Archives: Resources

Wait to Prune Raspberries

By Roberta Bailey Raspberries are the most commonly grown bramble in the home garden. For those preparing to make the leap out of the tomato patch and go beyond cucumbers, raspberries are an easy choice: You can be eating freshly picked berries in just a few years. Depending on the variety, raspberries supply a summer

Read More »

Mullein

By Deb Soule The tall taper of common mullein stands out in the garden when the stalk is covered with yellow blossoms. This plant is considered to be a weed by some and a valuable medicinal plant by others. Various Verbascum species are native to Europe and Asia. Verbascum thapsus, common mullein, has naturalized itself

Read More »

Tender Herbs

By Ellie MacDougall If you have a cold frame or other sun-filled, wind-protected, unheated structure, consider setting aside space for herbs that won’t survive in the open. You may find yourself enjoying some pleasant surprises this winter. We grow herbs for a living, blending them by hand into seasonings and vinegars. One of the constraints

Read More »

Common Ground Center

Illustration by Holland and Foley Building Design. A Real-World Example of Sustainable Building By Sarah Holland and David Foley Holland & Foley Building Design 232 Beech Hill Rd., Northport, Maine 04849 (207) 338-9869 If you have visited the new home of The Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association in Unity, you may have seen a

Read More »

Bread

Drawing by Toki Oshima By Roberta Bailey I stopped baking bread this summer. I was taking a writing class in Portland, and after the class I would go to the open market or the health food store. At first, I was drawn by the number, shape and variety of breads on display, everything from olive

Read More »

Grow Your Own Eggplant

Eggplant drawing by Toki Oshima By Roberta Bailey Eggplant, Solarium melongena var. esculentum, originated in India from a bitter-fruited, spiny plant. Centuries of selection and cultivation have resulted in a fruit with little or no bitterness. Chinese records refer to non-bitter eggplant fruit as early as the 5th century. From there eggplant traveled to Spain,

Read More »

Forget Roundup

Mark Fulford demonstrated how to prepare the soil for fruit tree planting at the Common Ground Fair. This area was later seeded to Geneva winter wheat, which will be harvested next July and milled into a flour, then used in a baked product for the 2000 Common Ground Fair; and Mammoth red clover, which will

Read More »

Intercropping

Will Bonsall spoke about intercropping and succession planting at the Common Ground Country Fair. English photo. By Jean English Will Bonsall’s original inspiration for growing crops intensively on his farm came from the book Farmers of Forty Centuries, by F.H. King. Paraphrasing a point from the book, Will told an audience at the Common Ground

Read More »

Low or No Sugar Jams

Many fruits grow in Maine and can be preserved easily. Grow your own or purchase produce at farmers’ markets or at the Common Ground Fair for making low- or no-sugar jams and jellies. English photos. By Roberta Bailey From spring through fall, Maine cranks out the fruit. Our winter weary palates get shocked awake with

Read More »

Comfortable Cows

Comfortable livestock will be happier, healthier and more productive. English photo. By Diane Schivera, M.A.T. Robert Graves of Penn State University, the featured speaker at the Maine Dairy Improvement 2011 meeting, talked about cow comfort. His information applies to other livestock as well. Comfortable livestock are likely to be healthier and less stressed than uncomfortable

Read More »
Scroll to Top

Keep in touch with MOFGA!

Sign up for our weekly bulletin to receive event announcements, seasonal tips, and more.
Sign up to receive our weekly newsletter of happenings at MOFGA.