Harvest Time

We have had a beautiful fall.  After Labor Day, temperatures dropped back to more seasonal, it was a real relief.  I'm looking forward to the transition of seasons and the opportunity to move forward in the new year.



Common scene.  Neighbors harvesing corn.

Our harvest was not up to par.  This was due to extreme heat, wind and lack of precipitation throughout most of the growing season.  Tomatoes clearly did the best, especially in the high tunnel.  It appeared that several varieties remained green and were extremely slow to mature.  Was this because they were heirloom varieties and not hybrids?  Unfortuntely, our signs which marked the varieties did not hold-up (need to do better job a signage next year), so it was difficult to determine varieties of top performers.

One of our better plants outside the high tunnel.

Weeds were a problem in the garden and with organic options being limited, it was a challenge. 


Flaming weeds.  An organic option that helped, but could not get too close to the plastic.

















In an effort to control weeds and improve soil health next year, we planted a cover crop mid-September.  Cover crops can provide a variety of benefits, including; weed suppression, increased infiltration, decrease evaporation, increase percolation, increase microbial activity, increase carbon retention and storage, increase nutrient availability, improve soil structure, and fracturing of hard pans.  The intent is to graze or leave standing in the spring and basically no-till directly into it.  We worked with Green Cover Seeds who provided a mixture of oats, winter pea, Persian clover, BMR forage sorghum, Graza fodder radish, and turnips (purple top, Winfred hybrid, and Hunter hybrid). 




Cover crop nearly 10" tall and growing in November.  Note tomatoes have winter killed.


The high tunnel definetely extended the growing season.  Tomatoes were harvestable for nearly one month longer than outside tomatoes.  Also, the cover crop outside, which was planted on the same day, was not even comparable. 




Cover Crop outside high tunnel, November.  Despite planting on the same day, it appears to be at least 30 days behind cover inside the high tunnel.  August 1 may be a better plant date?




Calf growing well.

 We sold a yearling Jersey bull and a three year old Jersey heifer which would not breed dispite AI and natural service.  This should help alleviate some pressure on tight forage supplies and limit the purchase of $200/Ton hay.


Other challenges this year revolved around weather, namely wind.  



70 mph gusts proved hard on the cover of the high tunnel.  We need to come up with a better option next year as this was designed to last four years and did not make it a full season.



Preparing for cold winter winds with some added windbreaks for the livestock.



Other natural challenges:

No, that is not snow.  It is salt.  Salinity is an issue in our area.  This is what comes to the surface through capilary action following small precipitation events.  This can be a challenge for some types of vegetation and must be monitored and factored into production decisions.