http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ Tiny Farm Forum: Recent Posts en Sat, 04 Jul 2009 00:18:34 +0000 http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/herbs#post-355 Tue, 30 Jun 2009 14:57:52 +0000 MDH59 355@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>Interested in whether anybody in this forum has made a success of growing and selling herbs. There seems to be a big market out there for organic Ginseng and Ginko biloba -- those memory and brain enhancing herbs.</p> <p>I read an <a href="http://www.conditionnutrition.com/reviews/power-herbs-best-cure-for-your-body/">article </a>by a health writer on ConditionNutrition that talks about how people are using these now. </p> <p>Just curious.</p> <p>- Bud </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/farming-club-around-san-antonio#post-354 Wed, 24 Jun 2009 12:10:03 +0000 sbhoward 354@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>Sorry - I Just noticed your post. I'm in New Braunfels and am interested. Please Keep me posted on your progress. </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/storing-tricks-at-farmers-markets#post-353 Sat, 20 Jun 2009 21:09:41 +0000 Mike (tfb) 353@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>No tricks, just simple, common-sense stuff. We have the super basic canopy-and-tables set-up, so we're fully up against the weather. Market is 7am-1pm, so the critical time is about 7-11, four hours in the increasing heat, usually not too bad.</p> <p>We don't have any refrigeration, and try to keep everything as cool as possible going in from the harvest the day before, so during summer, I'm often out after dark, when it's coolest, misting and dunking various crops with icy well water, so they <strong>overnight as cool as possible</strong>. I find heat builds up in even a few late evening hours after rinsing. For example, if you rinse and spin mesclun around 7pm and pack in a plastic bushel bin, in 2-3 hours depending on the weather you can have significant heat retained and building in the middle and bottom of the bin, just stick your hand in to see. So I'll check and either bathe or just turn it in cool air before leaving it for the night. This applies mainly to leafy stuff, which is also the most susceptible to heat...</p> <p><strong>Misting </strong>at the market is OK, but I don't find it helps that much, if it's really hot and/or breezy enough that leafy veggies start to wilt, misting won't bring 'em back. Everything just gets wet. Usually, things aren't that extreme, and misting is more cosmetic, keeps things looking bright and perky...</p> <p>I've never used <strong>ice packs </strong>at the market. Ice packs we used in the 2 years we drove CSA shares to the city, a 2hr+ trip in bins in a covered pick-up truck bed. There, I'm pretty sure they helped, but that was a pretty extreme heat situation on hot days. We also put a sheet of rigid styrofoam insulation on the truck bed to protect from road heat. But at the market, conditions aren't so extreme, and I don't think the trouble of managing ice packs is worth it. In a cleverly designed set-up, no doubt they could be great, but just tossed at the bottom of bins, I dunno. Haven't had enough of a problem to experiment.</p> <p><strong>Cooler chests plus ice packs </strong>sounds effective, but the crops that most need it for us (leafy) are too bulky in our quantities 30-60+ units, so I've never considered investing in that. Maybe with more compact things like herbs or microgreens or sprouts that might make more sense.</p> <p><strong>Soaking </strong>cut stems in water we don't do much, because we don't have anything on the stand that lends itself to that. Occasional flowers and herbs (most of our herbs are prepacked into CSA shares).</p> <p><strong>SHADE </strong>is the biggest factor I've noticed. At the old market, we faced east, so the canopy gave no shade to the display as the sun came up. We kept no vehicle at the stand, bins were stored on the ground (pavement) behind our table, so we'd always be moving around critical bins (leafy stuff) to keep them in the shade of the canopy as the sun rose.</p> <p>At the new market, we face west, which is GREAT! On a sunny day, the veggies look good in the indirect light, and there's SHADE from the canopy all morning. That's excellent.</p> <p>Of course, anything in <strong>plastic bags </strong>definitely has to stay out of direct sun, even a few minutes in clear plastic and the temperature shoots up, the old greenhouse effect!