GardenSpotlight

Romano Beans....Italian  Flat Beans....These beans are flat, broad and string-less and have a bit more flavor than regular green beans.  We grow them on the farm mostly for our family, but lately they've been a big hit at the farmers' markets we attend.  When giving customers a chance to sample, about 90% will pick the Romano bean to purchase over the other.  We've been harvesting them by hand for about two weeks now, and I finally had a chance to fix some for dinner tonight. You can steam or saute them with garlic, or add them to salads if you like.  They are tender and cook quickly when picked at the right stage.  If you are growing them in your own garden, you should harvest them regularly, at least every other day, at about 4 or 5" in length and when the bean seeds inside the pod are just starting to show some definition.  If you let them get too large where the seeds are really bulging, they can be tough. Tonight I sauteed them with garlic ...

Rain, rain, go away…..so the nursery rhyme goes.  As goes our thoughts this rainy, wet spring.  While rain is important for all kinds of things from our gardens and farms to ecosystems to hydro-electric power to drinking water, there is such a thing as too much of a good thing.  Last year we were praying for rain for crops as the drought pressed on and temperatures soared into the 90’s in July and August.  This year we are praying the rain stops, at least for a while.  We began the month of June at a deficit of 2+ inches of rain, and now, just a few weeks later we are at a surplus of over 3 inches. Constant rain provides optimal conditions for fungal growth on plants and crops this time of year and into the summer.  In a previous article last year, we talked about solanaceous diseases (tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant) such as blight and Septoria, vine crop (cucumbers, squash, pumpkins, etc.) diseases such as downy and powdery mildew, and cole crop (cauliflo...

We've seen the movies on public television about factory farming.  Maybe we've gone to a showing of a local film about farming, but do we really know what's happening with the backbone of agriculture?  How do our smaller family farms stack up against those giant corporations and what is "corporate concentration?" Simply put, corporate concentration is the amount of control that a few large corporations have over the food sector in our country.  As a matter of fact, corporate concentration in United States agriculture is quite high, affecting everything from how farmers grow our food to how its marketed to the consumer.  This trend has forced many families off their farms and even out of the farming business.  What does this mean for you, the consumer?  It leads to higher food prices and less choice at the market.  USDA data shows that the cost of food to the consumer has risen steadily over the past twenty years. ...

After reading the editor’s article from a recently published issue of The Columbia Insider regarding organic vs. conventional foods , I decided to research the recent study published by Stanford University last September which reported that there are no significant differences in nutrition between organically and conventionally raised produce .   This has been a very heated topic as I see and hear from many of my patrons at the local farmers’ markets what their beliefs are.   Some consumers are open minded and willing to learn the differences and what each farmers’ growing practices are while others only care about organic food and will not even entertain what a "non-organic" or conventional farmer has to say.   One customer last fall shouted at me that the Stanford study had been refuted and quickly walked away without letting me speak.   She must have read the article atThe Huffington Post .    I could dissect both articles, but that is beyond the scop...

Organic food.   When you hear those words, what do you think?   Do you think it must be good for you? Do you think it is good because it's free of chemicals and toxins?   I am not opposed to organic food.   What does trouble me is the fact that most people, not all, who seek out "organic" food think that all conventionally grown food is bad for you.   I believe this is because media and marketing have created many misconceptions.   Everyone loves to hear that “all natural” is good and that chemicals and synthetic compounds are bad. My goal with this article is to educate consumers, not to knock organic farming.   To evoke thought and make your own informed choices. Years ago, we were happy to have food, whether it had lumps and bumps or somehow was otherwise misshapen, it didn’t matter.   We still ate it and it was good.   These days, agriculture has had to conform to consumer desires.   Produce has to look perfect when displayed for s...

It's 8:00am and I am home now. I just dropped our daughter off to school and she'll be home before I know it...the days go by so quickly, don't they? I've been wanting to write about what it's like here on the farm for so long. Nothing like the present. My daughter reminds me of that every so often by saying things like, "I'll be driving soon Mom!" Mind you, she's only 10 and she's been saying that since she was 8! Don't rush it kid! That's my advice..enjoy childhood while it lasts. My husband has been driving since forever...that's what it's like on a farm. The boys learn how to drive the tractors....probably as soon as they hit double digits, maybe even before that. And the farm trucks too...but only on the farm. So I think they are able to do that just because they are boys! Our daughter has not learned yet how to do those things. She knows how to drive the quad, but she's only allowed on it with an adult. She always tell...