Thank you, Michaele - your email was very informative and helpful - Audrey
----- Original Message -----
From: Michaele Blakely <mjb@premier1.net>
To: <sanet-mg@cals.ncsu.edu>
Sent: Thursday, April 20, 2000 10:27 AM
Subject: Re: micro-farming
> >
> > Andy-
> >
> > I don't mind spending some time on this subject as long as it is a
> positive
> > one. I look to these lists as educational,I appreciate the differences
of
> > opinion, but it has been difficult lately waking up with my morning cup
of
> > coffee reading at times a total disregard for different streams of
> thought.
> > I've felt good and valid points have been made on either side of the
> issue.
> >
> > What I do has been developed by me for me in northwestern Washington and
> for
> > the market that is here. I don't know if a similar set up would work in
> > Calif. or Virginia or Ireland. I would imagine though that the concepts
> if
> > applied would enable a person to do a similar program anywhere in the
free
> > market. Basically it's try to get everything to work for you.
> >
> > I get out into the fields as early as I can, plant as much as I can and
> keep
> > my fingers crossed.
> >
> > Actually what I do changes from year to year, depending upon the
weather
> > and what I perceive to be the "fad" foods for the season. I grow
> everything
> > I possibly can in northwest Washington. I try to draw every possible
> penny
> > from each square foot I have planted. There is never much empty space
in
> my
> > fields at any particular time. I try to have a scenario going on in my
> beds
> > where several things are going on at once. Sometimes this works,
> sometimes
> > it doesn't. I incorporate my chickens with my covercrops, harvest the
> > chickens, then till in the manure and covercrops in the spring for
> planting.
> > Sometimes I can put them on a residue bed, but I don't do that very
often
> > now since standards have changed about fresh manure.
> >
> > I'll try to give you an example. I planted broccoli today. The starts
> are
> > about 4" high. I'll plant something in between the plants to take up
> space
> > until the broccoli canopies. It probably will be radishes or something
> > similarly fast growing. I haven't quite decided yet. The radishes will
> be
> > harvested, then clover will be planted. I've found that most of the
time
> > this helps deter the cabbage butterfly. The clover grows, I harvest the
> > broccoli (by the way all season long) and in the spring the chickens go
> onto
> > it when it begins to regrow. It's wet and cold here in the early
spring,
> so
> > each night the chickens get a bedding of composted horse manure which is
> an
> > added bonus to the tilth, then the chickens are harvested etc.
> >
> > Another example: last year I put strawberries in, planted rather
> > intensively for a first planting. I just couldn't stand that empty
soil,
> so
> > I planted lettuces for the salad mix in between the strawberry plants.
> >
> > Here's another one. Peas were planted fairly early on. They are up and
> > going strong. When they were about 4" high I planted another set of
rows
> on
> > either side of the first row (about 3 ft. away) and a scattering of
> > buckwheat in between the two plantings. The way it should work is the
> > buckwheat will be blooming about the same time as the peas, the blossoms
> are
> > very similar in color and should increase the beneficials for
pollination.
> > When the peas are ready to harvest, we'll trample the buckwheat down
> (that's
> > okay) harvest the peas, hopefully over a 2-3 week period, then till it
all
> > in and put in a second planting of summer squash. The plants will still
> be
> > small enough to enable the harvest of the second planting of peas and
> when
> > that is done that will be tilled in and it will leave room for the
squash
> to
> > grow. The buckwheat has served three purposes, it's attracted
> beneficials,
> > it will provide nutrients to the soil (although not optimum I realize)
and
> > it has taken care of weeds. But with the phosphorous from the buckwheat
> and
> > the nitrogen from the peas it should help out the squash.
> >
> > There are lots of other examples, but this should give you the general
> idea.
> > The other factor I consider just as important is how you sell your food.
> > With the one exception of my eggs from my laying flock I generally do
not
> > wholesale. I need to get top dollar for my produce and meat. I only
> > wholesale my eggs during the winter to a person who understands when the
> > market opens I stop providing him with eggs.
> >
> > I have 3 killer markets and a CSA. If those weren't around I would have
> to
> > find alternatives, but I think alternatives are out there. The idea is
to
> > find your market and then go from there. I also should add that to do
> well
> > in my markets (which are very competitive) I work hard to maintain the
> > loyalty I have received. Happy customers go a long way towards paying
the
> > bills, and they are as equally important as planting at the right time.
I
> > go in every Saturday in the winter and sit in front of a church where a
> > "private sale" goes on. I don't have to, but my customers want my eggs
so
> > much they have asked me to do this and I accommodate them. I sell
enough
> to
> > pay for chicken feed and then some, but it's not great. Yet each year
the
> > sales increase, and those customers always buy first and more at my
stand
> > during the market season. They attract others. A lot of one percenters
> > like that go along way.
> >
> > So, I didn't give you a crop-mix per se. I don't feel that is as
> important
> > as having a certain way of looking at what you do, and understanding
where
> > your strong assets lie. Steve Groff wrote in saying 30K is possible
with
> > fresh market tomatoes. That wouldn't fly here. But maybe strawberries,
> and
> > most definitely u-cut Xmas trees.
> >
> > If this has opened up other questions, I don't mind answering them.
> >
> > Respectively,
> > Michaele Blakely
> > Growing Things
> >
> >
> >
>
>
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