Archives: Resources

The Roots of Organic Movement Building in Post Colonial Guyana

The author conducted trainings on organic farming on various farms using on-hand demonstrations and flip-chart illustrations. A Rastafarian farmer gives a tour of his diverse production area. By John Bliss What does it take to build a movement? At what point does despair transform into hope; stagnation into motivation? How is a movement embodied in

Read More »

Cranberries Dont Assume You Cant Grow Them

  Many Maine farms and homesteads have low spots where cranberries will do well.   Cranberries ready for harvest By Will Bonsall Most folks think of cranberries as a crop with requirements that are too challenging for their situation. Cranberries like sandy, acidic, soggy peat soils that can be flooded at will, whereas the average

Read More »

Saffron A Good Fit for New England

Dr. Arash Ghalehgolabbehbahani and Dr. Margaret Skinner of the University of Vermont gave a fascinating talk about saffron, the world’s most expensive spice, at MOFGA’s Farmer to Farmer Conference. English photo By Jean English Dr. Arash Ghalehgolabbehbahani and Dr. Margaret Skinner of the University of Vermont gave a fascinating and entertaining talk about saffron at

Read More »

Recycle Your Greenhouse Plastic

By David McDaniel Rick Kersbergen, Paul Gallione and Sam MacDonald remove plastic from a greenhouse at Moosehead Trail Farm in Waldo. Thanks to a new program, they’ll be able to recycle the plastic. Photo by David McDaniel. Beginning in the spring of 2020, farmers and gardeners will be able to recycle their waste greenhouse and

Read More »

Tend to browntail moth webs now

  Browntail moths. English photo March 1, 2020 If you find browntail moth webs within reach, clip them by mid-April and destroy the webs by soaking them in soapy water or burning them. Winter is the best time to clip webs due to the low risk of exposure to the caterpillars’ toxic hairs, due to caterpillar dormancy,

Read More »

Animal Pests in the Garden

  Without a contiguous perimeter of metal deer fencing that is at least 8 feet tall, these animals are likely to enjoy your crops.   Anyone can set a live trap anytime and relocate woodchucks, raccoons or skunks. By Caleb Goossen, Ph.D. The three most common mammal pests that gardeners ask me about are deer,

Read More »

Growing Grain on the Ludders Family Homestead

Jessica and Ross Ludders and their sons take a break from homesteading in Exeter, Maine. Some of the homestead plots that grow vegetables and grains A given plot supports pigs one year, grains the next and vegetables in the third year. By Sonja Heyck-Merlin Photos by Ross and Jessica Ludders “It was like magic. I

Read More »

Controlling Pest Insects in the Organic Garden

One way to manage pest insects is to create habitat in your garden for beneficial insects such as ladybugs. Oxalic acid in the leaf blades (not petioles) of rhubarb can help repel flea beetles. Row cover, although a synthetic material, can last several years with care. An infusion of tansy, growing here with goldenrod, may

Read More »

What Apple Is This Identifying Apples in 2020

Illustration by John Bunker By John Bunker “A further knowledge of the facts is necessary before I would venture to give a final and definite opinion.” Sherlock Holmes, “His Last Bow” Although we usually begin to identify apples each year in August and early September, the Common Ground Country Fair weekend is the official kickoff

Read More »
Categories
Scroll to Top