Update March 5:

Spring 2015 at Whitsend brings another first:  

These are Echinacea plants sprouting their primary leaves.  A big improvement over last year (when no echinacea sprouted).

Now the trick is to keep them alive.  My role is to provide neither too much nor too little water and some air circulation, the rest is up to the plants.

The New Zealand Spinach has started to sprout as well.

Unfortunately, I will have had to start the  onions again, the first round has germinated very poorly.  Both varieties planted germinated poorly. If only one or the other had not germinated, I would have suspected the seed lot was compromised (or perhaps a little old).  Though a 90% failure for 160 seeds seems a bit much.  

I'll do two germination tests to check this - one in the nursery, and one at the house.

In the meantime, I've planted another variety of onion in the nursery.  We'll see how that goes.  We still have time to get the onions started, even if a third try is required in a week.


We have sold another Picnic Basket as of last night.  We now have room for just three Picnic Baskets or six Snack Baskets.  Order soon!


Update February 22:

Hey everyone.  Things are going well here at Whitsend.  The first couple of onions are starting to sprout.  If the first round of seeds germinate well, I'll post a photograph of the seedlings.

The echinacea has moved from the freezing cold into the nursery.  Hopefully the minus twenty temperatures have been enough to crack open the seeds.  We'll know in a couple of weeks.

The next big task is to start to move some of the snow away from the outer walls of the barn.  The ground level outside the barn is slightly higher than the barn floor, which traps run-off.  This was unanticipated last year, and i wound up with a couple of inches of ice and water in the barn until April last year (which froze the stacked lumber and saw horses to the ground).  So lots of grunt work over the next few days to get me into shape.

Feb 15

The nursery is holding its heat, over the past few days; the air temperature has ranged between 5 and 25 degrees, which is adequate. 

The soil temperature is in a range between 10 and 25, the cooler trays near the front of the nursery and the warmer ones in the back (suggesting to me I might tighten up the seal on my doors for next year).  For onions, the ideal germination temperature is between 18 and 24 degrees.  These will get sown in the trays at the back of the nursery.  The New Zealand spinach prefers a cooler soil to germinate in (my experience about 16-19 degrees), so this tray will go at the front.  I’ll also start the celery and celeriac at the front; it prefers a slightly lower temperature, 19 to 21 degrees.

Rosemary is a tricky one; I’ve seen different references suggesting its ideal germination temperatures.  I’ll have to give it whatever space works best (read at this point as ‘whatever space is available’).  Once it starts to germinate, the plants will get “promoted”, and then it will be placed in the warmest area of the nursery, as it prefers a lot of warmth.

As for the Echinacea, it has been sown and placed in a protected spot outside the nursery.  The variety I’m growing has really hard seeds that need a period of freezing to crack the seed coating.  Some varieties require freezing for as much as three weeks. 

There are several challenges to growing food in extreme temperatures, and growing food in nurseries.

Cold:  Most lethal to cold weather crops are rate of temperature change and the drying action of wind.  As the nursery is inside, wind is not an issue.  On the coldest nights, the nursery air temperature can fall quite low.  So long as the nursery is well insulated, and closed up by mid afternoon (to allow the air temperature to stabilize before the night cold), this should not be a problem.  In addition to the insulation, the nursery is built to allow a continual circulation of the air.  Space has been left between the shelves to allow the cold air to return to the heater. 

One fact I learned some time ago (I’m certain it’s in Eliot Coleman’s book “Four-Season Harvest”, though after searching through it can’t seem to find the relevant paragraph) is that young plants are more tolerant of cold than mature plants.  This seemed counterintuitive, until I reasoned that most plants evolved to start sprouting in spring, when temperatures are still unstable.

Starting Seeds in Nurseries:  It drives me up the wall when I come across references such as “starting rosemary from seed is too difficult, just buy the plant and transplant it outside when the weather is warm.”  Please tell me (everyone, for that matter), what’s so difficult?

Damping Off:  One of the most common responses I have heard about failed attempts to grow plants from seed is that the seeds sprouted, the plants grew for about a week, and then suddenly fell over and died.  This is a fungal condition called ‘Damping Off’.  A fungus infects the plants where the sprout stem contacts the moist soil.

