January
can be a tough month for some people. Here in New England it’s cold,
snowy, and icy one day and the next its in the 50s, rainy and grey. The
sun shows up once in a while, faking us out from time to time making us
feel it should be warmer than it actually is.
In order to help
beat the winter doldrums, on crummy you-want-to-stay-in-bed-days, I love
pouring over the seed & plant catalogs, dreaming and planning what
this year’s garden should contain. We will be sure to get our orders in
by the months end as the general rule of thumb, “You snooze, you lose”
applies to ordering seeds and starts. On the nicer days, I take the time
to get outside, walk the backyard and scope the areas where bushes,
trees and shrubs may need some pruning; check the garden beds for the
crops that were planted in the fall and have been overwintering like
garlic and carrots.
Last fall we installed one of our new products
to our backyard garden, the lawn slowly giving way to more and more
raised beds. It’s an 8’ x 12’ deer-fenced Maine Kitchen Gardens,
65 square feet of new growing space to plant this spring! The new
growing space will make crop rotating much easier for us going forward.
I’m so glad we installed it when we did so there will be no reason to
get it all planted up once the time comes.
January
is the perfect time to plan and install a new garden. After all, spring
is only 61 days away. Many people make the classic mistake of waiting
until April or May and by the time they get everything all said and done
(if they do it at all) they have missed an important part of the
growing season – early spring. Cold crops love just that – the cool
temperatures of early spring when it’s between 40º F and 70º F. If it
gets too warm, the cold crops bolt and go to seed.
There are a few
cold crops in particular which you can directly sow outdoors since
their seeds germinate in soil temps as low as 40º F. Peas germination
and growing temp ranges between 40ºF-70ºF. Arugula & Lettuce enjoy
germination and growing temps between 40ºF-60ºF and potatoes germinate
at 45ºF. If you see your daffodils in bloom, start planting your
potatoes in the garden! At the end of this January, early February we
will start a few seedlings indoor, for the other cold crops that need
higher temperatures to germinate, like strawberries, spinach, Swiss
chard and onions.
In New England, regardless if there is snow on
the ground St. Patty’s day is the time to plant our peas outside and it
will be here in the blink of an eye. That’s why the planning stage in
January is so important despite the possible snow that could be in your
yard right now. It can be hard for some to envision which is why we try
to help people as much as possible in getting their gardens up and
running; so people can enjoy growing their own.
Friday, January 17, 2014
Thursday, May 9, 2013
For Better or Worse - A Guide to Companion Planting
Many experienced gardeners already know that having a diverse mix of
plants helps give you a beautiful and healthy garden. Some also
believe that certain plant combinations have extraordinary powers for
helping each other grow. Scientific study of companion planting has
confirmed that some combinations have real benefits unique to those
combinations, while experience has demonstrated to many gardeners how to
combine certain plants for their mutual benefit.
How can companion plantings help you?
Ancient Companions Over the centuries, companion planting has played a vital role in the survival of people throughout history. The Iroquois American Indians in the Northeast used the “Three Sisters” or De-o-ha-ko. De-o-ha-ko literally means “our sustainers” or “those who support us”. When companion plantings are used they help one another grow, thrive and produce higher yields efficiently and with little impact on the environment.
Scientific Foundations for using Companion Plantings
Trap Cropping – one plant will lure bugs and pests away from another plant and serves to distract.
Symbiotic nitrogen fixation – legumes (peas, clover, beans) fix atmospheric nitrogen for their own use and benefit of nearby plants via symbiotic relationship with rhizobium bacteria.
Biochemical pest suppression – certain plants give off chemicals in their roots or aerial parts that suppress or repel pests and protect neighboring plants.
Physical spatial interactions – tall growing plants which love sun sharing space with low growing shade tolerant plants gives higher yields in less space, as well as yielding pest control.
Beneficial Habitats – or refugia is when companion plants provide a desirable environment for beneficial insects and other arthropods, like predatory and parasitic insects which help keep the pest population in balance. Agroecologists believe this is a good way to both reduce pest damage and pesticide use.
Security via Diversity – a mixed variety of plants, herbs and vegetables helps limit the possible destruction that can be caused to a single crop or cultivar. Simply mixing cultivars will achieve the diversity needed as the University of California demonstrated with broccoli.
