Post-harvest handling of fruits and vegetables
Growing fruits and vegetables requires knowing how to plant, provide pest control, irrigating when needed and harvesting at the proper time. (more…)
Keep communicating
At this time of various COVID-19 restrictions, you may not be able to serve your customers as you normally would, but communicating with them remains a vital outreach for your business. (more…)
Underground and underappreciated
We need plants for food. Our livestock need them too. (more…)
International experiences help young farm grow
Harvesting apples is labor intensive, even when using good equipment.
by Deborah Jeanne Sergeant
Many fruit farm owners inherit a family farm as their entry into the business after working on the farm for years and perhaps attending an ag school. Others purchase a farm they’ve worked on for many years. (more…)
Beating Ralstonia
by Sally Colby
Dr. Jill Calabro, research and science programs director for AmericanHort, recently moderated a discussion on Ralstonia solanacearum race 3 biovar 2 (R3bv2).
“The last find of this bacterial pathogen in the U.S. was 16 years ago in 2004, and it was eradicated then,” said Calabro. (more…)
Growing greens year round
Mecks grow a variety of hydroponic crops year round, including red and green Bibb lettuce, romaine lettuce, red and green leaf lettuce, a lettuce medley, arugula, basil, dill, watercress and bok choy.
Photo by Sally Colby
by Sally Colby
A nice, clean head of lettuce appeals to just about everyone, and hydroponic growing is one of the best ways to produce that lettuce. (more…)
Communicate and communicate more
by Sally Colby
In a recent discussion about how to keep farm workers healthy during the COVID-19 outbreak, Dr. Rich Stup, agricultural workforce specialist with Cornell Cooperative Extension, discussed some options for employers. (more…)
Best management practices for farmers markets during a pandemic
by Sally Colby
A group of experienced farm market experts gathered recently to share thoughts on how to best conduct farmers markets this season.
Mary Choate, University of New Hampshire Extension, provides some basic tips. (more…)
New sensor better detects ripening agent ethylene
Dr. Timothy Swager is the John D. MacArthur Professor of Chemistry at MIT.
Photo courtesy of Justin Knight
by Enrico Villamaino
A team of researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology has developed a sensor that could have large implications for the agricultural industry. (more…)
Lessons learned from agritourism
Fencing around the apple orchard keeps deer out and prevents visitors from pulling over on the side of the road and entering at will.
Photo courtesy of Stanton’s Fuera Farm & Market
by Katie Navarra
When Tim Stanton of Stanton’s Fuera Farms & Market decided to quit the dairy business, he wasn’t ready to give up farming entirely. (more…)
CSAs talk planning & organization
by Deborah Jeanne Sergeant
Community supported agriculture (CSA) programs have become another means for producers to bring income to the farm as well as lock in markets and a revenue stream. Garrett Ziegler, MSU Extension Community Food Systems Educator, recently spoke on the topic as part of the MSU Extension Beginning Farmer webinar series. (more…)
Farm phone movies
by Deborah Jeanne Sergeant
Your smartphone is with you all the time, but you likely ignore one of its functions that could really benefit your farm: recording videos. That’s why MidAtlantic Women In Agriculture presented “Smart Phone Movies,” led by Michele Walfred, communications specialist with University of Delaware. (more…)
