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Farm Happenings at Saint Isidore Homestead and Permaculture
For the Love of Basil
Basil and tomatoes are a match made in heaven. They go extremely well on the plate and absolutely adore each other in the ground. This year we are growing both of those crops together in our high tunnels and they are thriving. The basil variety we are growing is a Genovese-type called Prospera from1 read more »
One for the Pigweed
There is a saying in permaculture that there’s no such a thing as weeds but crops in the wrong spot. And, indeed, the majority of so-called weeds play very important roles in our system. But among those weeds there is a particular summer one that I admit to greatly dislike: the obnoxious spin1 read more »
Black Gold
Some of you have heard us say that we primarily grow soil and the rest just happens. We believe our crops are nutritionally dense because they nurture themselves from a nutritionally-dense soil. So, yes, we believe in healthy soil and we take our soil very seriously. By healthy soil we mean a livin1 read more »
Farm Happenings for June 20, 2022
A heat wave hit us this week and most of the remaining spring crops took a toll. Lettuces, in particular, seem to have suffered the most. They bolted and turned a bit bitter. But, as they say in permaculture, the problem is the solution. Instead of sending the lettuce to the compost pile, we fed it1 read more »
The Crew
We are blessed this year to have an enthusiastic, hard-working, crew. Three of them, Jack, Taylor, and Dane, returned to us in March. It was wonderful to have them back as they were familiar with our place and our practices. So, rather than spending days getting to know the place and learning the b1 read more »
The New Boxes
For three years now, we have wrestled with the finding the best possible box to deliver your produce. We originally set with two different size waxed cardboard boxes, which worked relatively well. The problem with the boxes we were using was that they were either too big (1 1/9 bushel) or too small1 read more »
Scapes
Despite the few hot days last week, spring has been cool. That is the main reason you are finding so many leafy greens in your boxes. Typically, around this time we should have plenty of summer squash and cucumbers but not this year. The summer crops are taking their time. A good sign that things a1 read more »
Year Seven
Most permaculture experts agree that in year seven the systems reach maturity and become stable. It gives me great joy to look at our first garden area, what we call "The Permaculture Garden," and confirm that, indeed, the system has become stable, resilient, and productive. In today's picture you1 read more »
2022: The Year of Mature Soil and Great Food
It takes about seven years for a permaculture system to mature. That's when most fruit trees begin to produce, when interactions between animal and plant species become harmonious, and when the soil turns so rich in nutrients and life that a handful of soil typically contains more living orga1 read more »
About the farm
We are a small family farm located in Grottoes, Virginia, serving the city of Harrisonburg and the counties of Rockingham, Augusta, and Greene. We produce high-quality food using sustainable practices and ethical principles of care for the common good. Having witnessed the healing power of good food in dealing with family health issues, we started farming in 2015 in an effort to sharing with others the benefits of fresh, nutritionally-dense food, grown in a clean environment, using integrative agricultural methods. We believe that in order for food to be healthful, the environment in which it grows has to be healthy. To that end, we integrate animal and plant systems in ways that, in their natural interactions, they create an ecological balance leading to abundance and quality.
We grow over 50 different vegetable crops, perennial vegetables and fruits, and raise pastured pork, as well as ducks and chickens, for meat and eggs.
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We grow over 50 different vegetable crops, perennial vegetables and fruits, and raise pastured pork, as well as ducks and chickens, for meat and eggs.