As much as there are plants that are compatible together, there are some that are just as incompatible together as well. Please refer to our Companion Planting Guide that also gives hints as to certain ways that plant may be used to deter certain critters, big and small.
Condensed Companion Planting Guide
Asparagus Plant plant with Aster family of flowers, basil, tomato, parsley, dill, coriander, comfrey, marigolds. Do not plant with garlic, onions, potatoes.
Basil plant with tomatoes, peppers, oregano, asparagus, petunias; helps improve flavor and growth and aids in repelling thrips, flies, mosquitoes, deer. Do not plant with rue, sage
Beans are wonderful to plant with most vegetables and herbs (carrots, cauliflower, celery, chards, corn, eggplant, radish, strawberry,
potatoes, cucumbers, cabbage)Beans help to enrich the soil with nitrogen Do not plant with (alliums) garlic, onions
Beets plant with lettuce, cabbage, onions, kohlrabi, garlic, mint. Beets are good for adding minerals to the soil (leaves are made of up of 25% magnesium), valuable addition to the compost; beets flavor is improved by garlic and mint.
Do not plant with pole beans.
Broccoli is great to plant with basil, bush beans, cucumber, dill, garlic, hyssop, lettuce, marigold, mint, nasturtium, onion, potato, radish, rosemary, sage, thyme, tomato. Celery, onions and broccoli improve broccoli’s flavor; broccoli loves calcium so pairing it with plants that don’t need calcium like nasturtiums and beets – free up the calcium in the soil for broccoli. Do not plant with grapes, strawberries, mustards, rue.
Cabbage Family includes broccoli, Brussels sprouts, kale, kohlrabi, cauliflower, and cabbage are all wonderful when paired with celery, beets, onions, potato, spinach, chard, sage, thyme, mint, rosemary. Chamomile and cabbage improves flavor while celery and cabbage improves growth and health. Do not plant with tomatoes, strawberries, pole beans, peppers, eggplants, grapes, lettuce.
Carrots plant with leaf lettuce, onions, peas, onions, leeks, chives, rosemary. Do not plant with dill, parsnips, Queen Ann’s lace
Celery plant with potatoes, spinach, bush beans, onions, cabbage families, leeks, tomato, cosmos, daisies, snapdragons. Do not plant with corn, potatoes, aster. Carrots can be infected with yellow disease from aster flowers
Chards plant with beans, cabbage family, tomato, onion and roses. Do not plant with cucurbits, melons, corn or herbs
Chives plant with carrots, tomatoes, apples, brassica family, mums, sunflowers. Improves growth & flavor of carrots and tomatoes; chives keeps aphids away, drives away Japanese beetles and carrot rustfly; Do not plant with beans and peas.
Cilantro(Chinese parsley, the seeds are coriander) Anise, caraway, potatoes, dill. Cilantro repels harmful insects(aphids, spidermites & potato beetle)
Corn Amaranth, white geraniums, lamb’s quarters, melons, morning glory, parsley, peanuts, pumpkin, soybeans, sunflower, potatoes, peas, beans, squash, cucumbers. Corn feeds off of the nitrogen left behind by the beans when interplanted together. Do not plant with tomatoes
Cucumber plant with beans, corn, radishes, peas, sunflower, dill, beets, nasturtiums.When planted with nasturtiums growth & flavor improve and when planted with dill it attracts predatory beneficials. Do not plant with cauliflower, potatoes, basil, sage, rue.
Eggplant plant with amaranth, beans, spinach, tarragon, thyme, marigolds, peppers
Garlic plant with most herbs, roses, raspberries, apple trees, pear trees, celery
cucumbers, peas, and lettuce. Garlic accumulates sulfur, a natural fungicide which prevents disease. it helps in offending codling moths, Japanese beetles, root maggots, snails and carrot rootfly; time release capsules planted at the base of trees deters deer.
Lettuce plant with beets, broccoli, bush beans, pole beans, carrot, onion, strawberries, sunflowers radishes, cucumbers, dill. Do not plant with cabbage, parsley
Marigolds, French plant with most plants but do not plant with beans, cabbage French marigolds keeps soil free of bad nematodes and discourages many garden pests/insects.