<br /> Greens may look good, but with heat and condensation, they could go bad real quick when taken home. On hot days, I really tell every customer to take the greens out of the bag, give 'em a cold rinse, dry 'em off. Might sound like a lot of work, but it seems market salad buyers aren't phased by this. It's worth it! :)</p> <p>Writing this, I realize how little I've invested in refining and improving this area over the while, but then again, we haven't had big problems doing what we do now. I suppose because we don't store past market day, the only thing really not harveted every week is garlic, and we don't take things back for sale elsewhere (we usually sell out), ours is the simplest situation to deal with. </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/storing-tricks-at-farmers-markets#post-352 Sat, 20 Jun 2009 07:18:39 +0000 aagaardfarms 352@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>We try to stand root veg like beets and carrots in water, as well as things with cut ends like herbs, bundles of beet greens and flowers (of course!). Even if we bring ice in coolers it is water pretty fast because summers can be hot here and our markets are on pavement. </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/raising-white-rock-chickens-for-meat#post-351 Fri, 19 Jun 2009 08:58:53 +0000 EtienneG 351@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>Wouldn't butchering on site be more flexible? That way, you do not have to book the processing house in advance, so timing is more flexible. It's a bit gruesome though, and I wonder how one would dispose of the guts and feathers. I guess I will have to read Salatin at some point.</p> <p>Feathers, I think, would make a good fertilizer if ground properly. </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/seeders#post-350 Thu, 18 Jun 2009 08:10:01 +0000 Mike (tfb) 350@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>Here's an anti-6-row precision seeder <a href="http://gear.tinyfarmblog.com/farmart-six-row-seeder/#comments">comment from Tiny Farm Gear</a>:</p> <blockquote><p>This things a piece of crap. I bought one. I works very poorly. seedbed has to be perfect and packed. Earthway much better performing in real life non eliot Coleman condidtions ( even with i’t obvious idiosyncrities)<br /> I sold mine straight off after many failed attempts and endless frustration that my hero/mentor put his good name on such a worthless gadget. -<a href="http://www.maplerockfarm.com/">John</a></p></blockquote> <p>That seems to further what Matthias mentioned above. The tilther is probably a good investment, as part of a little precision-seeding system.</p> <p>It's a sign of the times a changing that the Earthway in action is a prominent illustration in Eliot Coleman's <em>The New Organic Grower</em>, last published around 15 years ago. This 6-row precision seeder is a Coleman design... </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/raising-white-rock-chickens-for-meat#post-349 Thu, 18 Jun 2009 00:12:12 +0000 Ross 349@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>Hi Mike.</p> <p>Love the tiny farm blog. Its a great resource for anyone interested in gardens...and chickens.</p> <p>I've got 25 Cornish Giants that I got as chicks on May 5. They are in a very limited space right now (still working on a coop) but I'm going to get them into the coop this weekend. I purchased them unsexed, as it was a cheaper option. Don't know if it will make a difference in overall production. Males get bigger, they are also a lot more agressive.</p> <p>I will have an attached enclosure so the birds can get out. The enclosure is movable, and doors on either side of the coop will allow me to graze them over a larger area. I'll lock them in at night for protection from predators. </p> <p>The last time I raised these birds was about 10 years ago. We left them for too long, butchering at 14 weeks. We lost 3-4 birds in the last week, as their legs just gave out on them. They were also very fatty, and we prefer our meat a little more lean.</p> <p>I've butchered at 12 weeks also, with much better results. </p> <p>In addition to their grower feed, and bugs and grass, we also feed them stuff destined for the compost bin - vegetable tops, potato peel, etc. They really love watermelon rinds.</p> <p>Anyway, keep us updated. Are you planning to sell these birds or just use for your own consumption? </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/storing-tricks-at-farmers-markets#post-348 Wed, 17 Jun 2009 19:08:27 +0000 cropthorne 348@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>Just wondering what other market gardeners do to store their produce at market. We find that when things sit out at market all day they wilt. We mist them and try not to put too much out at once as well as keeping it all out of the sun. (We keep the rest in coolers with ice packs until we need to restock)</p> <p>Any tips on how to keep the produce cool at market?