Soil Block Party: The basics of propagation without the plastic

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For the last year I've spent my time working in a greenhouse at Stone Barns, persistent in my desire to learn and understand that complex space and all that went with it, I didn't take time venturing into other places on the farm.  I honed in on a specific set of skills that helped me dig deep into my initial understanding of farming.  One of the gratifying parts of working at Four Season Farm is the variety and range of tasks I have had the opportunity to participate in.  Everyone is involved with every aspect on the farm.   In the two weeks I've been here, I've had the opportunity to work on many projects ranging from standard vegetable harvests for markets and restaurants to rare tasks such as roof building for the new chicken slaughter house.  The philosophy involves everyone being able to do anything on the farm when it's needed most.  The skills and concepts come from Eliot Coleman's methods, which he has been perfecting for decades (over forty years and going strong) and his wife Barbara Damrosch, who has been a leading voice in horticulture since the 1970's. Our development and understanding of these methods come through the experience of working, but also by clearly explaining the information and guiding others as we work.  The beauty of this layered teaching method is that information is shared through necessity, which helps develop an understanding of the why.  Skills are taught and directly applied under the pressure of a "real life" situation i.e. restaurants need their weekly orders filled and delivered, market stands need to be filled, customers are waiting for freshly cut herbs, weeds are growing out of control and transplants and seeds need to go in the ground.  There's no orientation week or handbook that preps us on the inner workings of a farm, you drop your stuff off in your little room above the wood shop and dive right in.  One of the rolls I've been wanting more exposure to is...

Rhizome Clones: The proliferation of a low bush blueberry plant

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One of the most interesting facts I've learned about low bush blueberries is the extension of each plant.  To my surprise, in a 10 acre field there may only be about 10 blueberry plants in total.  Through their wide reaching network of rhizomes, each plant continuously produces thousands of stems underground that sprout up little branches producing the vegetative growth and eventually plump clusters of berries.  Any growth coming from the same set of rhizomes is called a clone. Think about it sort of like an underground tree, there is one main stem that branches off into all these little green leafy plants that eventually produce incredible fruit.

In the 15 acres of fields that we raked and picked blueberries, it was interesting to see how different the berries could taste from different sections.  All different weeds growing, insects and animals inhabiting, all affect the growth and flavor of each berry.  The flavor could range dramtically from sweet to tart, hints of earth etc.  No matter where I've encountered good food or drinks, it is always from a source with incredibly good soil.  Good Food is definitely good dirt.

Wild Maine Blueberries: The King of Fruits

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The journey continues and after a short stint back home, in Manhattan, I've set sail for coastal Maine, home of wild blueberries and about 80% of America's blueberry production.  While on my way to work at Four Season Farm, home of farmer/writer/lecturer Eliot Coleman and his wife Barbara Damrosch, a twist of fate led me to another farm which happened to be literally next door from Four Season called Blue Sky Farm, a wild blueberry farm run by two incredible people, Costas Christ and his wife Sally.  There I spent two weeks learning and working, picking and processing blueberries.  Maine, an incredible state, which also happens to be home of my first farm travelling experience working with the Seaweed man in 2010.  I had no idea that Maine, or "vacationland" as it is appropriately nicknamed, could offer such breathtaking beauty.  I choose the term breathtaking in-particular because of the way the views and lifestyle force you to stop and stare even of only for one long deep breath. The way I've been describing it is a glimpse into what America once was, treelined, nature full of life everywhere you look, sit, touch, smell, hear and fertility. Endless unobstructed skylines.  I can't tell you the last time I saw a building over two stories.  I'm 30 minutes from the nearest store and it's not really an issue.  Looking up has a completely different meaning out here, instead of admiring the beautiful architectural designs that paint Manhattan's every corner, here it's trees, wildlife, plants of all varieties and gorgeous skies.  I've embarked on another incredibly valuable and awe-inspiring trip through the...

Pic of the week

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Sail away

Rooftop Greenhouses in Manhattan: The journey is the reward

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After finishing up at Stone Barns in June, I was facing a 2 month gap before I was slated to head up north to work Four Seasons Farm in Maine, home of Eliot Coleman, Barbara Damrosch and their crew.   During a conversation and rooftop tour with Manhattan restauranteur Eli Zabar, I learned of his excitement regarding a new greenhouse project he was looking to build on one of his Vinegar Factory rooftops here in New York City  I had just spend a lot of time working in a unique and massive greenhouse up in Westchester, but I had yet to develop a greenhouse of my own.  Nevertheless, a little bit of faith from Eli and problem solving, for the last 8 weeks, I have been creating and developing...

Transplanting Beets: Proof

Here you can see the transplanted beets are standing back up straight and tall. Still amazed that even after disrupting the taproot, the beets manage to survive.

Although this is probably not too practical in a typical growing setting, I think it shows that every production is different and being able to understand the plants we are working with allows us to be creative and adjust as needed.  To me farming is an...

Transplanting Beets: It can be done

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Wow, my mind is blown, that's all I can say. Here I was thinking you could never transplant root veggies like beets and I've been proven wrong. Not only have we transplanted these tiny baby beets, but we did it more...

Greenhouse Growing: Extend Your Season

Unintentionally I've fallen into something that I find incredibly interesting and innovative. A few years ago we went to a farm to ask a few questions and find out what food was and how it was grown. It was November and our impatience to wait until the spring growing season left us with an incredible opportunity to learn and work with season extension.

Normally when we think of farming we think of the summer, but with a few tweaks, there's an unbelievable amount of food that can be grown all year round.

One incredible advantage of greenhouse growing is the head start or end of season extension we get just by adding some greenhouse cover protection like polyethylene covers.

I've recently taken on a temporary project helping with the Eli Zabar's Vinegar Factory rooftop greenhouses on the upper east side of Manhattan. Here the tomato season starts in may when the typical outdoor season isn't until July or August. Tomatoes on May 14th, what a beautiful thing and they'll produce right through the fall.

Now when I say innovative I don't necessarily mean groundbreaking fr humanity, just those of us who have never thought about growing food I the "offseason" months or growing food at all for that matter. One of the big reasons I continued to farm after Matt left for Miami and when I recently left Stone Barns has everything to do with the fact the there are some many new and interesting topics and questions that keep popping up.

I unintentionally found an incredible greenhouse 2 1/2 years ago and I intentionally continue to keep finding them and hopefully building them and using them.