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Flash Grazing Pigs

Toki Oshima drawing By C.J. Walke Organic growers face numerous challenges with pest management, regardless of the crops grown, and look to crop rotation, biological controls and carefully timed applications of approved materials to target the pest at hand. Organic tree fruit are vulnerable to many insect pests over the course of the season, whether those pests

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Meeting Notes from 2016

By Diane Schivera, M.A.T. This is my annual wrap-up of meetings I attended in 2016, beginning with the 20th annual Northeast Pasture Consortium (NEPC) meeting held in Maine at the Harraseeket Inn in Freeport. It was very exciting to have the meeting in Maine for the first time in its history. The meeting sessions included

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Maine Heritage Orchard Update Spring 2017

The author in a Grasslings tree. Photo by John Bunker John Bunker with one of the Blake candidates. Photo by Laura Sieger By Laura Sieger, MEHO Intern In 2016, MOFGA’s Maine Heritage Orchard (MEHO) had another successful year. In April we planted 55 more heirloom varieties that were new to the orchard. From June through October MOFGA apprentices Nick

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Put the Bite on Bugs

Lambsquarters quiches garnished with crickets (front) and cicadas (back). Photo by Paul Landkamer; used with permission Tomato hornworm wrap, with lettuce and tomatoes. Photo by Jake Reed; used with permission By Sue Smith-Heavenrich Last year was tough on my garden. Between the heat and the lack of rain, about the only things I reliably produced

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Kale and Kin

Young kale plants companion with leeks. Will Bonsall photo By Will Bonsall Some years ago I commented to a friend in the seed business about how few kale varieties were available in the marketplace. He hastened to object that there were more kales around than ever, and spouted off a bunch of names, like Red

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Permanent Raised Beds

Transplanting into a permanent bed at Foundation Farm. Note the mulch pulled to the shoulder of the bed, to compost in place. Photo courtesy of Foundation Farm Original pasture vegetation remains in the paths between beds at Foundation Farm. Photo courtesy of Foundation Farm Farming with no-till permanent beds can improve soil structure, reduce weeds,

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Soil Health Soil Testing and Soil Amending

Rebirth of a Movement By Will Brinton, Ph.D. A renewed national interest in soil health and soil biology is creating an alternative to the long-held chemistry-based mineral theory of soil fertility still dominant today. For about 175 years, soil has been viewed largely as a physical support medium for plants to which mineral nutrients must

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Ground Cherries

The author harvests ground cherries from under a V-shaped trellis, which allows the fruits to drop to the ground while supporting the foliage. Photo by Lisa Quatrale Ground cherries on the ground, ripe and ready for harvest. Photo by Lisa Quatrale When ground cherries turn from green to yellow-orange, they are ready to be removed

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Organic Inspections

By Jacomijn Schravesande-Gardei, MOFGA Certification Services LLC In order to sell, label or represent products as organic in the United States, farming and processing operations must be certified. MOFGA Certification Services (MCS) is accredited by the USDA to certify and inspect organic operations. The MOFGA Certification label assures consumers that products have been produced with

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Maine Harvest Bucks

By Heather Omand In 2015 MOFGA, as one partner in the Maine Local Food Access Network (MLFAN), embarked on a collaborative initiative to increase access in Maine to local, healthy foods. The MLFAN developed Maine Harvest Bucks (MHB), a nutrition incentive to low-income consumers that is available at farmers’ markets, farm stands, community supported agriculture

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