Hyssop officinalis, from Prof. Dr. Otto Wilhelm Thomé “Flora von Deutschland, Österreich und der Schweiz,” 1885. By Joyce White I am grateful that younger friends and neighbors share some of their observations and experiences of Nature with me. Last spring a neighbor was out of work for a few weeks, healing from surgery. During this unusual period
One treatment in our study of the effects of tillage on soil health used a rototiller for cultivation. Another treatment used a broadfork. By Will Brinton Soil tillage is an increasingly important topic of discussion among agriculturists and poses new challenges for organic practices. At a soil health event in Aroostook County in 2014, Ray Archuleta, conservation
One rotation I use is spring-sown oats interplanted later with transplanted squash. I flatten and then mulch over the oats in July. The following spring I transplant cabbage into the mulch. English photos By Will Bonsall We usually hear about crop rotation in the context of large farms where folks are talking about crops such as wheat, oats,
Left to right: Matt DeGrandpre (farm operations manager), Tierney Lawler (apprentice), Caitlin Morgan (apprentice), Big Cow, Haden Gooch (graduate apprentice, current journeyperson) and Corinne Carey (apprentice). Cows head out to pasture at Wolfe’s Neck Center. Wolfe’s Neck Center hosts about 50,000 visitors per year. Entrance to the milking parlor. By Sonja Heyck-Merlin Wolfe’s Neck Center for Agriculture
One way to deal with the challenges of farming and gardening is to plant a variety of crops. English photo By Roberta Bailey As farmers and gardeners, we are all well acquainted with impermanence and resilience. The well-weeded row quickly becomes ragged. The peas mature and go by. A petite zucchini quickly swells to the
By Chris Grigsby The goal of MOFGA’s Certified Clean Cannabis program (MC3) is to offer an independent, third-party-verified marketing claim similar to the USDA National Organic Program (NOP) but for cannabis products, which cannot be certified organic at this time. The standards were developed by MOFGA with a group of dedicated Maine caregivers. The program is entering
Diane Schivera has been involved for more than 20 years with the livestock industry in Maine. Photo by Gary Dunn By Diane Schivera, M.A.T. MOFGA Organic Livestock Specialist When I began working for MOFGA in 1998, we certified one goat and 27 cow dairies; and five beef, six lamb, two wool, five egg, three broiler and two turkey
An apple tree showing signs of stress – possibly Rapid Apple Decline. English photo By C.J. Walke In March of this year, numerous reports of apple tree die-off populated the news with titles such as “Across America, Apple Trees are Dying, and Scientists Don’t Know Why” and “Something is Killing Our Apple Trees, and No One Knows
A heavy hay mulch, as promoted by Ruth Stout, smothers weeds (until some, such as quackgrass, creep in) but is not suitable for closely set plants or for grain crops. English photo By Will Bonsall No-till is the rage now and for some good reasons. Plowing, spading and rototilling disrupt the natural soil structure and dilute richer
Many agricultural plastics, including some row covers, are difficult or impossible to recycle. English photo By David McDaniel In the summer 2019 MOF&G, I discussed how Maine farmers depend on many plastic products and the difficulties of recycling these materials. Here I review some of the limited ways to recycle agricultural plastic and types of plastic to