Mint plant with cabbage, tomatoes. It improves the health of cabbage & tomatoes. While it also deters white cabbage moths, ants, rodents, flea beetles, fleas, aphids by attracting beneficials like hoverflies & predatory wasps.
Onion plant with beets, carrots, leeks, kohlrabi, brassicas, tomatoes, lettuce, strawberries, dill, chamomile, summer savory. Onions & strawberries help the berries fight disease; intercropping with leeks and onions with carrots confuses carrot & onion flies. Do not plant with peas or asparagus.
Peas plant with corn, cucumber, celery, eggplants, bush/pole beans, radishes,
spinach, strawberries, tomatoes, turnips . Do not plant with chives, potatoes, onions, gladiolus, grapes.
Pepper, sweet bell plant with tomatoes, okra, parsley, basil, carrots, marjoram, petunia, onions. Do not plant with fennel, kohlrabi, apricot trees
Pepper, hot plant with cucumbers, eggplant, escarole, tomato, okra, swiss chard, squash, basil, oregano, parsley & rosemary. Chili peppers roots exude a substance which prevents root rot and other fusarium diseases; teas made from hot peppers can be used as insect sprays
Potato plant with bush beans, celery, carrots, corn, cabbage, horseradish, marigolds, peas, petunias, onions, French marigolds. Do not plant with asparagus, kohlrabi, rutabaga, fennel, turnip, pumpkin, squash, tomatoes, sunflowers, cucumbers
Pumpkin plant with corn, beans, radishes, peas, oregano, marigolds, squash, melon, nasturtiums. When planted with marigolds deters beetles, planted with nasturtiums deters bugs & beetles, with oregano for the pest pest protection
Radish plant with beets, bush beans, pole beans carrots, cucumbers, lettuce, parsnips, peas, spinach, members of squash family, nasturtium. Planted with squash helps deter squash borers; deter cucumber beetles & rust flies, chervil and nasturtiums improve radishes growth & flavor; lure leafminers away from spinach. Do not plant with hyssop, cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, turnips.
Spinach plant with peas, beans, cauliflower, eggplant, onions, strawberries, squash, fava bean.
Squash plant with beans, pumpkins, corn, cucumbers, onions, melon, mint, borage, marigolds, oregano. When planted with borage deters worms and improves growth & flavor; marigolds deter beetles, oregano best pest protection. Do not plant with potatoes.
Strawberry plant with beans, borage, lettuce, onions, spinach, thyme. Borage strengthens resistance to insects and disease. Do not plant with cabbage, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, kohlrabi.
Tomato plant with asparagus, carrots, head lettuce, mint, nasturtium, onions, beans, basil, lettuce, garlic, cucumber,celery, chives, peas, peppers, parsley, marigolds. Basil helps repel flies, mosquitoes, deer and improves growth & flavor; bee balm, chives & mint improves flavor & health of tomatoes. Do not plant with dill, fennel, apricot trees, potatoes, kohlrabi, corn.
Turnips plant with peas and cabbage. Do not plant with potatoes, radishes or other root vegetables, delphinium, larkspur, mustard.
Zucchini plant with nasturtium and flowering herbs.
It's a lot in information and I have plenty more which is why this only a consolidated companion growing guide. We love to work with companions in our raised beds and there a wonderful way to help guide you while putting together containers. Happy Gardening!
How can companion plantings help you?
- Companion plantings brings variety into the garden by helping to break up the monoculture, this aids in deterring disease and bad bug infestation.
- It’s a holistic approach to working with the intricate layers of the ecology of your garden.
- Reduces the need for fertilizers and pesticides. Many vegetables and herbs store natural substances in their roots, flowers and leaves that repel unwanted pests and attract beneficial insects.
- Enhances the beauty as well as the flavor and overall health of your garden by working in harmony with nature.
- Take the average spacing between the two varieties.
Ancient Companions Over the centuries, companion planting has played a vital role in the survival of people throughout history. The Iroquois American Indians in the Northeast used the “Three Sisters” or De-o-ha-ko. De-o-ha-ko literally means “our sustainers” or “those who support us”. When companion plantings are used they help one another grow, thrive and produce higher yields efficiently and with little impact on the environment.
Scientific Foundations for using Companion Plantings
Trap Cropping – one plant will lure bugs and pests away from another plant and serves to distract.
