I am attending the Downtown Bloomington Farmers Market this year.  It started May 15 and will run through the month of October on Saturdays from 7:30 am until 12 noon.  Stop by and check us out! 

    The Peoria RiverFront Market at Liberty Park (across from the Illinois Antique Center on Water St.)  The market runs every Saturday from 8am until 12 noon starting the first Sat in June and running through October.  Rain or shine...so bring you umbrellas if the rains come, and have fun!  There are lots of produce and baked goods vendors, art displays, meat vendors, eggs, and so much more.  For more info go to http://peoriariverfront.com/index.php?section=15

   The Stark County Farmers Marketin downtown Wyoming, IL.  This market runs every Thursday evening from 3:30pm until 6:30pm, starting the first Thursday in June and running through September.  There are several produce vendors, baked goods, rugs, local meats,  hand-made jewelry and more.  So come up and visit me at the market, and take some time to enjoy our county.  There's so much to see here!  For more info on Stark County, go to www.starkco.illinois.gov

     I strongly believe that synthetic chemicals are toxic to soil and can kill beneficial soil life and slowly cause the soil to lose its tilth, natural fertility and organic matter.  They can also cause nutrient imbalances that creates a situation where the plants are constantly stressed, making them more attractive to insects.  Synthetic fertilizers and pesticides are primarily derived from fossil fuels making us more dependant on oil and creates a less secure food system if oil supplies run dry.  Doesn't sound like the way it should be.

     That's why I dont use synthetics on my farm.  Instead I use compost, cover crops, crop rotations, natural rock phosphates, fish-based products (think of how the indians showed the pilgrams to grow corn), and seaweed products for fertility on my fields.  I use healthy plants, trap crops, row covers and natural products for insect control.  And my food looks great, tastes great, and is healthy and safe to eat! 

      In the three years since I bought my current farm; which had been farmed using conventional no-till before I bought it, I have noticed an incredible increase in the number of earthworms.  This spring I was digging in a dry area and every shovel of soil had at least two or three worms!  And each year the tilth seems to improve.  My first year when the soil was even slightly damp it would stick to my shoes like glue.  Now this spring I can walk over it and very little seems to stick.  None of these experiences are scientific of course, I don't record data or anything like that, its just some things that have caught my attention when I'm in the soil. 

     Also, currently in Illinois, about 90% of the food we eat comes from outside the state!  That seems unreal to me!  We have some of the most fertile soils in the world and we don't even feed ourselves with them.  Think of how many people could be employed and how profitable current farmers could be if even 50% of our food was grown in state!  Now obviously in the winter months we would have to rely on warmer climates for some foods, but a lot of produce can be stored by freezing or canning, and lots of crops can be grown through winter with cold frames and hoophouses.  So there seems to be tremendous potential here for economic growth and sustainability, but it requires a change in thought and attitude about our food.

   And this push to change attitudes about food needs to come from consumers!  We farmers are out here ready and willing to grow what you, the public wants, but we need a strongly dedicated base of consumers to support us.  Please attend farmers market and support local growers and local CSAs! That tomato might cost a little more, but there are NO HIDDEN COSTS when you buy food from a local, sustainable, chemical free farmer!!!  And hey, that same tomato will actually taste like a tomato!!!!!!!!!!!!          

     Here is a link to an article by Michael Pollan on where our food system is, and how I feel it should and could be.   http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/12/magazine/12policy-t.html?emc=eta1 

   My crew and I have been working on getting another hoophouse together.  It will be a 30 by 198 and will be used primarily for tomatoes, peppers, and greens.  For now it will have open ends and its main purpose is to protect the crops from strong winds and hail which can destroy leafy crops, and to reduce so of the effects of the heavy rains we've been getting the last couple of years.  Those rains can really reduce the quality and yeilds on tomatoes.  We have all the pipes up and are waiting for the ground to dry out enough to put on the uchannel the holds the plastic covering.  

   I have also had some water quality issues.  My farm is located 1400ft from where my parents drilled a new well  a couple years ago.  The well has a great supply of water so instead of drilling a new one at my farm, I just trenched a line from their well across the neighbors field, to my farm.  It works great but last year I noticed some salt damage in my hoophouse crops.  So I got the water tested at a lab, and it turns out that it has a very high sodium level.  So...I now have a water line that I spent several thousand dollars on, and water that I cant use for irrigation.  

