So you want to know how the growing has been; what we're going to grow next year and what we will try to do differently? Oh boy- this could get long. It's one of my favorite subjects-along with puzzling over how we ever got ourselves into the mess we're in anyway. But, thoughts on growing and advice? OK- here goes.

I guess one of the biggest changes for me was my decision to move towards being as carbon neutral as possible in my growing practices. I was already moving towards this before the oil crisis really hit and this has just given it a greater imperative shall we say..... When I started market -growing-I'm a small-scale grower- I did the whole long rows of produce separated by a wide space for the tiller bit. Then I switched to growing in beds- the amount of produce I was able to grow in the same space jumped greatly. The only thing with that is the beds are highly labor intensive- unless you've got the weeds under control-and I don't. So I was still dependent on tractor tillage at the end of the season. But that bothered me- the gas of course, but also the pulverizing of the soil(and the worms), and that tillage speeds up the breakdown of organic matter and thus releases carbon back into the atmosphere, furthering global warming.

Enter mulch! I have very wet soil here- great in a drought- but otherwise- slug city(I've gotten some ducks btw- hopefully they will make a dent in the slug population as they feast on slugs). So mulch, a la Ruth Stout was a problematic issue-plus- I've got to procure enough mulch hay to do this. So I rethought this and did something else. Basically, I'm saving newspapers- my own and those donated by the general store that didn't get sold- and I layer a section or two of newspaper(not the inserts-newsprint only!) on the ground covered with a burlap bag from the coffee roasting company-they're free here by the truckload. Now I have a windy site so I do sometimes have to weigh it down with rocks or old boards to keep it all in one place. I can do this on bare soil or on turf-it doesn't matter. If it's grassy or weedy- I scythe it down first. Then I let it sit-I did some areas last fall. Then this spring, I jut peeled of the burlap- they are reusable for a number of years before they warrant composting- removed the soggy paper- and I had a perfect planting bed- just stick the plants or seeds right in it. Amazing it is- maintains all the soil structure and organic matter, is "worm-friendly" and, to be honest, my favorite part, it's easy! No digging!

So I've been preparing areas for next year already- as I take off the burlap from last year's piece, I put it somewhere else. So you can do this in large pieces or small- any place you want to grow some plants!  No burlap? No problem? Get creative- cardboard works just fine too- especially big pieces from appliances and such. I don't like to use carpet myself, but if it's all you've got, go for it...... If you've got none of these, you can use old pieces of plywood-that works ok too. Or- put down an extra section of newspaper and cover it with organic materials- leaves, weeds, grass clippings, compost, whatever. Get creative. The whole idea is to block the sun from the plant life and allow it to break down while you do other things....

I finally decided after all of these years of struggling with a wet field that was my main vegie field that it doesn't pay to struggle like that- one should work with what one has. So I'm switching fields- my pasture is my best land-so I'm working towards turning that into my vegie field and my vegie field into pasture. My septic system is under the "pasture" but now that I'm no longer tilling- no problem!

What else? Well I switched to the geese for mowing of course- they fall behind when the grass is growing fast in spring but catch up later on-not perfect- but beats mowing.

I do want to reccomend 2 types of critters btw. Khaki Campbell ducks- lay eggs like chickens do- every day- amazing. Also White Chinese Geese- lay lots of eggs, will hatch out their own offspring-good instincts- and can be raised on grass- perfect Peak Oil birds really. Great watchdogs too! And they both provide lots of good manure(and eggs and meat).

I've also moved away from heating any sort of greenhouse. My transplants suffered this year though for that- so next year I'm trying a "hot bed" system. Basically, I'm building a large cold frame with glass- which I will put a layer of fresh manure and bedding into in late winter/early spring. I will either put a light covering over this- newspaper for instance, and put my flats on top of that or I will cover it with a layer of soil/finished compost and plant into it. On really cold nights I'll cover it with row cover, and add a blanket on top even. I'm excited to try this- I think it will work- old-time French market growers did this. I will use these cold frames to grow greens for the fall and early winter for me as well.

Next year I hope to use one of my large greenhouses(one that can handle snowload) to start hardy greens in July or later- I will cover them with row cover- and sell them in the late Fall/early Winter- till I run out. You can get ideas on how to do this from Eliot Coleman's books- "Four-Season Harvest", and "Farming the Back Side of the Calendar". Most of you will have a milder climate to deal with than me in the far north on a mountain- so it is very doable. As for those of you in So. CA and Florida- I DON'T want to hear about your winter!

Anyway, the point of this is to extend the season with fresh vegies using no external heat source- beyond what we think of as our "season". I want to see how far I can push this.

I've also been working on integrating permaculture into my place. I'm developing layers- some of this will be for my own household use- but it also provides habitat for beneficials for the whole farm. In a section by the barn where I've got an old ash tree and maple and wild grapes, I've added currant bushes, blackberries and  filberts. There is also a variety of medicinals growing there- comfrey, marshmallow, elecampane, motherwort, mugwort, jewelweed, etc. I'm starting to take advantage of my wetter areas-I'm naturalizing plants like watercress there as well as planting willow and elderberry. Next year if I can source some cranberries, I'll add those as well.

I'm adding a variety of trees to the hedgerows and woods that I want to see here- Chinese Chestnut, Mulberry, Black Locust, Hickory Nut, Oak, etc- none of these grow here now, but some do in the area so I'm transplanting small seedlings and starting some from seed. I also tried planting 3 PawPaws this year- and they made it through the winter! Our climate IS changing and I'm trying to work with that and bring in plants from a little further south such as the hickories and oaks(and pawpaw!) and see how they do.

You can do lots of this- even on a small-scale. In Cuba, they produce I believe about 80% of the produce that Havana consumes right there in the city. Urban agriculture is a favorite subject of mine actually-it is amazing what can be grown in an urban area. There are advantages as well- less animal damage(no moose trampling your strawberries!), warmer weather-heat sink- etc. So if you're doing this in an urban environment, get creative. Think vertical, trellis, containers, etc. Also, community gardens- I love those. If there isn't one where you live, find a piece of land and start one. And don't forget guerilla gardening- stick stuff in everywhere- cuttings from grapes, raspberry canes, seeds from trees, whatever- nature finds a way to grow stuff- you just need to stick it in the ground.

Well, I could go on and on- am doing lots of stuff here- always trying new things. But I should end this and get to work! And don't forget the compost- make lots of compost this winter- even in a worm box in the kitchen!

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