Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
Frantic About Fungus?
Friday, July 1st, 2011
Is There A Fungus Among Us?
The roller coaster weather pattern we experienced this spring switched back to prolonged wet and chilly weather last week. While the moisture was needed as soils were quite dry, the constant wetness creates ideal conditions for disease causing organisms. Disease causing organisms are natural inhabitants of the soil and infect grass plants when the environmental conditions are favorable or the plants become weakened by poor growing conditions. The pathogen is favored by warm, humid weather, wet or compacted soil, drought stress, and low mowing heights.
The spores of these parasitic forms of plant life are spread by wind, air, water, animals, people, insects and mowing.
Important steps to manage plant diseases include proper soil preparation, proper selection of grass seed including ones with a natural genetic resistance to diseases, and application of proper cultural practices.
If you have a fungus, spraying now with Dr. Earth Natural & Organic Fungicide effectively combats a broad spectrum of fungal diseases found in your lawn, on your vegetables, flowers & shrubs. Dr. Earth can be used both as a foliar spray for your plants or a soil drench for your lawn & trees.
Once you have sprayed the fungicide, you should then fertilize your lawn & your plants with Fire Belly Bio-Blast to reintroduce beneficial mycorrhizal fungi.
Healthy soils that have the ability to fight off disease causing pathogens increase the chances of plant survival and thus control the pathogens so they will not multiply in great numbers. Beneficial microbes fill up the available spaces in the soil so that pathogens cannot become established and destroy healthy plants.
Most lawns recover with changes in environmental conditions and proper cultural practices. For severe cases due to poor soil, poor grass selection, or excessive thatch, the best solution may be renovation. Please give us a call with any questions or to schedule a courtesy consultation for a lawn renovation.
planting for the future.
-By Maggie Oldfield Thayer Nursery
“Midlife Farmer”: Presidents’ Weekend – 2/20/2011
Thursday, February 17th, 2011
Andy Pollock is a self-described “midlife farmer”, whose family bought Silverbrook Farm in 1953, when Dartmouth MA was considered “way out in the country” and agricultural. After picking up his undergraduate degree from Penn State and then his MBA from the University of Maine, Andy bought a house a few towns away, worked on the business side of medicine and eventually, became a partner in a medical services company.
After a few years, Andy sold his business, and he and his wife moved back to Silverbrook where he repaired, cleared fields, replanted orchards and brought the land back into production.
With each year, the Pollock family added greenhouses, a well, a grain silo, and a new roof for the barn, plus new and newer equipment. You get the picture. Andy watched the farm expand as he and his family rented more land and added more outlets for their products.
Andy’s commitment to his farm and his employees is but one part of his greater commitment to the larger agricultural community. Forming partnerships with other local farms is key in his business plan – by providing outlets for other farms through his many business and co-marketing endeavors, he’s hoping to bring prosperity to many farms.
We’re proud to have Andy Pollock and Silverbrook Farm at stonesoup sundays @ the farm and share with him in his commitment to continue to find ways of cooperation with other local organizations to reduce waste and improve the sustainability of our local farms.
Andy thinks that his parents would be proud of his accomplishments. And so do we.
Come sample the delights of Silverbrook Farm on Sunday from 10:30-3:30.
BURNIN’ LOVE IGNITES STONESOUP SUNDAYS
Wednesday, February 2nd, 2011
Burnin’ Love Sauces, a company whose goal is to bring fresh ideas and flavors to the table, is owned and operated by Gregg and JoAnn Marsh, of Dorchester. After many years in the restaurant business, the couple set out to share their favorite flavors and creations with everyone, and created the company. The recipes have come from Gregg’s personal collection which he has built over the last 20 years. They are tried and true favorites.
The company’s four sauces will be available at the market for those pre-game drills and practices that are so much a part of the warm up to the big game.
“We use fresh local ingredients,” said Joann, “and we are always working on new flavors and ideas. These sauces are perfect for Super Bowl party items, perfect on ribs, wings and chili.”
Some of the favorites are Heartbreak Sauce, a sweet and spicy roasted red pepper sauce that goes with everything from meats to seafood and is particularly awesome on ribs and wings, Torch-ered Heartbreak sauce, which is slightly sweet but with this is the one with a fire that will leave you sweating and panting for more, 1919, a molasses based BBQ sauce, and Sweet Onion Blues, described as a marriage of wild Maine blueberries and caramelized onions, that is good for almost anything.
So, are you ready for the Super Bowl?Impress your friends and satisfy the fans with New England Chili by Burnin’ Love Sauces!
Burnin’ Love’s New England Chili
Soak ½ LB. dried Navy beans overnight in the refrigerator.
Drain and rinse the beans. In a large pot sauté a quarter of an onion diced in 1 TSP oil. When the onions are clear, add two 2 cups water, 12 OZ. 1919 Molasses Barbeque Sauce and 9 OZ. Torcher-ed Heartbreak sauce.Add beans, and salt and pepper to taste.
