in abandoned orchards and on random roadside trees, and even the relatively younger tree that lost its nursery tag along the way. A lot of this detective work revolves around the
By Jacki Martinez Perkins, MOFGA’s Organic Dairy and Livestock Specialist Getting into livestock production can be an uphill battle. Choosing equipment is one of the more anxiety-inducing processes. My parents (a dairy farmer and a sole-practitioner large animal veterinarian) often found themselves in situations where they had little to no help from others, and so
By Caleb P. Goossen, Ph.D., MOFGA Crop Specialist As the extent of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) chemical contamination of agricultural systems began to be better understood in Maine in 2022, MOFGA chose to initiate our own due diligence (as did many other businesses and organizations, I hope). Our initial testing was performed on water
By Roberta Bailey What can I make for the potluck? How much extra time do I have? What is in the refrigerator? What do I have a surplus of in the root cellar? How far do I have to travel? Will that dish travel well? Can I make it ahead? Does it need to be
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