One section of MOFGA’s demonstration garden highlighted storage crops that are easy to grow and can supply healthful produce throughout the winter, such as celeriac and ‘Gigante’ kohlrabi. English photo. Celeriac. English photo. ‘Gigante’ kohlrabi. English photo. A demonstration plot planted last summer at MOFGA’s Common Ground Education Center highlighted storage crops – vegetables that
Trim the tops of onion and leek seedlings to make the bases thicker. Use the trimmings in soups or salads. English photo. By Roberta Bailey Pick yourself up, dust yourself off. Congratulations on surviving one of the roughest go-rounds with Mother Nature that most Maine gardeners can remember. The fact that you are reading an
IFOAM participants look at a pepper trial at the Seeds of Change Research Farm. Photo by Terry Allan. By Terry Allan Breeding Diversity, the first IFOAM (International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements) international conference on Organic Plant and Animal Breeding, was held in Santa Fe, New Mexico, in August 2009. Hosted by Seeds of Change,
Edie Johnston and her son, Geo, have started Eldertide Pharm and Maine Medicinals in Dresden to develop medicinal products from organic elderberries and other antioxidant-rich berries that grow in Maine. Photo by Tina Fisher-Dark. By Rebecca Goldfine Edie Johnston is the kind of entrepreneur who doesn’t just focus on one idea. Instead, she’s cultivating several
Noted author and seed saver Amy Goldman talked about the many pumpkins and squashes displayed in the Exhibition Hall at the Common Ground Country Fair and described in her exquisite book, The Compleat Squash: A Passionate Grower’s Guide To Pumpkins, Squashes and Gourds. English photo. By Jean English Amy Goldman is a passionate gardener, seed
Vegetables can be fermented in glass jars of various sizes, with rubber gaskets and wire bails, using non-iodized salt (such as sea salt or pickling salt) and non-chlorinated water. A scale is essential to get the right ratio of vegetables to salt. By Roberta Bailey One way that I coped with the interminable rains of
Compost is great stuff. The material shown here is recycled into a vibrant soil that feeds the beautiful perennial flowers and herbs on MOFGA’s grounds. Too much compost or other organic matter, however, can increase the phosphorus concentration in soils to the point where the element may become a pollutant. So have your soil tested
by Diane Schivera, M.A.T. Consumers are often confused by an array of labels when purchasing meat and other livestock products. Here are the legal definitions for meat labels. Naturally Raised Meats This label does not cover other livestock products such as milk or cheese. This is important to know, since no regulations govern how animals
Volunteers built the first Common Throne in 2004 in the North/Rose Gate volunteer camping area. Volunteers, bicyclists and vendors at that end of the grounds quickly discovered its convenience. English photo. … at MOFGA’s Common Ground Education Center: Recovering a Resource from the Waste Stream by Nancy Rosalie The Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association
Eric Gallandt, associate professor of weed ecology and management at the University of Maine, has had Maine farmers comparing the “Weed Master,” a glorified wheel hoe from Finland, with other methods of mechanical weed control. Here, Gallandt stands in a field of onions at Peacemeal Farm in Dixmont during one of MOFGA’s Farm Training Project