Molds prefer a damp environment with poor air circulation.  Providing air movement (such as with a fan) inhibits the mold growth. 

With some air circulation in the nursery, damp air is taken care of.  (Recall above, the air in the nursery circulates past the heater, which helps dry the air somewhat).

The next place to prevent dampness is on the plant itself.  The upper parts of the plant are in the direct path of the fan, so they are taken care of.  Where the stem touches the soil is another factor to consider.

I start each set of seeds in a pair of trays.  The bottom tray is waterproof, and acts as a reservoir for water.  The second tray has a perforated bottom.  When this second tray is full of soil, I place it into the first (water filled) tray.  The water then wicks up into the soil, where it can be taken up by the plants roots.  This keeps the soil surface relatively dry, ensuring that the sprouts are getting the moisture where they want it, at the roots.

 When the water reservoir is empty, and the soil starting to dry out too much, I lift out the top tray, replenish the reservoir in the bottom tray, replace the soil filled tray, and let the process start over again. 

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I also use a natural mold suppressant as an added layer of protection.  However, there are many molds in the soil that are beneficial.  The ones I want to suppress are at the soil surface.  After the soil tray has been inserted into the water tray, I mist the surface of the soil with the chamomile.  My theory is that as the water is wicked up into the soil, it keeps the chamomile at the surface, protecting the beneficial molds in the root zone.

The trays I use for seed starting are typical plastic salad containers (re-purposed from my previous employer).  The trays are deep enough to fill with about two to three inches of soil.  This is more than required for starting the seeds, however, the added soil and the moisture it holds acts as a heat sink.  This is another trick that helps moderate the temperature change as the outdoor temperature starts to cool at night.

I am required to use trays that only contained certified organic produce, to prevent cross contamination from pesticide/fertilizer residues.  As well, the chamomile and potting soil are from a certified organic source. 

All of this activity is recorded in a journal, the keeping of which is also a requirement for organic certification.  It is also essential for keeping track of which practices work, and which ones don’t.

Earlier in this post, I mentioned ‘promoting plants’.  I’ll go into detail as to what this term means in the next post or two, when the sprouts are ready to be promoted.

Saturday night, we ate a good meal of local, mostly organic food, followed by a concert with the Sadies.  The venue was a fine little place called The Neat Café in Burnstown Ontario.  If there is anywhere that foodies and rockers can learn to appreciate what each other has to offer, then this might be the place.

Just head west on the 417 (about 45 minutes from Stittsville), then 15 minutes or so down hwy 508.

If you don’t miss Burnstown, then you can’t miss the Neat, its right in the middle of town in a remodeled schoolhouse.

They serve Beau’s, which come to think of it, is another example of great music and food under one roof.

No one paid me to say any of this. 

Bob

Welcome to the Whitsend Farm 'website'.  Our CSA farm in Ottawa (Stittsville) provides  a wide variety of certified organic vegetables.  Buy your share of the harvest in advance and receive a weekly or bi-weekly delivery of produce from June through to November.  We deliver our local food to selected neighborhoods in Alta Vista, Centretown, Hintonburg, Centrepointe, Barrhaven, and Kanata.



Thanks to those of you who are checking out our site for the first time.

First of all, a note about our flyers:

If you received a flyer on your doorstep, thanks for your patience (particularly if I upset your pup!)

I do not deliver to households that request no flyers, if I missed your sign, please accept my apologies.

As I deliver to specific neighborhoods, print advertising doesn't work for me...I would have to turn down quite a few inquiries.

I realise that my flyers are a bit rough and ready.  Most will wind up in landfills/recycling, so I don't spend money on slick plasticised prints.  I prefer to invest in quality seed and tools.

If you are interested in learning more about our produce, and are considering becoming a customer of our farm this season, peruse the website and feel free to contact me at the email or phone number below.  I look forward to answering your questions.

Hey Folks:

There is one event at Whitsend every year that indicates spring  has sprung.  It's the little red light on the heater.  The nursery is switched on.

I'll be monitoring the air temperature over the next couple of days, to determine how much heat is required to maintain a reasonable growing temperature range in the nursery.

The heater is designed for barns.  If it overheats, or tilts, the power cuts out.  As an added layer of fire safety, I've placed ceramic tiles around it so that if it should tilt while it is hot, it won't contact anything flammable.