   I have looked into several RO systems and they arent cheap, but what can I do?  A farm needs good water so Ill be installing an industrial size RO system sometime this summer or fall.  Until then I will be hauling water from town.  Overall, even with the water line and RO system, it will still be cheaper than drilling a well like my parents did.  So I shouldnt complain too much.  

   Well on to some good news! I have a small heater installed in my 30by128 hoophouse and already have it full!  I planted some potatoes, snow peas, beets, radish, carrots and transplanted lettuce, spinach, mizuna, tatsoi, turnips, chard and more greens.  This warmer weather is really helping because I havent hard to run the heater much.  Everything looks great and will be ready by the time the early spring markets start.  

   This summer I plan on adding another layer of plastic covering on this hoophouse for more isulation, allowing me to grow year round.  

   I think this is all for now...check back for more updates, as long as I can get back to the computer!  See you at the markets!       

11/1/09   WOW!! I am not very good at updating my website!  Well, I had a feeling this would happen, but I gave it a try anyway.  When the weather is good and it's "go, go, go" on the farm, it becomes difficult to squeeze in an extra hour to sit in front of the computer.  I'll try again next year and try to make myself keep this website updated.

   Well, this year went great.  I was wondering what effect the economy might have on farmers markets, but it seemed not to have much.  All of you loyal customers came out and supported your farmers!  Thanks for all the support you have given me and my farm this past season, and I look foward to seeing all of you again next year.  Check back for updates...maybe!! 

6/7/09   This has been two very busy weeks.  The ground has been drying out and me and my helpsers have been planting and weeding.  All of my winter squashes are planted, my cucmbers, and most of the tomatoes and peppers.  In between all of that, we've been weeding as much as we can.  The early planted carrots got really bad so we will have to spend more time weeding them.  We continue to get rain showers every seven to ten days, which is fine as long as we dont get anymore than an inch each time.  The rainy days give me time to catch up on the greenhouse planting and website stuff.  I can also spend some time in the hoophouse with the tomatoes, pappers, and cucumbers.  

    The markets also started last weeks and went very well.  Wyomingand Peoria were both very busy and everyone who was there were so excited to have fresh, local produce again.  Winter can seem so long sometimes.  So now my schedule gets even more crazy.  Markets on Tuesday, Thrusday, and Saturday, with the days before them dedicated to harvest.  And I still have to keep the farm weeded and keep planting my successive crops!  So I guess I spent enough time sitting in front of the computer, better go out and plant something!  See you at the markets!  

   5/14/09   Its been almost a month since my last update, but thats because Ive been busy.  The soil has been fit to plant in most areas, so Ive been planting.  I have my hoophouses full of tomatoes, lettuce, peppers, and cucumbers.  Ive planted some sweet corn, green beans, green onions, carrots, more broccoli and cabbage, caulifliower, spinach, radish, lettuce, beets, and the rest of my potatoes.  All 1500lbs of them!  

   Weve gotten another 2" of rain the last two days with more expected on Friday, so Ill probably be out of the field for a while.  Since my last update, I received my bees that were ordered over the winter.  I set up my hive next to the hoophouses and they seem to be adjusting well.  I hope to get a few more to help with pollenation on the farm.  

   Im harvesting around 8 lbs of asparagus a day now, so call me if you would like some.  The strawberries are looking great and I hope to have some starting in June so check back if your interested.    

   4/16/09   Finally!!  I was able to get into the field last Saturday and planted about 3000 onions.  Then on Sunday after easter get-togethers, me and mom planted 600lbs of potatoes in an hour and fifteen minutes!  The potato planted I made is huge time saver...and a back saver. 

   Today my employees and I started the day by painting the front of the shed.  Later in the afternoon me and Mike planted 150 broccoli plants and 100 cabbage plants.  I think tomorrow well begin the day with some more painting and then move on to planting more onions and leeks.  It sounds like a chance of rain again on Sunday, so Id better get as much planted as possible. 

   3/24/09   Rain, rain go away... Just when it was starting to dry out and I was starting to think about planting time, the rain came back.  Thats fine though, Dad once told me you should never wish the rain away, so I won't. 

