Growing Practices

No-till is a farming practice that does not include yearly tilling of the soil, which allows beneficial micro biology and other organisms, such as worms, to thrive. Healthy soil gives plants access to more nutrients which produces nutritionally dense vegetables that are as beautiful as they are tasty. We apply Black Earth Compost—organic fertilizer mixed on the farm made from chicken manure, crab/lobster meal and kelp meal, cultivate cover crops, and use a hand tool called a broadfork, which helps to alleviate compaction deep within the subsoil.

We do not spray with any herbicides, pesticides, or fungicides, ever. We have found that maximizing beneficial insects and soil life creates a framework of balance that makes the use of sprays unnecessary. Instead, insect netting and row covers are used to exclude pests from our crops. Compost tea applications also play a large role in our disease and pest prevention. Compost tea is a solution rich in beneficial microbiology, which assists the plants in fighting their own battles against pests and disease. We feel much better about providing your family with vegetables that occasionally have minor pest damage than those that are sprayed with chemicals.