The seeding trays will be filled up with soil on Friday, and then I'll warm them up for a night to double check the sol temperature.  

If all goes well, the first round of onions are seeded Saturday morning.

Aside from the seeds and starting soil, these are about he only tools required for tray seeding.  A piece of wood to smooth the soil surface, some chamomile tea for misting the soil surface (chamomile is a fungal suppressant), a couple of seed spoons for 'promoting' sprouts - more on that in another post, and a filing box.

The file box has some cheat sheets on every crop we grow - ideal soil temperature for germination, general time of year for starting the first round of seeds, and some individual notes.  For example, New Zealand spinach germinates better if it's seeds are soaked for a couple of hours.  Echinacea germinates better if its seeds are chilled for at least 48 hours.  Some seeds require scarifying (I can't recall which one, but I know where the info is...)

We'll see a couple more tools in the weeks to come.















It's looking better in the barn by the day.   An improvement over the last two years.  Less clutter, easier access to everything i need.

Even an extra chair for a guest...


Talk to you all soon!

Bob

Update February 3rd

Hey Everyone:

Work continues here a the farm...not much different from the previous post.

Shovelling snow from the doors of the barn and checking out activity in the field; and preparation work in the office.

Now that the vegetable seeds are purchased, I am turning my attention to the cover crops, soil amendments and supplies for next season.

Cover crops are used at Whitsend for a variety of reasons.

Forage:  Oats, Timothy Grass, Alfalfa:

The east half of our growing field is entering the final year of my preparation plan.  The pigs are doing the 'heavy lifting' of clearing the persistent weeds out of the field.

The field was prepared by the tractor last fall.  In the spring, the first round of forage cop is sown.  Oats germinate very quickly and provide a thick cover that suppresses other weeds.  Pigs love oat grass, and consume it quickly.  As the oats are consumed, they turn their attention to the other weeds which have managed to sprout.  They also eat roots of persistent weeds such as wild parsnip and dandelion.

The field is sectioned off, and the pigs are moved through each section as they clear out the weeds.

When a section is cleared, it is then cultivated with the tractor, to incorporate any manure and disturb the soil in preparation for the next seeding.  The second forage crop is alfalfa and timothy grass.  The timothy is another weed suppressant, the alfalfa is a legume that fixes nitrogen in the soil.  When the alfalfa and timothy are ready for consumption, the pigs are moved back in and repeat the process, again eating up any weeds that have sprouted since the first pass.

After the pigs have thoroughly worked each section two or more times, the field is tilled again.  Then it is surveyed into beds and paths. 

Paths and ground cover:  Dutch clover, Perennial rye.

Paths are more than just a place to walk.  Maintaining the paths is part of our fertility building strategy.

Paths are sown with dutch clover and ryegrass.  Both of these cover crops are suitable for foot traffic, grow thickly to suppress other weeds from establishing, and provide sufficient ground cover to prevent erosion and retain moisture.  They are very suited to our climate, able to withstand hot summers and cold winters.  They remain green after a light frost, and are self seeding varieties.

The ryegrass requires regular mowing to prevent it from shading the crops (The clover only grows to a maximum of 8 inches).  The cuttings provide ‘green manure’ for the compost.

When the beds are being worked, some soil and amendments are knocked into the path.  These nutrients are taken up by the roots of the path cover crops.  When the path cuttings are composted, the nutrients are recaptured and returned to the beds when the compost is ready to be applied.

Nurse crop:  Buckwheat

After the Rye and clover are sown on the paths, a nurse crop is planted to allow these slower growing plants to establish.

Nurse crops are good at suppressing fast growing weeds such as wild mustard, but allow slow growing grasses such as clover and rye to get their root systems started even when growing underneath another fast growing crop.

I also plant the buckwheat in the now surveyed beds to keep them covered, again, to suppress any weed growth.

Buckwheat is killed by frost, so when the frost arrives in the fall, the cover crop dies off, revealing the alternating strips of beds and paths, laid out and ready for use in spring 2016.

A small amount of clover is also sown underneath some of the vegetable crops, as a means of increasing nitrogen in the beds.

I am experimenting with using Buckwheat under the corn as a means of suppressing weeds from building up during the long growing season for this particular crop.