   I'm going to try and take some pictures of my fields right now.  The rye and vetch that was planted last fall have really turned green and will definately take off in growth after this week!  They'll keep doing there job of capturing nutirents and the sun's energy, until I till them under to feed my crops.  

   The greenhouse is completely full now.  Next week I will be putting some of my broccoli and cabbage in the cold frame so they can become acclimated to the outdoors.  My cold frame is just a wooden structure covered with clear plastic.  It is warmed by the sun, but has open ends to allow air to more through.  If needed, I can close off the ends and open a window to my greenhouse and pump heat into the cold frame, if it gets very cold.  Next week or so I will also start to plant some of my lettuces in the small hoophouse...spring is so close!       

   3/14/09   The weather is starting to change for the better, spring might be here to stay.  I planted some peas and red spinach in the smaller hoophouse today.  I hope there will be enough warm days in a row that the seeds can get germinated.  I have also gotten the larger hoophouse completed.  The fans are in, the doors are all on and now I'm waiting for it to dry out enough to get the soil ready to plant.  All I need to do is decide on how to get power to the fans.  They will be critical during late summer to pull hot air out.  The smaller hoophouse vented by rolling up the sides and opening windows, but the big one needs the fans. 

     Everything in the greenhouse looks great.  Lots of tomatoes are up(about 300 already), broccoli, cabbage, lettuce, cauliflower, celery, and I think thats all.  I picked up my seed potatoes this week also...1500lbs of them.  I got two varieties of reds, yukon golds, kennebec bakers, and a small blue variety.       

     2/24/09   Got some seeds started today in the greenhouse.  I did some tomatoes, broccoli, and lettuces.  This is the first year I've tried starting lettuce in the greenhouse.  I think this way I'll have a better quality crop because they'll be transplanted at the proper distance apart, where as before I'd direct seed them and go back a couple weeks later to thin them.  I never seemed to get good stands of romaine or other head lettuces through direct seeding either, so I'll try transplanting them. 

     I've also been working on a 'cold frame' addition to the greenhouse.  This is an unheated area covered with clear plastic where I can set plants in to get them acclimated to the outdoors.  Hopefully this will keep my tomatoes from getting so beat up after transplanting.

     We were also able to get the plastic on the ends of the new hoophouse that I mentioned in my last post.  Now I need to add the doors and windows for ventilation.  Slowly the projects are getting done. 

     Today is February 15 and winter seems to slowly be losing its grip on the farm.  The last couple weeks of warm weather has gotten most of the frost out of the ground and the days are long enough now that my fields of overwintering cover crops, have started to 'green up'.  And that is one benefit of using cover crops; even in mid February they are capturing sunlight and converting it into nutrients for next years vegetables. 

     Its supposed to be in the low forties for temps with clear skys, so we might go out today and put the plastic of the ends of my bigger hoophouse.  When I get the ends on, it will be warm enough inside that I can start to irrigate and prepare for planting this spring. 

     In about ten days I will be starting some seedlings in the greenhouse, mostly broccoli and cabbage, but I will also start some leaf lettuces and romaine, and then transplant them within the hoophouse.  So I had better get out and get the ends of the hoophouse on...  

   in a couple weeks I will have greens and root crops at the Methodist Atrium early spring market!  

   Call me or email if you would like any produce on this list.

   It was a challenging year for all farmers in 2009, and GEFA farmers struggled through to provide crops to our members each week, and we did!  That is one of the main benifits to a member of the Good Earth Food Alliance CSA, if one farm can't provide a crop because of weather, another farmer can bring something else.  

   As a founding member, I feel it is in my best interest, and the interest of GEFA, to no longer actively expand my own CSA.  This year I will continue my CSA in the Wyoming area, and will offer my CSA to the Peoria area for returning CSA members only.  I would strongly encourage anyone interested in becoming a CSA member, to look into the Good Earth Food Alliance. 

   GEFA offers the most diverse CSA in the area.  We grow many kinds of vegetables, along with fruits like strawberries, apples, pears, black raspberries; as well as offering eggs, meats, bread, soups, and more to buy as add ons!  We even offer an exchange table where members can swap items between one another, if they would like more of a certian vegetable!  No one in the Peoria area can compete with our variety and flexibility.

   So check out GEFA and sign-up for the e-newsletter.  As always...

          Thank You for supporting your local farmers!