<br /> Does anyone display things like broccoli with ice? </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/raising-white-rock-chickens-for-meat#post-347 Wed, 17 Jun 2009 09:34:45 +0000 Mike (tfb) 347@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>White Rock hybrid chickens have been bred for decades as efficient meat birds, which means they eat insatiably and are very good at converting feed to meat, at the expense of cardiovascular development. This means very big birds in a few weeks (8-9 lbs in 10 weeks!). It all means healthy birds can die suddenly of heart attacks (Sudden Death Syndrome). Also, left to their own devices with lots of feed, WRs become lumbering beasts, inclined to simply park themselves near food and water. Yikes.</p> <p>It all sounds pretty dire, BUT, the more traditional meat birds are in the area of HALF as efficient, a bird half the size at the same time, and the meat, while more flavorful, may be tougher, harder to cook, not really the plump, tender chicken we've become used to (at least, here in North America).</p> <p>Sooo, what to do on the tiny farm? On one hand, we could not raise White Rocks and get used to a different chicken experience. OR, we could raise White Rocks, but in a way that didn't allow them to simply gorge themselves and become lumbering beasts. This would for now be a best of both worlds thing, with much more efficient meat production, along with healthier birds that've eaten a more varied diet (feed plus foraged grass and bugs). And this is apparently possible.</p> <p>That's what we're trying now.</p> <p>On our second batch of WRs, 40 cockerels (males), we let them out at around three weeks old, to free-range during the day in the area of the chickenhouse. Feed is allowed to run out for about four hours. They're about 5 weeks old now, and we're just switching off the around 22% protein starter feed, to an around 18% grower feed (all certified organic from the next farm down the road).</p> <p>That's as far as we've gotten. </p> <p>We're going to book slaughter time at the processing house for about 10 weeks, so there's the critical next 5 weeks of rearing to do. Any tips and advice on raising the WRs this way through this period (and from the start), would really be appreciated! </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/tomato-seedling-trouble#post-346 Tue, 26 May 2009 06:53:55 +0000 PaulR 346@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>Tomatoes can be planted right up to the first set of leaves. Spindly was probably due to not enough light. My seedlings grow 1" under the grow light bulbs. </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/tomato-seedling-trouble#post-345 Mon, 25 May 2009 14:45:40 +0000 Lana13 345@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>Hello Im new to the group my name is Lana. Question I have some heirloom tomatoes i started from seed they've gone spindly on me should I plant them deeper in the soil and hope for the best thanks in advance for a reply :) </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/how-to-use-alfalfa-pellet-fertilizer#post-344 Fri, 22 May 2009 07:25:47 +0000 Matthias 344@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>Hi Mike and Tiny farm people,</p> <p>We've used alfalfa for a few years now at the rate of 1 ton per acre. On the long gardens(the ones were going to plant all at once) we spread it with the manure spreader and till it in. <a href="http://borealedgefarm.blogspot.com/2009/05/spreading-compost.html">Here's a movie of what it looks like in the spreader</a>. There's a bunch of goodies in there, get your recipe cards!</p> <p><strong>Boreal Edge Farm Amendment Mix</strong> (per 330 foot row, 6 feet wide)</p> <p>4 loader buckets well rotted cattle manure<br /> 2 50 pound bags organic Alfalfa pellets<br /> 3 pounds kelp meal<br /> 10 pounds pure wood ash</p> <p>Once the field is covered, we rototill it in. I have never tried topdressing the pellets, mostly because the deer are attracted to the smell. However, last year we tried using only alfalfa on our potatoes, to see if it would help control scab. I can't say it made things any better in the scab department(because we didn't have a control row) but it did serve as an excellent all round fertilizer on its own, and the potatoes were happy with it.</p> <p>Because its a slow release of both nitrogen and potassium (not much phosphorus)high organic matter content (42%) host of trace nutrients and ph of 6.5, alfalfa pellets work quadruple duty on our farm. Raising the low ph or our boreal soils, while feeding the crops and increasing the biological activity in the earth, increasing fertility overall.</p> <p>The pellets do break down over time, but they can still be found (if incorporated in the soil) even a year later. This spring when we pulled some plastic mulch we found all kinds of totally undisturbed pellets in the bed. Also some spilt pellets lasted all fall/winter/spring on a rock pile at the edge of the field. completely exposed to the elements.