I haven't gotten into much nitty gritty farm details lately in the CSA notes, so I figured it was high time I do that in this week's note...Today's farm news is focused on a topic that we often get questions about and something that we're always happy to talk about: spraying!
When you come to the farm to pick up your share, you may notice one of us out in the field with a backpack sprayer, slowly walking down the beds. We have been using the sprayer more than we ever have in the past, but it doesn't mean that we're spraying chemicals...in fact, quite the contrary.
At Mad Radish we grow 100% organically, which means that we will use organic chemical sprays when needed, but our goal first and foremost is to focus on soil health in order to minimize how much we need to spray anything. Increasing soil health (and subsequently, plant health) and using physical barriers like row cover help to do this.
The sprayer allows us to foliar feed the plants with liquid fertilizers that have nutrients such as Calcium, Magnesium, Potassium, Nitrogen, Boron, Zinc, and lots more. We can also spray biological inoculants on the plant leaves that promote plant health. AND -- this is the most exciting thing that we've incorporated this year -- we can even spray an solution of water and beneficial nematodes, which can specifically target our most problematic pests within the soil. You can order them online to ship to you, and when you receive, the nematodes are ready to mix with water and apply to your crop. The beneficial nematodes are a form of biological control that drastically minimizes how much we need to spray chemicals (if at all).
It's the first year we're starting to dial in routine spraying, along with keeping lots of records on it all. It's exciting to begin seeing the results and we look forward to sharing more with you as we learn!
****A REMINDER****** NO pick up on Tuesday, July 4! Pick up on Wednesday, 7/5, 3-8 pm. If you need us to hold your box or have special circumstances please let us know and we're happy to help. Wednesday and Thursday deliveries will go on as they normally do.
Have a happy Fourth of July, from all of us at Mad Radish!
