Winter Rye seedings.

A true sign that summer is gone is when I begin actually seeding my beds with Winter Rye.  I have been doing this for about 4 years now since I read an article about it on the Rodale Institutes' web site.  October is about the furthest you can push the summer growing season in my area.  In fact, it seems like this year that summer is going to close out early.  Temperatures are leveling off and we have started to see nighttime lows that are beginning to get into the upper 50's.  I don't doubt that we will have a period of Indian summer still to come but, in the final analysis, most of my plants have given their last production at this time. 
I have cleared out all my lettuces, beans and cucumber plants recently.  This week, weather and work permitting, I am going to thin out my non-producing tomatoes and pepper plants.  By the end of next week, all the plants will be removed and thrown in the composters along with my last bag of last years leaves.  Yes, I still had some left.  These will continue to compost through the winter albeit at a slower rate than during the peak summer season.  Once they are all removed, I will seed all the areas with the rye I bought this past weekend from Meyers' Seeds here in Baltimore.
The Rye should continue to grow up until the first hard frost we get.  My experience is that even with a hard frost, they will continue to grow but at a much slower rate.  And, when the weather turns in the spring, they come back to life and begin to grow at their earlier rates.  This gives you excellent green manure when you cut the grass down in the early spring.  You just cut it like grass and let it rot in place.  I will get into more detail on this next year when the time comes.
The goal right now is to get as thick and lush of a seeding in of the rye as possible.  It may take a couple of seedings but if your seed is new, it may take only one time.  I have the other two gardens I help with to seed in for the winter also.  So, it's going to get a bit busy in the next couple weeks but it's all good.    
After these beds are seeded in, I will start to concentrate on growing plants inside my two structures that I have.  I will write about those at length in my next post.  So, for now, that's all there is to report.  Until then, Happy organic gardening everyone!      

Regenerative organic certifications?

Just read about this method for farmers to take organic to a new level.  While 90% of this involves farms, there is a section on soil (aka Dirt!!) health which is of interest to me.  And it should be to you too.  Seems the fine folks at The Rodale Institute in Kutztown, PA have taken sustainable and organic certification to a new level.  I know that this certainly doesn't apply to my backyard gardens, but I always try to keep a finger on the pulse of what this group is researching.  R. I. Rodale was a pioneer back in the 40's for organic practices.  Talk about cutting edge and being way before your time. Check out their site - it is chock full of information that even a small gardener like myself can use.  I intend on watching what happens with this new certification and how their soil section can benefit my growing practices. 
Until next time, happy organic gardening everyone!

Pondering "organic" gardening.

Yes, even gardeners ponder at times.  There is this whole argument going on in the farming communities all the way down to the backyard gardeners such as myself.  It's about whether or not going "organic" is really as important as it has been made out to be.  Much like the climate change dialogue, there are varying opinions among even the supposed experts on this subject.  So who are we to believe?
One group who I have been following for quite some time is the Rodale Institute (rodaleinstitute.org) in Kutztown Pa.  They have a sprawling property of over 333 acres (yes, 333!) of fields on which they conduct a massive list of research into the organic method which was pioneered by their founder J I Rodale.  I have been reading about their results for several years and I have to admit, they make a quite impressive argument in favor of organics.  I would love to see their results up close but being very busy myself, I haven't found the opportunity.
Now mind you, the Organic Trade Association has estimated that we spent in 2014 an estimated $30 billion dollars in sales of organic products.  Is this for a good cause?  Are organically grown foods better and less dangerous than traditionally raised foods?  One would think so but there is an argument to say - not so fast.
See, numerous studies have been conducted and the results do not bear out what proponents of the organic method are claiming.  That is a surprise for me to say the least.  There is one set of studies that are often championed for support of the traditional approach.  Stanford University had a long term study that encompassed a broad set of studies from many other colleges that came to the conclusions that organic foods are not safer or more nutritious than the traditionally grown foods.  I have to also point out that I am not at ease with using the organic pesticides that I have seen being sold.  We don't have a long history here so I have to wonder (ponder) at times as to whether products that say they are natural are also safe.  And have we tested them as much as we tested the traditional products?  Nope!  I know - DDT!  Right?  Yes, that was scary and I grew up eating food that was sprayed with that. Not cool.  I will point out one fact that I bring up to my wife.  She loves Chipotle.  And they are the cool organic company that fell victim to E- Coli.
So, each side has their arguments to support themselves.  I am kind of on the fence here.  My own experiences tell me that you have to find a common ground with regards to the food you are growing in your backyard.  Will I let an bug infestation destroy my crops - no.  I have tried BT based powders and they don't seem to work as effectively as other pesticides.  Do I use these all summer long? No, only when needed and in small courses.  As I have heard routinely, all things in moderation.
I have, as much as possible, strived to be as pesticide free as possible.  I have advised other gardeners on what I call a natural approach.  That's my approach for me and anyone I advise.