</p> <p>We also use the pellets when we go to incorporate a cover crop, just broad casting a few hundred pounds over the area to be tilled after the cover crop has been mulched down with the riding mower. This really speeds decomposition of the carbon in the cover crop up, which is super important with our very short window of soil life activity here (3 months)</p> <p>The last location on the farm we've found them useful is in the compost pile, for the same reason as the cover crop, to help break down the carbon in the "compostibles". It also helps the bacteria in the pile to thrive, and jump starts them in the spring.</p> <p>Whew! </p> <p>Hope this helps,</p> <p>Matthias, </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/tiny-tractor-requirements#post-343 Thu, 21 May 2009 11:44:24 +0000 shankar 343@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>Dear Mike, Thanks for the detailed reply.. I have been thinking hard about equipment to buy and considering investments like hoophouse and cold storage and house repairs, I decided to do only 2-3 acres to start and buy the following equipment...</p> <p>They are from earthtools BCS website catalog <a href="http://www.earthtoolsbcs.com/html/bcs_implements.html." rel="nofollow">http://www.earthtoolsbcs.com/html/bcs_implements.html.</a></p> <p>1. a BCS 13hp diesel hand tractor (Largest BCS hand tractor with good tractor tires)<br /> 2. a vacuum seeder and also an earthway.<br /> 3. a rototiller (the best possible) - I will buy the bed-shaper attached after a 20+ Hp tractor is purchased.<br /> 4. a Brush mower that cuts weeds,covercrop,existing beds to tiny pieces ( I am thinking if I can will drive on a sulky with the tiller and mower in one pass<br /> 5. I need a sulky to sit and drive along the tractor. (see video link below)<br /> 6. I need a vacuum sprayer to spray material on to the plants (Kaolin clay, garlic and pepper juice) - Still figuring how to buy this..<br /> 7. I need a good spreader to spread compost, rock phosphate, gypsum and greensand. Need to find the right one. I want to save money on spreader price by attaching spreader to hand tractor.<br /> 8. A power driven tricycle to pick up the harvest from the field.</p> <p>Mike, I am still debating between rototiller OR (rotary plow + power harrow combo) OR spader. The stuff that I am really afraid with the spader is I get very tired after doing 500 feet of preparing land.</p> <p>Spader is the tool of choice although I am scared of the weight.. I even thought of a bed-shaper but it needs min 20 hp. I am scared of buying too many tools and then not using them. Lot of money spent may not be a good idea for a beginner. </p> <p>I want to say that Tiny farm blog and forum have been inspiring and helpful. Keep up the great work and thanks for your time after a tough day in the field...<br /> I will read the articles you have and will think more. </p> <p>-Regards, Shankar. </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/farmers-market-weighing-and-bagging#post-342 Tue, 19 May 2009 20:25:01 +0000 darst creek farm 342@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>I perfer paper bags They do not sweat in the Tx heat .In Tx if you are caught useing a scale with no weights and measures sticker (selling to the public)you can be fined (I have never seen the W/M police though). </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/farmers-market-weighing-and-bagging#post-341 Mon, 18 May 2009 08:09:20 +0000 88man1 341@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>Not sure about Canada rules. I know there is Measurement Canada approval for scales, but not sure if it is required or not. </p> <p><a href="http://www.pricecomputingscales.com/Retail/2009/05/04/farmers-market-weighing/" rel="nofollow">http://www.pricecomputingscales.com/Retail/2009/05/04/farmers-market-weighing/</a></p> <p>In the US, most states require that you have a NTEP legal for trade scale for farmers market either mechanical or digital </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/market-canopy-or-shelter#post-340 Sat, 16 May 2009 12:12:47 +0000 cropthorne 340@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>For those in BC <a href="http://www.impactcanopy.com/" rel="nofollow">http://www.impactcanopy.com/</a><br /> I think it is around $350. Used it for 5 seasons so far. </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/farming-club-around-san-antonio#post-339 Fri, 15 May 2009 07:42:14 +0000 darst creek farm 339@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>Would anbody like to start an informal club to meet and swap ideals , maybe loan implaments to help fellow micro farmers , maybe swap seeds or cutting of plants ect . Thanks Allen </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/tiny-tractor-requirements#post-338 Thu, 14 May 2009 20:09:56 +0000 Mike (tfb) 338@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p><strong>Austrian Michael:</strong> I'd love to get an older tractor and learn to service it. I'd love to convert an old tractor to electric. I'd love to learn to weld...!!! Even if things get really terrible with the economy, climate change, peak oil, etc, etc, I think these are basics of tiny farming, there is so much equipment and info floating around.