Symbiotic nitrogen fixation – legumes (peas, clover, beans) fix atmospheric nitrogen for their own use and benefit of nearby plants via symbiotic relationship with rhizobium bacteria.
Biochemical pest suppression – certain plants give off chemicals in their roots or aerial parts that suppress or repel pests and protect neighboring plants.
Physical spatial interactions – tall growing plants which love sun sharing space with low growing shade tolerant plants gives higher yields in less space, as well as yielding pest control.
Beneficial Habitats – or refugia is when companion plants provide a desirable environment for beneficial insects and other arthropods, like predatory and parasitic insects which help keep the pest population in balance. Agroecologists believe this is a good way to both reduce pest damage and pesticide use.
Security via Diversity – a mixed variety of plants, herbs and vegetables helps limit the possible destruction that can be caused to a single crop or cultivar. Simply mixing cultivars will achieve the diversity needed as the University of California demonstrated with broccoli.
As much as there are plants that are compatible together, there are some that are just as incompatible together as well. Please refer to our Companion Planting Guide that also gives hints as to certain ways that plant may be used to deter certain critters, big and small.
Condensed Companion Planting Guide
Asparagus Plant plant with Aster family of flowers, basil, tomato, parsley, dill, coriander, comfrey, marigolds. Do not plant with garlic, onions, potatoes.
Basil plant with tomatoes, peppers, oregano, asparagus, petunias; helps improve flavor and growth and aids in repelling thrips, flies, mosquitoes, deer. Do not plant with rue, sage
Beans are wonderful to plant with most vegetables and herbs (carrots, cauliflower, celery, chards, corn, eggplant, radish, strawberry,
potatoes, cucumbers, cabbage)Beans help to enrich the soil with nitrogen Do not plant with (alliums) garlic, onions
Beets plant with lettuce, cabbage, onions, kohlrabi, garlic, mint. Beets are good for adding minerals to the soil (leaves are made of up of 25% magnesium), valuable addition to the compost; beets flavor is improved by garlic and mint.
Do not plant with pole beans.
Broccoli is great to plant with basil, bush beans, cucumber, dill, garlic, hyssop, lettuce, marigold, mint, nasturtium, onion, potato, radish, rosemary, sage, thyme, tomato. Celery, onions and broccoli improve broccoli’s flavor; broccoli loves calcium so pairing it with plants that don’t need calcium like nasturtiums and beets – free up the calcium in the soil for broccoli. Do not plant with grapes, strawberries, mustards, rue.
Cabbage Family includes broccoli, Brussels sprouts, kale, kohlrabi, cauliflower, and cabbage are all wonderful when paired with celery, beets, onions, potato, spinach, chard, sage, thyme, mint, rosemary. Chamomile and cabbage improves flavor while celery and cabbage improves growth and health. Do not plant with tomatoes, strawberries, pole beans, peppers, eggplants, grapes, lettuce.
Carrots plant with leaf lettuce, onions, peas, onions, leeks, chives, rosemary. Do not plant with dill, parsnips, Queen Ann’s lace
Celery plant with potatoes, spinach, bush beans, onions, cabbage families, leeks, tomato, cosmos, daisies, snapdragons. Do not plant with corn, potatoes, aster. Carrots can be infected with yellow disease from aster flowers
Chards plant with beans, cabbage family, tomato, onion and roses. Do not plant with cucurbits, melons, corn or herbs
Chives plant with carrots, tomatoes, apples, brassica family, mums, sunflowers. Improves growth & flavor of carrots and tomatoes; chives keeps aphids away, drives away Japanese beetles and carrot rustfly; Do not plant with beans and peas.
Cilantro(Chinese parsley, the seeds are coriander) Anise, caraway, potatoes, dill. Cilantro repels harmful insects(aphids, spidermites & potato beetle)
Corn Amaranth, white geraniums, lamb’s quarters, melons, morning glory, parsley, peanuts, pumpkin, soybeans, sunflower, potatoes, peas, beans, squash, cucumbers. Corn feeds off of the nitrogen left behind by the beans when interplanted together. Do not plant with tomatoes
Cucumber plant with beans, corn, radishes, peas, sunflower, dill, beets, nasturtiums.When planted with nasturtiums growth & flavor improve and when planted with dill it attracts predatory beneficials. Do not plant with cauliflower, potatoes, basil, sage, rue.
