By Roberta Bailey The wild nut forests of North America are gone, having succumbed to weather, blight, and the heavy harvesting of their valuable lumber. No longer can families go into the woods and gather burlap sacks full of nuts for winter keeping. Yet many nut trees are hardy in the northeast, and a few
By Sue Smith-Heavenrich Certain plants, when grown in combination, enhance each other’s growth, repel insects, and increase fruit production. Called “companion planting,” the idea has always intrigued me. So every spring I carefully map out a garden plan complete with successive plantings and companion plants neatly pencilled in. Along with my usual beans and greens,
By Nicolas Lindholm This is the second of five articles covering some of the most commonly produced and potentially profitable seed crops being grown by small-scale organic and biodynamic farmers in the Northeast. Supported primarily through a grant from the Maine Dept. of Agriculture, I studied almost 30 farms in New England and New York,
Jack Kertesz spearheaded the alley cropping demonstration at MOFGA’s orchard in Unity, showing how annual and perennial crops could be interplanted in a young orchard to gain income while waiting for fruit trees to mature. By Jack Kertesz Imagine working with a blank slate of ground and feeling that the outcome might look like some
By Diane Shivera Because animals have been indoors for much of the last four months, they are more likely to have developed skin problems than in spring, summer and fall. Not only is sunshine the best cure for skin diseases or parasites, but it may “brighten” animals’ spirits – as it does for many of
Anne and Eric Nordell have perfected a system of cover cropping and crop rotations that virtually eliminates weeds. In addition to the video and collection of articles noted at the end of this article, the Nordells are putting together a manual that goes into more detail on the rotational principles and practices of their weed
Jim Amaral of Borealis Breads. Leavening the “Taste of Maine” Experience By Jean English Jim Amaral and his wife, Dolores Carbonneau, started Borealis Breads in 1993 in Waldoboro. What began as a “Mom and Pop” operation, with 12 breads and about 12 wholesale accounts, quickly grew, so that by 1995 Amaral had bought a bakery
With the abundance of genetically engineered canola, corn and soy ingredients in processed foods sold at supermarkets, baking your own is often the only way to enjoy GE-free breads. Pam Bell photo. By Roberta Bailey Bread is elemental. It takes earth, water, air and fire to make it. Bread is basic, a one syllable word
By Roberta Bailey Few plants are as carefree and easy to grow as elder or elderberries, Sambucus canadensis and S. nigra. Also known as common or American elder, this pest-free perennial shrub grows in many soil conditions and prefers the wetter areas where little else will thrive. Yet some people would ask why they should
By Sue Smith-Heavenrich As a Girl Scout, I spent one Saturday morning every summer month weeding and pruning a formal herb garden. I decided, right then, that herbs required more care than they were worth and vowed I would never grow them. Ever. They’re a waste of time, I tell my husband as I tuck
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