Fertilizer practices

In my quest to become as organic in my gardens as possible, I have followed several practices to attain the organic balance in my gardens.  I have instituted a system of cover cropping at the end of each season, I collect and mulch my leaves and grass clippings throughout the summer and fall months, I compost most months of the year, I use an adapted system of crop rotations and I collect and use rainwater for watering.  These are considered to be what are called regenerative organic gardening practices.  I modeled them after practices that have been developed by the Rodale Institute over their many years of actual field research at their Kutztown Pa. facility.
I used to be a very strong advocate of the raised bed system called Square Foot gardening.  While it was productive, I noticed that over the years, I had to continually add fertilizer to the soil which I did.  I did not find that the soil maintained it's fertility without an aggressive composting and fertilizer regimen.  And, the fertilizer regimen bothered me for many reasons.  The reason I was gardening was to produce vegetables that didn't have the inputs such as chemical fertilizers.  While SFG had it's certain advantages, I began a quest to become organic.
I stumbled upon the Rodale Institute while watching a segment on Growing a Greener World that is hosted by Joe  Lampl.  It spiked an interest in them so I searched out their website and, through the years, I have adopted as many of their practices for my small garden as practical.  And, the results have been very pronounced.
I have always stayed away from chemical fertilizers in my garden as much as possible.  But, there rarely was a year when I didn't use them at least once or twice a year.  Due to my adherence to the practices listed above, one of the most striking results is that over the last two years, I have not used any fertilizers whatsoever.  And my plants have been healthier and have been producing more vegetables than they ever have.  Through the inputs and practices previously discussed, I have been able to stop applying herbicides and such items too.  I feel better about that.  I know what I am growing intimately and I know I can trust that my crops are as organic as almost any I would buy in a grocery store.  Additionally, my vegetables are fresher and more nutritious than the store bought ones given their very short time from garden to kitchen table.
It is very rewarding and I take pride that I have been doing this far longer than organic has been in fashion.  I've known that my vegetables have always been healthier for me.  I just didn't like the idea I had to use the fertilizers and chemicals that I really didn't trust.  And once you see and taste the difference, you too will understand why you too should grow organic in your backyard.
Well, that's all I have for today.  I now have to go out and dig out from the 29 inches of snow mother nature just delivered to the Baltimore area.  Big fun today.  Happy Gardening everyone!  