Calculating the amount to buy is somewhat tricky.   I use a half acre to grow most of my current produce on, but have to take into account the path areas.  As well, I have to estimate the rate that the pigs will consume the forage crop - they will go through it much quicker in August as mature pigs than when they arrive as piglets.

Some of these crops - particularly the rye - are very expensive, so I have to make sure I am not overspending my seed budget.  At the same time, there is a finite supply of these seeds in eastern ontario, and the available stock runs out at some point in the season, so I can't afford to purchase less than I need.  As well, this is intended to be the final season for purchasing forage crops.  If I purchase too much this year, I will have seed that I will have no need for next year.  So the brain and calculator are getting a lot of exercise these days.

Most of our cover seeds are purchased from a farm supply dealer in Berwick Ontario.  However, sourcing organic seed for Dutch clover is very difficult.  Apparently, the only source for north america is in Denmark.  So much for 'local food'.

I'll write about our soil amendments for the next post, as I anticipate that their will be no great developments for the next two weeks.

One note on our storage food:

We are still eating potatoes, garlic, winter squash, beets, turnips and watermelon radish from last year.  These have stored really well, and help make up for the lack of decent lettuce.



SURVEY RESULTS are now in.  Check the "Advantages of a Farm Subscription/2015 Survey Results" page tab, above.  You will need to scroll down a little to find the results.

As of January 21, I have confirmed three quarters of our sales quota for the season.  I am commencing negotiations with another two prospects.  Seventy per cent of these customers are from previous years (We seem to be reaching new customers)  If you are interested in purchasing a share, contact me soon...

They say that in the market garden business, producers can expect about a 50% turnover from one season to the next.  I've retained at least three quarters of my customer base each year.  I attribute this to two factors:

-Meeting my customers before closing sales, to review each others expectations.  I don't want to sell a share until I know I can provide what you are looking for.  My past career in sales and fundraising excelled when I had the freedom to build relationships.  I apply the same approach when looking for new farm customers.

-Maintaining communication during the season.  Many customers appreciate learning about how their food is grown, others want to know more information on some of the less familiar varieties, particularly how to store, cook, or preserve these.

I also use the website to let customers know how the farm is doing.  I was told by one of my mentors (Tom at Elmtree) that it was equally important to give the bad news ahead of time as well as the good.  It keeps expectations reasonable.  I find it also helps take the sting out of my failure to get a particular crop to grow.

I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that 80 percent of farming has nothing to do with gardening.  At this time of season, that is very true.  Paperwork, planning, advertising for interns, communicating with customer and intern prospects, sourcing the last few items (tools, equipment, seeds) and generally wishing it were spring and simultaneously grateful that I still have some time to get everything finished before planting time starts.  



Having to bundle up to deliver flyers or pick up checks is a welcome break.

As is going out to the farm.  These days, I can only be out there for 2-3 hours at a time before I become too cold to work.  The barn is not much warmer than outside, its considerably darker, and the wind still manages to get in.  The barn door needs to be kept clear of snow, and there is still some building to be done in there.

There are still supplies to purchase, and these will have to be brought in through the back route as the gate is frozen shut.

The snow is too deep for the car, so these will need to be carried.  One of these days I'll be buying a sled, one hefty enough to carry 25 Lb bags of potting soil and soil amendments.

I check on the field.  There is still activity out there.  I check to see who's around when I'm not.





The first place to check is the garlic beds.  They are covered by about 8-10 inches of straw (to keep the bulbs from freezing), and capped by a few inches of snow.

I look for deer tracks.  It is possible they might   disturb the straw looking for food.  If that happens (never has in five years), I have some page fencing that I can set down over the beds, pinned with a few rocks or bricks.

More worrisome are mice tracks.  These rodents are more likely to make their nests in the straw, and it is possible they may nibble the bulbs.  So far this year, the mice tracks are only around the barn, compost, and the cedar logs that used to support the cistern out in the middle of the field - no-where near the garlic.

Here are some fox tracks, identified by the straight line of single prints, spaced about a foot apart.

There are several trails of these cutting through the field, evidently this individual includes the growing field as part of it's territory.




I followed the most recent set of tracks, they led to the compost pile.