Eggplant plant with amaranth, beans, spinach, tarragon, thyme, marigolds, peppers
Garlic plant with most herbs, roses, raspberries, apple trees, pear trees, celery
cucumbers, peas, and lettuce. Garlic accumulates sulfur, a natural fungicide which prevents disease. it helps in offending codling moths, Japanese beetles, root maggots, snails and carrot rootfly; time release capsules planted at the base of trees deters deer.
Lettuce plant with beets, broccoli, bush beans, pole beans, carrot, onion, strawberries, sunflowers radishes, cucumbers, dill. Do not plant with cabbage, parsley
Marigolds, French plant with most plants but do not plant with beans, cabbage French marigolds keeps soil free of bad nematodes and discourages many garden pests/insects.
Mint plant with cabbage, tomatoes. It improves the health of cabbage & tomatoes. While it also deters white cabbage moths, ants, rodents, flea beetles, fleas, aphids by attracting beneficials like hoverflies & predatory wasps.
Onion plant with beets, carrots, leeks, kohlrabi, brassicas, tomatoes, lettuce, strawberries, dill, chamomile, summer savory. Onions & strawberries help the berries fight disease; intercropping with leeks and onions with carrots confuses carrot & onion flies. Do not plant with peas or asparagus.
Peas plant with corn, cucumber, celery, eggplants, bush/pole beans, radishes,
spinach, strawberries, tomatoes, turnips . Do not plant with chives, potatoes, onions, gladiolus, grapes.
Pepper, sweet bell plant with tomatoes, okra, parsley, basil, carrots, marjoram, petunia, onions. Do not plant with fennel, kohlrabi, apricot trees
Pepper, hot plant with cucumbers, eggplant, escarole, tomato, okra, swiss chard, squash, basil, oregano, parsley & rosemary. Chili peppers roots exude a substance which prevents root rot and other fusarium diseases; teas made from hot peppers can be used as insect sprays
Potato plant with bush beans, celery, carrots, corn, cabbage, horseradish, marigolds, peas, petunias, onions, French marigolds. Do not plant with asparagus, kohlrabi, rutabaga, fennel, turnip, pumpkin, squash, tomatoes, sunflowers, cucumbers
Pumpkin plant with corn, beans, radishes, peas, oregano, marigolds, squash, melon, nasturtiums. When planted with marigolds deters beetles, planted with nasturtiums deters bugs & beetles, with oregano for the pest pest protection
Radish plant with beets, bush beans, pole beans carrots, cucumbers, lettuce, parsnips, peas, spinach, members of squash family, nasturtium. Planted with squash helps deter squash borers; deter cucumber beetles & rust flies, chervil and nasturtiums improve radishes growth & flavor; lure leafminers away from spinach. Do not plant with hyssop, cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, turnips.
Spinach plant with peas, beans, cauliflower, eggplant, onions, strawberries, squash, fava bean.
Squash plant with beans, pumpkins, corn, cucumbers, onions, melon, mint, borage, marigolds, oregano. When planted with borage deters worms and improves growth & flavor; marigolds deter beetles, oregano best pest protection. Do not plant with potatoes.
Strawberry plant with beans, borage, lettuce, onions, spinach, thyme. Borage strengthens resistance to insects and disease. Do not plant with cabbage, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, kohlrabi.
Tomato plant with asparagus, carrots, head lettuce, mint, nasturtium, onions, beans, basil, lettuce, garlic, cucumber,celery, chives, peas, peppers, parsley, marigolds. Basil helps repel flies, mosquitoes, deer and improves growth & flavor; bee balm, chives & mint improves flavor & health of tomatoes. Do not plant with dill, fennel, apricot trees, potatoes, kohlrabi, corn.
Turnips plant with peas and cabbage. Do not plant with potatoes, radishes or other root vegetables, delphinium, larkspur, mustard.
Zucchini plant with nasturtium and flowering herbs.
It's a lot in information and I have plenty more which is why this only a consolidated companion growing guide. We love to work with companions in our raised beds and there a wonderful way to help guide you while putting together containers. Happy Gardening!