Monticello and the Heritage Harvest Festival

My wife and I attended the Festival this past weekend.  We drove down Friday afternoon through the insane traffic that is Washington DC.  We were able to get in to beautiful Charlottesville Virginia, check in to our hotel and then go to the pedestrian mall in the downtown area.  We had been here before but this time was quite different.  It was the home opener for the Univ. of Virginia against Notre Dame.  Guess what color shirt I was wearing - that's right!  Bright green like I was from Notre Dame.  I laid low once I figured that out.
It was a mob scene although it did not seem intense.  I love this little mall as it is quite nice with the blend of eateries and it's quirky stores that populate the mall.  You can eat outside or inside the various restaurants.  There was a nice mix of the students youth from Virginia and the older folks - mostly alumni.  It has an ampitheater on the one end and we listened to the Skip Castro Band for awhile.  We left there just before the UVA pep rally was to start in order to avoid the crush of the people there.
We woke up on Saturday and made our way to Monticello.  When we arrived, it was lightly raining and the mountaintop was covered with clouds and fog.  I had signed up for a Soil Renaissance workshop and a class about winter gardening.  We made our way to the various vendors and perused and purchased a few items from them.  We took in a tomato tasting table from Seed Savers Exchange.  I must say, the chocolate cherry tomato's were delicious.  Only issue I had was that they did not have seed packs for many of the varieties being presented.  Come to find out, they were testing them so they may come available in the future.  I will have to keep an eye out for their catalog to see if any made the cut to packets.
Let me begin the description of what I(we) took in at the festival.  I will begin the same way I tell people to start a garden - with the soil.  Soil renaissance is a group of loosely held organizations that have as their primary goal the education of today's farmer about soil and how to sustain it.  It really was quite interesting to hear the various speakers - one from Soil renaissance, a local farmer, an extension representative from Va., the Monticello chief gardener and a professor from Va. Tech.  All had very interesting points of view and experiences.  While I was sitting listening to each speaker, I was ticking off what I do in my garden as each subject came up.  It was quite gratifying to know that my practices were in line with most of the speakers.  One place I did not mesh with one of the speakers was with the use of herbicides on their crops.  I completely understand that they have a livelihood to protect unlike me.  I garden for the joy of it and not for direct income.  There is a vast difference.
Interestingly, one of the organizations that Soil Renaissance does interact with is the Rodale institute in Kutztown Pa., not far from the Baltimore area. They are pioneers of the organic method and they date back to the early 1950's. According to the SR people, they participate regularly within the SR movement.  Rodale does classes and has tours during the year.  I will have to get up there to see the Institute.  I believe they have over 300 acres of test fields.  They are very cutting edge and I have been reading their website and picking up techniques and such for more than a few years.  If you get the chance and are in the area, it may well be worth the time to go there.
Well, that's all for now.  I will be writing more about this visit but there is so much to tell I feel it needs to be broken down over the next week or so.  I also have pictures which I will also share in the very near future.   If you have any question about this or any other topic, please feel free to leave a comment.  Until next time, Happy Gardening!
  

Progress in the garden

Lots has been happening in the garden since I last posted.  About two weeks ago, I fertilized the garden with an 8-8-8 balanced fertilizer called Purely Organic.  Catchy name eh?  I did research this and it came out looking pretty good.  Again, I prefer organic and will seek it out and yes, I will pay a little more for it versus the chemical fertilizers.  It is blended for both quick and time release of nutrients to the plants.
I must say, the plants did respond to the fertilizer and have shown some real significant progress. The tomatoes and peppers have shot up like rockets and most of the tomatoes have put on both healthy growth and fruit buds.  I saw my first pepper that is about the size of a dime today.  Very exciting indeed!
All the other plants have also shown significant increases in growth to a point I think they have overcome our earlier stunted period in late May.  Since I haven't changed anything and the weather has only recently heated up, I can attribute this growth to the fertilizer.  Will I use it again?  Yes indeed.
I also did on two waterings of compost tea in the last 3 weeks and I think this, combined with the fertilizer, may have done the trick.  I have to keep an eye on things but it is definitely promising at this point in the season.
One other thing that I have done is to use a cover crop in the fall of each of the last two years.  I covered that in an earlier post but it bears repeating.  When it is cut and left to rot and then lightly rototilled in the spring, it enhances the overall nutrient levels in the soil and it also helps with the tilth of the soil.  A organization called the Rodale Institute in Kutztown Pa. has pioneered these processes and done the hard research for well over 60 years.  If you're in the area, you should visit them.  I plan on doing that in the near future myself.  If not, look at their website - rodaleinstitute.org.
I think that my soil has taken some big leaps since I went all in on organic.  I will post about that when the time comes in the fall to begin the next round of soil improvement.
And, the big news is, I have mason bees in the hive I hung up this past Spring.  Establishing the hive is, from what I have read, the hardest part.  Putting it simply, the bees just have to find the hive and they will do all the rest.  I am hoping since they found it, they will stay put.  If you have no idea what mason bees are about, do a little research and you might too want to establish a hive.  In all honesty, it was my wife that spurred this on by buying me a hive for Christmas.  I had no idea until then.
Well, that's about it for now.  I hope everyone's gardens are going great guns now.  Until next time, happy gardening!