</p> <p>Hopefully, I'll get around to all of this. There is just so much to do! :)</p> <p>Oh, and I did find ag tires that I think would fit my little John Deere riding mower. I don't think I want to spend any money on the JD, there are so many other worthy purchases, but if with the slopes around here it seems necessary, and I can find 'em used, I'll go for it! The JD is really useful!</p> <p><strong>shankar:</strong> Yes, what I meant about incorporating broadcast seed was as you described. We broadcast oats and fall rye, and raked some sections in by hand, and on a couple of other sections, used the rototiller to just skim the surface. That worked great, MUCH better than the hand raking, and way faster. I only tried that once, but I'd go that route again after broadcasting.</p> <p>The way I will sow cover crops now, though, is with a walking seeder. I read a paper on using the inexpensive Earthway for smaller scale, I think they were talking up to a couple of acres. It's apparently really effective, quick and much better than broadcast and some method of incorporation. I only do small sections, 50'x50'to 100'x100' at a time, so this sounds great for me. 7 acres is a lot, so you probably want a tractor-mounted precision or broadcast seeder.</p> <p>As for horsepower, I'm not the one to ask! I have no tractor experience other than with my little Kubota. But I do think about other tractors sometimes! :) The rough rule I use for HP is about 15-20hp per implement, per chisel or moldboard. I'm not sure how accurate that is, or where I got it.</p> <p>I took a look online and found lots of stuff. Here are a couple of articles that I found practical and detailed:</p> <p><a href="http://www.extension.iastate.edu/agdm/crops/html/a3-26.html">Matching Tractor Power and Implement Size</a> - how to calculate</p> <p><a href="http://www2.dpi.qld.gov.au/fieldcrops/3492.html">Selection and matching of tractors and implements</a> - more how to calculate</p> <p>That was interesting. Hope it helps! </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/tiny-tractor-requirements#post-337 Wed, 13 May 2009 09:50:40 +0000 shankar 337@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>Hi Mike, I am trying to cover-crop about 7 out of 11 acres. When you say<br /> "The rototiller is really useful, most often for incorporating compost, broadcast seed," </p> <p>How do you broadcast seed with rototiller. Do you hand broadcast and till a little bit to bury the seed. Will this not bury seeds too deep ?</p> <p>Please let me know the max. horsepower needed to disc a 7 acre field. I am inclined to Kubota tractor (small) and BCS or Ferrari non-inverting spader/bed-shaper. I am concerned about not getting help to disc the field. How often should a field be disced.</p> <p>-Shankar. </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/plows#post-336 Wed, 13 May 2009 07:43:12 +0000 Pepper77 336@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>Just bought an old 2 bottom mold plow cant wait to to turn some ground getting some virgin land (about 1 acre) ready for planting next year have a lot of nanny berries ( goat poop)to add and a lot of hay that has been in my goat pens going to Gonzales Tx and picking up a load of mushroom dirt will turn it i and disk it good for next year ! </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/how-to-use-alfalfa-pellet-fertilizer#post-335 Tue, 12 May 2009 14:51:58 +0000 Mike (tfb) 335@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>So we purchased 1 ton (2,200 lbs, in this case) of dehydrated alfalfa pellets from the <a href="http://www.wamcoltd.ca/">Western Alberta Milling Co.</a> It's certified organic, sounds like a cool alternative fertilizer, and has been delivered.</p> <p>The general instructions from WAMCO are for a ton per acre per year for veggies, applied in spring, and again at a couple of points during the season. Top dressing (spreading on the surface) was recommended, allowing a week for incorporation after, ideally, rain, or irrigation, has rehydrated it. I'm researching around and will have more questions for them as well. </p> <p>We haven't started using it yet, the purpose here is more as a garden start-up supplement than a full-on fertilizer for annual use. (In another forum topic here, I explained <a href="http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/green-manuring#post-278">why we got alfalfa pellets this year, and our overall tiny farming fertility situation</a>.)