Saturday, March 2, 2013
The First Steps of Marching Right Along
Starting a new business is equally as exciting as it is nerve-wracking. You never know if what you think is a fabulous idea is as fabulous an idea to the public. Homegrown Harvest is more than just about selling containers and raised beds to people; its about making gardening easier so more people can enjoy the benefits of fresh food. We hope to be able to show people that you don't need big row gardens of the past to grow some of the food you love to eat and need to live a healthy life.
This past month for us has been a whirlwind of activity. We had our first home show, The Fairfield County Home & Better Living Show in Greenwich. The show had a rough start since Blizzard Nemo caused it to be delayed by a weekend pushing the show to the long weekend. The attendance levels seemed thin and many of the other vendors who had done the show in the past said that as well. For us it - we came out of the show with 30 new potential customers and landed us on the front page of the Greenwich Time newspaper in the article Generators, green products trending at home show! That alone made going to that show worth it. Since the show, we've seem an increase in the potential customers inquisitions from our website leading to hopefully the beginning of Mark and I going out on numerous estimate visits.
Last month, I also went off to Norwich, CT and earned my Accreditation in the Organic Land Care Profession - earning me the acronym AOLCP following my name. The course is taught by NOFA, the Northeast Farmers Association whose mission it is to protect and encourage a healthy relationship between humans and the land.
Since coming back from my class, I was teased that I drank too much of the Kool-aid as I was heard going on and on about Connecticut is a forest and wants to be a forest; how we should leave the leaves in our garden beds as they give good nutrients to the soil and my other new mantra lawns are evil - grow food, not lawns! Prompting Mark to cue up the Grateful Dead channel on the XM radio.
February also was the month we got our online store up and running on our website which we are very excited about since many gardeners may simply be looking for some tools or gardening accessories and prefer to do their shopping online and now we can accommodate that. If you haven't had a chance to check out online store simply click on the "Shop" tab on our website www.homegrownharvest.com or follow this link to our Shop Homegrown Harvest.
As busy as February was, March is going to busier for us as we are excited about this. The last two weeks I have started a number of seed starts in what used to be our dining room. It's a south-facing room with big windows and now three tables with grow lights and a small heater. I am always amazed at the miracle of creation - to watch a seed that I planted spring forth to this little green sprout at first then develop into a plant - its just amazing! I'm always in a little disbelieve when it works. Currently, we have some varieties of lettuce, peppers and basil started, as well as some other herbs.
I plan on starting a bunch more in the coming weeks too like the beans and peas. I'm so excited about the different varieties of seeds I have chosen to plant this season. Beautiful runner beans and delicious garden peas and snap peas! I can't wait until its warm enough to plant outside.
But spring is still weeks away and we have our last frost period to endure. Mark and I have started to prepare for our second home show coming up next weekend, The Fairfield County Home & Outdoor Expo at the Stamford Plaza Hotel. We have a smaller space this time so we will have to get creative, plus I will be at the first day of the show myself since Mark has EMT training all day that day. (My partner, Mark has been pulling double duty since January when he began his EMT training at the New Canaan Ambulance Corp.) If you are interested in attending contact us at info@homegrownharvest.comand we will email you a free pass to the expo.
This month, we already have on the calendar some estimate visitations set up with potential customers. We will continue to work hard to get the word out to the community about what we do and how we can help them grow their own food. As I said in the beginning - its an exciting time but a nerve-wracking time as well. We believe in our business and want to help people discover that gardening doesn't have to be complicated, back-breaking or overly time consuming. We want to help people discover you don't need a ton of space to grow your own food - there are simple and efficient ways to garden, like square foot gardening which uses about 20% of the space than a traditional row garden uses. We also know that even the best business ideas can fail if not executed properly. That's why we are talking to as many people who have started their own businesses and learning from them; networking with people who are currently in the business and learning from them and continuing our own education in the industry so that we can continue to share our expanding knowledge with our customers. It's an ever changing world and you have learn to grow and adapt with it.
Today, food prices continue to escalate and the amount of energy used to get certain foods from the ground to your table is exorbitant. Some foods travel 2500 miles! The amount of nutrients lost in transit are enormous. We can't be certain of what it was grown in, what was sprayed on it and what exactly that is went through before landing up in the produce aisle. Technology coupled with Americans desires for a fast and convenient lifestyle has removed people from nature. Children are attached to cell phones, computers and video games instead of the climbing trees, playing in the woods and digging in the dirt.
