Hard to buy just food made in the US

[Lynn Farris]

Interesting article in the USA today paper about how hard it is to buy all of your food in the US. If the concept is to buy locally, buying food from other countries is a real problem.

With big companies taking over farming we are relying less on the small farmer for their food.

The Community Sponsored Agriculture CSA is a good step Lakewood is taking on buying locally.

Anyway what do you think about this?

http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2007-07-10-buying-american_N.htm

[Jeff Endress]

Timely....Especially based on this issue's column.

What do I think?

I think we should all find the sunniest spot in our yards, rototill it, adda couple yards of manure and watch as your own produce department produces.

The cukes are just now staring to hit, and the eggplants aren't too far off. Broccoli has been really good and the peppers are heavy on the plants. But what I'm really excited about is the corn.

It may be tough to adjust to a seasonal menu....we're so used to being able to anything, anytime. But, there's a lot to be said for buying local produce, as it is ready for market. So you only enjoy strawberries for that short span in June/July. Or Peaches in August. There's even more to be said for growing it yourself. If, in fact, we're primarily concerned with the overall cost, I'd be willing to bet that the $100 I've invested will be a LOT less then the value of the produce that I harvest.

Jeff

[Kenneth Warren]

Jeff:

Great article. You are so right about what we can produce on a small plot of Lakewood land, not only for ourselves but delicious gifts we can share with friends and neighbors, much like the fabulous broccoli you gave to me a few weeks ago.

Yesterday, while working on my backyard garden, I met the neighbor to back of my house for the first time. She liked my grape vine and mentioned her son was a vegetarian. So I asked her if she’d like some vegetables for him. I could supply big bags on collards, lettuce, basil and one squash. Nature’s bounty is a great way to create a sense of good neighborhood food security. When friends stop buy we visit the garden and I can supply a little Lakewood love from Mother Nature.

While I am participating in the community supported agriculture with LEAF and purchase at the Farmers Market too, I have found – not seeing my water bill yet - the value proposition of the backyard garden to be quite extraordinary, too.

Based on the prices I've seen at the Farmer's Market for collards, I gave Dan Slife ten dollars worth in one pluck.

I am a juicer (and return the pulp to the soil). I’ve had collards planted late last season survive winter that continue to produce, along with a head of lettuce that survived winter and yielded five more salads. It’s quite remarkable and satisfying to the inner sixties back to the land hippy to do it here and now on this little scale in Lakewood.

At LEAF night we were talking with Cover Bridge Farms and landscaper Chris Trapp about edible garden ideas for front lawns. We pondered whether or not such there is a niche market in Lakewood for this service.

Practically speaking, such an approach to growing food on the Lakewood land makes all the sense in the world.

Kenneth Warren

[dl meckes]

We have just started our front yard food garden. I used to have a large garden where I formerly rented and I had many wonderful things winter over - many herbs and hardier greens. Young Swiss Chard leaves are delicious mid-winter.

The thing that put me over the edge last year was strawberries. I once had a big strawberry patch and pulled out gallons of fruit. The neighbor kids would come over and eat their fill whenever they wanted - and the berries were organically grown. Since we bought a home, we hadn't reproduced the strawberry patch. We tilled for one last year and planted (late) this year.

I haven't had a decent strawberry in seven years. I'm perfectly happy to limit my strawberry intake to what I produce. I know next year's harvest will be small, but it will be well worth it.

We get cherries from our Bing cherry tree - not too many, but standing under the tree and eating cherries is sublime.

Other than the strawberries, what is most important to me is fresh salad, then at least one zucchini and summer squash vine.

I had fallen down on growing tomatoes and have to buy them from the farmer's market. Nothing compares to the tomatoes that will grow from the tomatoes we bury at the end of the season. (Don't forget to see if you can get some viable seeds from this year's crop.)

I made the mistake of starting a huge food garden one year and I couldn't keep up with it. This year, we have started small. As we get used to the garden again, we can increase what we grow and process, but it's good to have a plan.

One of the resources I would recommend for urban gardeners is Square Foot Gardening. I also liked looking at British gardening resources because they do much more with vertical gardening than we.

We know that our food gardens can be beautiful (plant edible flowers, too) and having some plans available to buy or having a resource to do our planting is a great idea.

This year we finally have our small front yard garden. If we manage to keep it (our visiting helper forgot to water it) and we get some food from it, we will be encouraged to plant a few more things next year.

Perhaps in a few more years we won't have any grass at all.

[Jeff Endress]

So far, the upkeep has been pretty easy. I laid down a heavy layer of composted mulch right after I put in my plants. Reserved enough to take care of the seeded areas once the plants were large enough. By and large, the weeds have been kept down, and those that are there can't compete with the healthy growing veggies.
I'm trying to keep a production diary, just to figure out what eventually comes out, maybe figure out the overall economics. The brocolli has been hitting heavy, as have the cukes. Limited squash, to date, but the peppers and eggplants should start to yield later this week. The corn is developing tassles.

We'll add 4 or 5 yards of manure this fall, till it in and then augment in the spring with leaf humus. Although I'm pretty pleased with the whole thing so far this year, I realize that this is the first year and the soil is gonna need some work.

Jeff

[Chris Trapp]

Jeff,

I also enjoyed your article. The ultimate in food security is to grow your own...or be good friends with someone who grows. I just read an interesting book by Barbara Kingsolver, called Animal, Vegatable, Miracle. It recounts her family's year of eating only food that they grew on their small farm in Virginia or that they were able to purchase from within their county.

I've really enjoyed meeting various people through the LEAF Community who have a wide range of gardening experience. There is so much to learn, and so many approaches to take...from Ken's wild mystery garden to conventional rows of plants to intensive square foot gardening.

Karlyn of the LEAF Community had the interesting idea to take a (biking) tour of gardens in Lakewood. It would be fun to see how and what others are growing. Would any of you be interested in showing your garden if I set up such a tour?

dl, am I correct in remembering that you did a seed exchange last year? How did that work out? Are you planning on doing it again this year? Maybe we can tie it in to one of the LEAF nights at the end of the year. I saved some seeds from a Green Zebra tomato and a White Tomesol tomato I bought at a farmers' market in Burlington Vermont last year. They are looking great this year, and they already have a special history for me.

[dl meckes]

dl, am I correct in remembering that you did a seed exchange last year? How did that work out? Are you planning on doing it again this year? Maybe we can tie it in to one of the LEAF nights at the end of the year. I saved some seeds from a Green Zebra tomato and a White Tomesol tomato I bought at a farmers' market in Burlington Vermont last year. They are looking great this year, and they already have a special history for me.

I couldn't organize the seed exchange this past year - but it isn't too early to start saving seeds. I was trying to tie it in with the humus (and plant sale) that the city has at the parking lot by the Oldest Stone House in early fall (Gail Higgins will have the date).

I just sat at a picnic table with seeds I had (or that neighbors donated) and a number of folks brought some of their seeds to share.

I'd love it if LEAF would like to carry on the idea. So many gardeners need to thin their beds and they throw away what they no longer want, while others need to garden on a budget.

Tying the seed exchange with the plant sale (the money goes to a good cause - I'll get Gail to tell me the specifics - again) worked really well.

Folks from Keep Lakewood Beautiful were also helping - I think it would be very good if LEAF also had a presence there. Please give Gail a call (she's at City Hall).

[Chris Trapp]

thanks dl,
i'll talk with gail.
we definitely need to maintain a seed exchange.