</p> <p>I originally heard about alfalfa pellets right here, in a <a href="http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/green-manuring#post-280">comment by Matthias</a>. I'll contact him to see if he'll add experience and tips to this topic (unless he reads this first!). Meanwhile, if anyone else has used alfalfa pellets for veggie production, any input would be great!</p> <p>We'll post our progress on this end as the season goes by. </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/licences-and-other-red-tape-for-tiny-farms#post-332 Sat, 25 Apr 2009 18:49:20 +0000 Mike (tfb) 332@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>That sounds about right.</p> <p>The best thing to do is call the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, and ask the exact question you did here. It's surprisingly easy to get straightforward answers by phone (take notes), and just about everything is online as well. Then you'll be able to refer to the specific regulations that apply to your situation.</p> <p><a href="http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/realign/aicc.htm">OMAFRA Agricultural Information Contact Centre</a> 877-424-1300 </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/market-canopy-or-shelter#post-331 Thu, 23 Apr 2009 10:37:35 +0000 Bebop 331@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>wow!<br /> Over here, you can pick up an EZ up for only $100! </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/tiny-tractor-requirements#post-330 Thu, 23 Apr 2009 03:14:07 +0000 AustrianMichael 330@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>Thanks for your Answer.<br /> I can´t imagine, that there are no ag-tyres matching the JD-riding mower. I bought mine for the murray at our a local dealer for car parts. I was also looking for these tyres at the internet (ebay,...) and there were plenty offers, you only have to know the dimensions.<br /> Since i use the Mitsubishi with the rice-field tyres, i never had problems with mud packing the tyres, because there is a big distance between the bar treads on the tyres. I think the Mitsubishi is strong only enough with it´s 13 HP, because the power is straightly brought to the ground by the transmission and the tyres.<br /> I´ve been thinking about a front end loader too, but i still haven´nt found one for the mitsubishi.<br /> I also use a real farm tractor owned by my brother (the tractor is a 40 years old Warchalowski, I think this type of tractor was built and sold only in Austria) which has 20 PS and does also good work in hard conditions. This size of farm tractor was really common in the sixties here in europe, so you can easily get such a machine for a really low price.<br /> I´m not a technician, but working on the machinery, repairing, rebuilding and things like that are my second hobby after running my "tiny farm", even tough it can really caus trouble, when I can´t manage to keep one of my old machines running at the right time..... </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/market-canopy-or-shelter#post-329 Wed, 22 Apr 2009 19:19:20 +0000 mike 329@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>I hate to say it, but I picked my EZUp up at Sam's club for $200US. It seems to be a cut above the bottom end. These are the bomb when it comes to markets and it took me 10 years of going to markets before I made the move- should have done it sooner.</p> <p>Prior to that I used a set up with pipes and threaded joints with a white canopy that attached with elastic bungees. It was simple took a little while to set up, but it was cheap! and didn't take up much room in the market van, which is the downside of the EZUps. </p> <p>Canopy color matters. White is the way to go, even though it might get a little dirty. You don't want the color of the light shining through the canopy to make your veggies look "off". </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/tiny-tractor-requirements#post-328 Wed, 22 Apr 2009 07:59:06 +0000 Mike (tfb) 328@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>Sounds like you're really curious! It's probably really just about those turf tires!! :) My only experience with tractors is with this Kubota, so I can't compare, but here's just about EVERYTHING I can tell you...</p> <p>It's a Kubota B1700 HDS, 17hp, diesel, hydrostatic transmission (no gear shifting) with high and low ranges, 4-wheel drive (switchable), rear and mid (belly) PTOs, Cat 1 3-point hitch. Implements are the front-end loader, 48" rototiller, and 52" mower deck.