OUR FIRST NO-TILL TRIALS HAVE BEGUN, Y'ALL!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S0NtroaasaoWhen I envision our farm becoming 100% no-till over the next few years, there are a few basic concepts that define for me what that will (more or less) look like.The first is that the growing beds will be permanent (which, albeit a little wonky, they technically already are). The idea here is that we never have to rebuild the beds with machinery and by avoiding that process we can maintain nice, loose vegetable beds with good soil structure and a healthy population of macro and microbiology.The next is that they will always have something growing in them to increase photosynthesis. This process, as I vaguely recall from high school biology, traps carbon and feeds soil microbial life (and grows nutritious food, obviously). And we want to take advantage of that by never having empty beds so we can always be storing carbon instead of loosing it.Another core no-till concept for us is that we will plant these beds densely to decrease the amount of soil exposed to the sun, and increase the amount of food grown per square foot. We hope with all this vegetation to eventually no longer need the broadfork at all, and instead allow the roots and soil life to move the soil around and aerate it as necessary.There will also be a fair amount of compost involved, depending on the crops. Next year we will add a significant amount to each bed, then supplementary amounts as we go forward.Anywho, with that I want to introduce you to Ever Bed with the above video. We are in the middle of a few no-till experiments this month, but perhaps none more exciting than this one. Ever Bed is a kind of proto-type for our transitioning no-till farm that encompasses much off what I sort of envision most of, if not all of, our garden looking like in the coming years.The idea here is to never take it this bed of production (ergo “Ever Bed”), and to use it for growing food (not cover crops) year-round, adding compost before every crop in requisite amounts. We will also always be trying planting Ever Bed’s next crop before the last one has come out of the ground. What we’re trying to do, especially in the summer, is take advantage of the canopy of certain crops (not all) to help provide shade for more tender crops. In this way, Ever Bed‘s first crop was celery, which we will start harvesting in two weeks, so we just interplanted the bed with Salanova lettuce, which conveniently needs two weeks of partial shade to establish itself (especially in this summery May we’re having).Of course, we are not going at this blindly. We have always done some amount of interplanting, and we know where it works and where it doesn’t. Also, I have taken a soil sample from Ever Bed to make sure that it is still building organic matter throughout this process as I can compare it to the average of each of the plots. If it is not, I will change gears and regroup. If you see anything that strikes you as not-quite-right about the process or video (beyond my haircuts which, yes, I unfortunately do myself), let us know. As I often emphasize, I will always take one good criticism over a thousand attaboys any day.There is more information in the video and more information about out no-till adventure at our YouTube channel (which you can subscribe to here, if you so please).- Farmer Jesse

SMALL SCALE ROTATIONAL GRAZING WITH SHEEP.

https://youtu.be/3eGVTkrnYVcOne of the first things we did when we got to our new property a year ago was to do what most farmers will tell you not to do: we got animals.Specifically, we got sheep.The reason a lot of vegetable farmers stay away from animals is the infrascture, the time required, the fact that you have a voracious vegetarian ruminant anywhere around your vegetable garden... lots of reasons!However, sheep are an animal we have found to be a perfect fit for our system. They require little work, are efficient in the pastures, and are also soon (relatively soon) going to be a part of our no till garden system... but not by grazing the garden.Watch the video to learn more and dont hesitate to post them if you have any questions or comments! -Jesse

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJiPOEOGA0AI don’t love the phrase “you either love it hate it” except with arugula. You either love arugula or have avolsutly no interest in it.Arugula is a great crop for farmers as it grows fast in all sorts of climates and conditions, but it’s not always a big hit with customers so we are hoping to change that a little.Perhaps knowing a littler more about how it’s grown and some more ideas about how it’s eaten can help, though, so we put together a little video about how Arugula goes from farm to table.Let us know how you guys use your arugula!Enjoy! And As always, don’t forget to subscribe!

ANNOUNCING THE FALL/WINTER SHARE!

Hannah and I are super excited to announce our fall/winter CSA share. This will run for 15 weeks, starting in mid-October and ending in February (with a break for Christmas, of course).For the moment, this will only be available in Frankfort, Versailles, and Lawrenceburg.But can I talk about how much we love the fall share for a minute? I'm gonna.We love the fall share! It is, as farmers and foodies, our favorite time in the garden. There will be loads of storage crops like butternut squash, acorn squash, garlic and the best dang sweet potatoes you've ever had! Also, lots of greens, green onions, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and many other Fall goodies. And of course, we will be delivering all these organic veggies straight to your door.If you are interested please let us know ASAP as space is limited. You can send us an email at roughdraftfarmstead@gmail.com, or call (502) 598 - 8288. Once we have you on our list, you will receive an information packet about the CSA and details about delivery.The price is $350 for the 15 weeks.This boils down to an average of $23.33/wk, so slightly less expensive than the summer, if you're looking to try the CSA in but are intimidated by the summer share.If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask! We can take payments in person, by check, or online HERE.Spinach, carrots and beets are already starting to germinate in the fields, y’all. Get ready! Hope to see you this fall!Jesse and Hannah.