When gardening you need to think about right plant, right place, right time; the same thing can be said about business as well - right business, right place, right time. Mark and I believe that Homegrown Harvest is a good business idea in the right place at the right time. We look forward to sharing our expertise and knowledge in helping people get back to nature a little and grow their own homegrown harvests.
 |
| At the Greenwich Home Show courtesy of the Greenwich Time newspaper |
Last month, I also went off to Norwich, CT and earned my Accreditation in the Organic Land Care Profession - earning me the acronym AOLCP following my name. The course is taught by NOFA, the Northeast Farmers Association whose mission it is to protect and encourage a healthy relationship between humans and the land.
"CT NOFA is a growing
community of farmers, gardeners, land care professionals, and consumers
that encourages a healthy relationship to the natural world. CT NOFA:
- Promotes methods of farming, gardening, and land care that respect biodiversity, soil, water, air, and the needs of future generations through education, support, and advocacy.
- Encourages the growth of a sustainable, regional food system that is ecologically sound, economically viable and socially just.
- Educates consumers about their power to effect positive changes through their food and land care choices.
- Increases the local and organic food supply and maintains productive agricultural land by creating opportunities for new and veteran farmers.
CT NOFA is working toward:
- The growth of organic food production in Connecticut, resulting in local, sustainable agricultural systems.
- A clean, safe, healthy environment to pass on to future generations.
- Preservation of existing farmland in the state.
- An abundant supply of organically grown food for Connecticut citizens."
Since coming back from my class, I was teased that I drank too much of the Kool-aid as I was heard going on and on about Connecticut is a forest and wants to be a forest; how we should leave the leaves in our garden beds as they give good nutrients to the soil and my other new mantra lawns are evil - grow food, not lawns! Prompting Mark to cue up the Grateful Dead channel on the XM radio.
February also was the month we got our online store up and running on our website which we are very excited about since many gardeners may simply be looking for some tools or gardening accessories and prefer to do their shopping online and now we can accommodate that. If you haven't had a chance to check out online store simply click on the "Shop" tab on our website www.homegrownharvest.com or follow this link to our Shop Homegrown Harvest.
 |
| Seedling under the grow lights |
As busy as February was, March is going to busier for us as we are excited about this. The last two weeks I have started a number of seed starts in what used to be our dining room. It's a south-facing room with big windows and now three tables with grow lights and a small heater. I am always amazed at the miracle of creation - to watch a seed that I planted spring forth to this little green sprout at first then develop into a plant - its just amazing! I'm always in a little disbelieve when it works. Currently, we have some varieties of lettuce, peppers and basil started, as well as some other herbs.
 |
| The toothpick is my tool of choice when starting seeds. |
This month, we already have on the calendar some estimate visitations set up with potential customers. We will continue to work hard to get the word out to the community about what we do and how we can help them grow their own food. As I said in the beginning - its an exciting time but a nerve-wracking time as well. We believe in our business and want to help people discover that gardening doesn't have to be complicated, back-breaking or overly time consuming. We want to help people discover you don't need a ton of space to grow your own food - there are simple and efficient ways to garden, like square foot gardening which uses about 20% of the space than a traditional row garden uses. We also know that even the best business ideas can fail if not executed properly. That's why we are talking to as many people who have started their own businesses and learning from them; networking with people who are currently in the business and learning from them and continuing our own education in the industry so that we can continue to share our expanding knowledge with our customers. It's an ever changing world and you have learn to grow and adapt with it.
 |
| The basil varieties are the first to appear! |
Today, food prices continue to escalate and the amount of energy used to get certain foods from the ground to your table is exorbitant. Some foods travel 2500 miles! The amount of nutrients lost in transit are enormous. We can't be certain of what it was grown in, what was sprayed on it and what exactly that is went through before landing up in the produce aisle. Technology coupled with Americans desires for a fast and convenient lifestyle has removed people from nature. Children are attached to cell phones, computers and video games instead of the climbing trees, playing in the woods and digging in the dirt.
When gardening you need to think about right plant, right place, right time; the same thing can be said about business as well - right business, right place, right time. Mark and I believe that Homegrown Harvest is a good business idea in the right place at the right time. We look forward to sharing our expertise and knowledge in helping people get back to nature a little and grow their own homegrown harvests.
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