</p> <p>I've heard the term "estate tractor," and I guess that's a good description for this machine. The horsepower may sound low, no more than a modern riding mower, but it's a whole other sort of machine, really a tinier version of a big tractor. It's the heavy-duty construction, gearing, hydraulics, etc. It's strong and tough, so it can do a wide range of things around a property.</p> <p>On this farm, it's not used as a regular field tractor. It's too small to moldboard or chisel plow at a decent scale (it could pull, say, one chisel...). And that stuff isn't usually needed around here, only when starting new garden areas, and maybe every 3-4 years for a day. And we don't cultivate by tractor, instead, with wheel hoe and hand tools, and bare hands.</p> <p>Instead, the Kubota is an all-round player! The rototiller is really useful, most often for incorporating compost, broadcast seed, crop residue, on small sections, sometimes as little as one 5'x50' bed between other planted out ones. </p> <p>The loader is incredibly useful, for turning compost, light levelling and grading, clearing all kinds of things, carrying heavy stuff like compost, rocks, and so forth, ferrying around things, dragging and prying things, clearing paths in snow, raising and towing, acting as scaffolding,...you can do just about anything with a bucket! </p> <p>The mower deck is hardly used, but it comes handy for mowing down overgrown, weedy areas that would choke a regular riding mower.</p> <p>The Kubota was bought used (450 hours), and came with turf tires (and the mower deck). I was looking around for ag tires for a while, but the turf tires have never been a problem. Only literally once, when we were loading manure in the rain, it slid around and couldn't grab traction. But, the other Kubota (Bob has a similar one) with ag tires, also had nearly as much trouble, because the bar treads got packed with sticky, wet manure and clayey mud. Other than that, no problems, and the turf tires don't break up the ground, which can be handy depending where you're driving. Switching to 4WD really helps at times as well, like in snow.</p> <p>The hydrostatic transmission is also no problem. I don't do anything that requires staying in one gear. The high and low ranges seem to be fine. I'm in low for anything that requires power, like using the loader to move compost or earth, or rototilling. It's also convenient for increasing and decreasing speed incrementally, like adjusting forward speed with the rototiller, to keep RPM constant as it moves through lighter and more dense areas.</p> <p>Also, no shifting makes it much easier for other people to hop on and go, which is important on this tiny farm where everyone does everything!</p> <p>I use the little John Deere riding mower for hauling around stuff on a trailer. That also has turf tires. They do slip on slopes in wet conditions with a trailer load. On the old farm, everything was quite flat. Here on the new farm, there are lots of slopes, so this could be a problem. But, it usually doesn't rain much, and there are quite flat ways around. No ag tires were available for the JD. I could maybe get ATV tires, but I don't think it's worth the cost. We'll soon see how this works out.</p> <p>I am still always on the lookout for a really old, like the old International or Allis-Chalmers or something, bigger (40hp) tractor that could do some chisel plowing and the like. But it has to be really cheap. That would be set up with ag tires!</p> <p>Hope all that relieves the Kubota question! :) </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/tomato-seedling-trouble#post-327 Wed, 22 Apr 2009 05:11:46 +0000 organicsheri 327@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>irvinecreek...if you think it's b/c of too much water, you are probably close to the truth. Trust your instincts...they're likely listening to the tomatoes! </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/licences-and-other-red-tape-for-tiny-farms#post-326 Tue, 21 Apr 2009 10:06:37 +0000 davidfarms 326@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>Unless I've missed something, the only requirement I can find for small CSA farms in Ontario is a PST number and a farm business registration number. So tinyfarmers in Ontario..... have I missed anything?? We're growing and selling vegetables through our CSA and market sales. Oh! And we're also getting liability insurance to cover us for events and box pickups and so forth. Anything else? </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/leased-land#post-325 Fri, 17 Apr 2009 21:09:09 +0000 LandMan 325@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>If anyone in the Michigan area is willing to lease their land for hunting, please let me know. </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/soil-blockers-for-seed-propagation#post-324 Fri, 17 Apr 2009 02:14:52 +0000 AustrianMichael 324@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>I use soil blocks as well as quickpot-sheets with 56 holes for plant processing. my experience is, that the soli block-method works well, but i can not manage to make the blocks as fast as filling the quickpot-sheets (trays) with soil, so that the "output per hour" is higher without blocks.