Archives: Resources

Composting Tips

By Adam Tomash 1. Materials. Brown materials are high in carbon, green materials are high in nitrogen. Mix the two in rough proportions of 2 volumes of brown to 1 volume of green to achieve a C:N ratio of 25:1 to 40:1. Remember that different sources of nitrogen have differing amounts of nitrogen; e.g., alfalfa

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In The Orchard

In March and April, new wood was top-worked by bark grafting onto plum tree limbs at the MOFGA orchard. My mid-July all grafts were growing well. C.J. Walke photo. By C.J. Walke Spring Freeze In my last article, I wrote about shifting weather patterns and their effects on our fruit trees. I wrote that the

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What is Low Impact Forestry

Forester Sam Brown explains the principles of low-impact forestry at one of MOFGA’s Farm Training Project workshops. English photo. By Andy McEvoy Low-impact forestry (LIF) is about balance – of ecological systems and human society; nutrient richness and capital investment; timber stand improvement and human infrastructure. Humans need forest resources for heat, building material, paper,

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Regulations

By Cheryl Wixson Many certified organic farmers and producers seek to increase sales and market penetration through value-added food production or sales to institutions, supermarket chains and food processors. Markets for local, organic food are strong and growing rapidly, but licensing requirements, food safety regulations and liability issues must be addressed before a farmer can

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Beyond the Beauty Strip

By Mitch Lansky This year, 2012, is the 20th anniversary of the publication of Beyond the Beauty Strip: Saving What’s Left of Our Forests (BTBS). In it I pointed out such trends as the sale of big land parcels, heavy cutting and short rotations on industry-owned lands, and increasing mechanization. These trends in the forest

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Nutrient Dense Foods

John Bagnulo. Photo by Joanna Bagnulo. By Polly Shyka John Bagnulo is a naturalist and nutritionist. With a master’s in public health and a doctorate in food and nutrition sciences, he has a nutrition practice in Belfast and has taught nutrition for the past 12 years. He lectures widely on nutrition and health and has

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Acorn Bread

Processing acorns in a Davebilt nutcracker. Photo courtesy of Chris and Ashirah Knapp. By Chris Knapp In autumn, all over the world, something wonderful happens: The acorns fall. The oak seed, which once sustained the bulk of human civilization, is now largely ignored as a food. Not so at our Koviashuvik Local Living School, where

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Hazelnuts for the Maine Homestead

American hazel (C. americana) grows well in Industry, Maine. Yaicha Cowell photo. By Will Bonsall I’ve always loved filberts, those roundish nuts found in boxes of holiday mixes. They always tasted more substantial than the pecans and Brazil nuts, more evocative of northern forests. In fact, those European types (Corylus avellana) aren’t very hardy here.

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Salsa

By Roberta Bailey All that seems predictable with the weather and seasons is that they will be unpredictable and erratic. Winter was a bit of a no-show. We tapped our maple trees in February and pulled the taps by mid-March. Red maple buds swelled in early March, usually a sign that the sugaring season is

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Growing Melons in Maine An Overview

‘Hannah’s Choice’ melons. Adam Tomash photo. Half-gallon milk cartons with their tops and bottoms removed make good containers for starting melons, tomatoes and other transplants. A flap at the top of the carton can be cut, folded down and used as a label. Adam Tomash photo. When plants are ready to be transplanted to the

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