All in a days work

Strawberries in the foreground and beyond about 8,000 square feet for new raised beds. The work done with a Kubota tractor with a rototiller this time but we don't expect to use rototillers in the future as these beds will be permanent.  The space between the rows of trees in the orchard was also tilled and will next be planted in a permanent pasture rich in clover. We will harvest the clover 3 times a year for compost and feed and then irrigated so that it renews and grows again with the expectation that it should last about 3 years before needing to be reseeded.

This will be a fight with the weeds

This will be a fight with the weeds until we get the deep mulch cover established. Any row such as this built on soil that was growing grass will probably have to be weeded 5 or 6 times this season before the mulch can hold the weeds back. Cabbage and kale and this crop broccoli have to be protected from Birds when they're young as they can eat half a row in a single afternoon -- Sent from Fast notepad

An idea taken from singing frog farm

Will have to take another look at this in 20 days as it is our intent for the vegetation to cover the soil 100 percent keeping the dirt and the mulch in shade -- Sent from Fast notepad

Before

After 20 days

Another milestone

The arrival of 40 yards of sonoma compost marks the last step in the transformation of Oasis into a production farm. All told we maintain 1/3 acre of permanent pasture supporting 60 chickens 1/4 acre of row crops for CSA boxes and 1/2 acre of fruit orchard with 1/4 acre in the rows for production of high nitrogen high protein green manure biomass. Completion of our little piece of paradise this year will include constructed cattails wetlands for processing wastewater and underground water catchment for 38,000 gallons which is estimated to be our agricultural water use annually. The crown jewel will be construction of a 2500 square foot food processing barn or as Connie and I like to call it .. the dancehall.

Hot s***, I mean compost

The two compost piles I made four days ago have reached the 140 degrees

The jury is in on compost

Hot compost as it turns out is labor intensive to make.  It may cost nearly $50 a yard when all of the labor, seed and water inputs are made The slower type that need not be turned but takes a year to make is perhaps more suited to a sustainable farm...ahh but we are in a big hurry to get production up so I ordered 40 yards of sonoma compost today costing $1000 Plus $200 of tractor time to distribute and till in

Yarrow tea

Treated the broccoli to liquid fertilizer made from yarrrow soaked for about 5 days and then diluted about five or ten times with water, this is not compost tea but rather a leachate used as a root drench. The 50 gallon pickle barrel can make 30 gallons of fertilizer which can be easily applied by watering can to treat 360 ft of row crops. This is not a procedure that needs to be done often as healthy soil is the goal, but it does stimulate growth and get them going

Bright green biomass for compost

Today I am harvesting about ten or fifteen thousand square feet of green manure that I planted in January.  I'm hoping that it makes 10 to 15 yards a finished compost.  The trick is how much work it takes to make 15 yards a compost because I can always buy  compost for 20 dollars per yard

Battle with the birds

While planting 160 broccoli seedlings, behind me come the mockingbirds voraciously eating the small plants behind my back and just when I had left them a blackberry  bramble to live in , well no good deed goes unpunished.  Within an hour I had row covers installed so no harm was done

February and March are classically the season for Gophers

The hunt is on,  and the only way for a farm with our sandy soil type to prevent lots of damage it is to hunt and kill them.  Paul Kaiser of singing frog farm says he does all of his hunting in February and March and largely ignores them rest of the Year.  Cinch trap is the tool of choice as I have never pulled a live gopher  out of a hole with one