<br /> The second thing is, that I couldn´t manage to create a blocking substrate that is actually working with the stuff (manure, compost,...) which I have on my farm. Once the material gets to compact, next time the blocks don´t hold together. Due to this difficulties I usually use a bought substrate for the soil blocks, which works well. I try to keep the blocks not too wet, because there is always green moss growing on them very quickly an very thick and I think that is influencing germination. </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/tiny-tractor-requirements#post-323 Fri, 17 Apr 2009 01:41:29 +0000 AustrianMichael 323@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>Hello!</p> <p>There is one Question, that I cant´t get out of my head: Isn´t the tiny-farm Kubota much more a turf-care tractor than a farm tractor? I would be interested, if it has a hydraulic transmission, or a common mechanic transmission with hand-shifted gears. Does anybody know?<br /> I have a tiny farm myself, with about 2500 square meters and two greenhouses myself, and I use a Mitsubishi compact-tractor, with a mechanic transmission, which i need badly to do plowing for example. My tractor is equipped with tyres wich are made for wet rice-field conditions and so I can hardly imagine, how I could manage to work with these turf care tyres from the kubota in the tiny-farm blog. Any experiences?<br /> I also have a rider-Mower like the JD (mine is a murray) and I changed the turf-tyres against real tractor tyres. It works well, pulling trailers with harvested veggies out of the garden area. </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/green-manuring#post-322 Thu, 16 Apr 2009 09:27:55 +0000 EtienneG 322@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>Mike, I believe you enjoy ample space at your new farm. Have you considered growing your own alfafa? According to my study (I am taking "Organic field culture" by correspondence at Université Laval this semester), alfafa is the best nitrogen-fixing legume and produce as much organic matter as a prairie. And it is perennial too, so it should not take up too much work to maintain.</p> <p>You could, for example, split your field in six plots and do a rotation where vegetable are grown on a plot for three consecutive years, followed by three years of alfalfa. That way, you have half your field in green manure without expanding too much energy, as you only have to plow/till one sixth of your field yearly. And you could actually harvest some of the alfalfa during the summer to use as top-dressed fertilizing mulch on vegetable.</p> <p>According to my brother (a conventional farmer), the downside of growing perennial alfalfa is that it is very hard to plow under. The roots can get as big as your pinky, and it take some serious power from the machinery to kill it. </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/horrible-credit-need-advice#post-321 Tue, 14 Apr 2009 15:17:50 +0000 Bebop 321@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>Well turns out he's deploying to pay off our bills. To tell you the truth, we don't have a MASSIVE amount of debt, just really bad credit. I'm going to say our debt is under $10,000 if that much.<br /> Thank you so much for the advice though. It's really encouraging. </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/tomato-seedling-trouble#post-319 Sat, 11 Apr 2009 11:18:09 +0000 diva 319@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p>the tomato true leaves look fine according to your photo.....i wouldn't worry if the marking is only showing on the first leaves....maybe the dryness caused difficulty when germinating from seed. </p> http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/topic/tomato-seedling-trouble#post-318 Thu, 09 Apr 2009 12:57:19 +0000 irvinecreek 318@http://tinyfarmblog.com/forum/ <p><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3375/3426324061_b74c0759d6.jpg" alt="troubled tomatoes" /><br /> So, a few of my tomatoes are showing signs of stress, in the form of yellow pitting on the leaves. Emerging true leaves seem fine, but does anyone know why they're doing this?? Too much water, is my best guess, but I'd like to know for sure before I change habits. These are non-hybrid tomato seeds, started in peat and worm castings (10:1), watered twice daily (the room they're in is crazily dry). Any ideas? Questions? Please let me know. Thanks in advance. </p>