The snow here is somewhat disturbed, the animal appeared to pause and investigate the pile before moving on.  I'll check again to see if it return's regularly.  That would suggest it is keeping track of a rodent nest, and will get to it when needed.  

We were at a nearby conservation area the other day and caught a glimpse of a master of stealth - a weasel sporting it's winter 'ermine' coat.

I could use a few of these at the farm as well.

For the mice, mind you.  

Wool may be a great way to keep warm, but without any foliage on the hedgerow, and a lot of open land nearby, I can't do too much tracking on a windy day.

Construction on the nursery is finished, the doors were the final part.  It took a little ingenuity to hang, balance, and attach them with only two hands, but I was able to do it.  Good to to know that old forebrain of mine is up to a challenge.

The improvements that the new nursery has over the old are already apparent.  As a workspace, it makes better use of space, despite the fact it is smaller.  The electrical connections have dedicated places that are safe from water spills, the power bars are easier to access, and the point where the power enters the nursery is "more" rodent proof.  (Nothing seems to be impossible for these critters).

The workbench (Lower portion on left hand side) is contained within the nursery, this allows me to do transplants without exposing the plants to too much cold (keeps my hands warm, too).   There is a dedicated shelf for record books, pencils, and seeding tools.  

Unlike nursery two, it is short enough that i can use the top as a place to store yet more trays and light equipment not required until spring.

The enclosed nursery causes a build-up of moisture in a 'still air' environment, which in turn promotes a fungal condition called damping off. Damping off causes sprouts to die off within a week or so of life. 

Nursery 3 has recessed a shelf built into one wall that holds a small fan to keep circulation going.   In the past, the fan was placed wherever it fit, which usually meant in the way!

I also mist the soil surface with a solution of chamomile before seeding, this is a fungal suppressant.  

Unlike previous nurseries, I sprinkled a diatomaceous earth powder in the walls before i sealed them up, to suppress earwigs, which were a bit of a problem last year.  A few earwig traps inside the nursery should take care of any that miss the powder, I just have to remember to leave them in year round  from now on.



Most of the shelves are only about twelve inches in height.  Four for the lights, three for the trays, and about five inches for the plants.  This ensures that the light is directed right at the soil surface and the sprouting seedlings.  As the plants grow taller, the trays are moved to the taller shelf, below.

Many of our first crops will skip the taller shelves and go outside to the hardening off shelter, which is warm enough for early crops in mid April.

This nursery is much better insulated than either the first (which was good, but awkward), and the second (which didn't hold heat very well).  Being a smaller volume, it requires less power to maintain warmth.  Even on a minus thirty day, the air temperature should remain in the range  of 15 to 20, though it can fall to about plus 5 for short periods during the night.

Note the "door" that I am opening to the lower right.  It is four inches thick (full of 3 3/4 inch insulation).  The interior wall has an additional layer of aluminized bubble wrap.  This helps seal the gap between the door and the stay that runs the length of the supporting two by four.  The stay is also adding support to the shelf brackets, ensuring that their is a continuous "post" between the ground and the base of the uppermost shelf.  With a capacity of 24 seed trays, each full of sprouts,  soil, and water, the shelves are bearing quite a load. 

A temperature range of 16 to 27 for soil (depending on the crop) is held by use of propagation heating mats. These can be a bit tricky to work with, as they have no temperature control, so I have to moderate them by placing a board between them and the seed tray.   This is one of the things I experiment with when starting the nursery for the first time.  Too warm, and the lettuces won't germinate.

The nail protruding from the two by four post is what "locks" the doors closed.  When the door is put back in pace, the nail is pushed into a corresponding hole on the side of the door.

I AM clever by half! (Necessity helps...)

I'll turn it on around mid February to let it warm up and determine the best setting for the heat.  I can't wait to start planting the onions in about a month.

It is so good to have it finished this early, last year's 'nursery two', or the monolith as I sometimes called it, was finished at the last possible moment last year, and meant a bit more stress than i needed.

With the nursery finished, time to turn my attention to the next building project...growing frames for our early spring and late fall crops.

Thanks for signing up for the 2015 season...if you are still considering, feel free to call soon.  Half of my quota is sold, most are usually spoken for by mid February.

Bob



Our seeds are arriving and inventoried.  A sure sign that spring is on the way...