Bring to a simmer and cover.
Add 1 LB. cooked drained beef, chicken or diced extra firm tofu.
Serves 2-4.
Burnin’ Love sauces will be available every other Sunday at stonesoup sundays@the farm at Thayer Nursery in Milton.
Our seasonal market, named stonesoup sundays @the farm, is a market that will offer only local and in season items, bringing you closer to the food that you eat and to the people that produce it.
stonesoup sundays @ the farm will be open February 6th, from 10:30 AM – 3:30 PM and every other Sunday after that.
Burnin’ Love Sauces is one sizzling way to keep your Super Bowl treats all natural! Just add chicken, ribs or chili!
Inspired by the Seasons
Thursday, January 27th, 2011
The passing of the seasons is not just marked by the change in the temperature or the quality of light, but also by what can be found at the farmer’s market and around our tables. A seasonal market, therefore, places a bounty on the seasons.
Living and working on a nursery farm, I spent my life walking among fields and orchards where budding trees in a very few, short months would produce magnificent flowers or plump, sweet fruit. My childhood was defined by these adventures in nature – spring conjures up of memories of green buds peeking through the soil; summer brings memories of foraging for wild blueberries; the vibrant changing of the leaves and apple picking mark the fall; and winter offers root vegetables.
Eating seasonally and locally has always been a way of life for me. Even if I craved the delicate aroma of basil, it was not possible to get my hands on locally grown basil in winter from my home in Milton, MA. Each meal my family shared was based up what was on hand and available at our local market. Our ritual was to harvest the ripest gems from our family garden – vibrant green and white leeks, or ruby red stalks of rhubarb pulled fresh from the ground in spring, while summer was a never ending feast of tomatoes plucked from vines, beans snapped right off the stalk, and an endless array of fresh and fragrant herbs sprouting here and there.
We added to this bounty by visiting our local markets.
Our first stop was at the fruit and vegetable market where we squeezed and smelled every piece for freshness, gently caressing the prize piece that would undoubtedly be the star of our next meal. Next, the local butcher visited the house where the freshest meat and game was available. Our local baker was next on our list. We prized her large, crusty rounds as something to savor all on its own. My father always had to remind me that bread, like soup, was something for everyone to share, but was always followed by a quick wink, which propelled me to take just one more bite.
While my father and I took trips to the local markets, my mother would take a trip to a local farm where she would pick up delicious milk and cheese. We would all return home where my mother’s talent and ease in the kitchen, a talent that inspires me even today, would prepare a simple and completely satisfying meal.
It is in this fashion that I learned to respect the seasons and understand that nature intended for us to enjoy the truly magical combination of lamb and sweet peas in the spring, cherry tomatoes and cucumbers in the summer; mushrooms and apples in the fall, and beets in the winter.
Inspired by the seasons, I wanted to open a seasonal market that would honor ingredients at the peak of their freshness, flavor and abundance. Drawing further from my experience, I wanted to highlight the great produce, cheese, fish, meat, jams or any other product whose producer saw their roots from the soil. The changing seasons would bring a changing a vibrant variety of vendors to our market by focusing on what is fresh for the season. And, I wanted to bring to life the people who produce this for our customers.
I hope you enjoy our seasonal market, called “stonesoup sundays @ the farm, and are inspired to enjoy ingredients at the peak of their season and fresh from the market. Every other Sunday at Thayer Nursery. Next market, February 6th, 2011.
Maggie Oldfield
Great Ways to Make Your Garden Ready for Winter
Wednesday, November 24th, 2010
We thought we would give you some key activities before winter to make your garden all comfy through the winter.
Cut your perennials down to the ground. (Grasses may be left uncut till after winter)
Rake leaves from around tree trunks and the stems of shrubs to keep moisture from rotting woody material
Fertilizer:
Apply appropriate fertilizers at 1/2 dose rate: You don’t want to encourage new growth, but give plants enough sustenance for healthy dormancy. Apply Holly Tone (or organic fertilizer for acid loving plants) to conifers, broadleaf evergreens (such as holly, mountain laurel, rhododendrons, azaleas, pieris (Andromeda), Japanese holly, inkberry, leucothoe, boxwood, dogwood, blueberry, magnolia, and micro biota pachysandra. Apply Flower Tone to all perennials and Plant Tone to deciduous shrubs
Tie up and cinch tightly with heavy twine any plants susceptible to heavy snow loads such as arborvitae, boxwood, ’sky pencil’ and Japanese holly. Make sure to include anything that is in danger of being smothered by ice/snow sliding off the roof.
Spray broadleaf evergreens with an anti-desiccant such as Wilt Pruf or Wilt Stop. Include any other evergreens that are exposed to constant desiccating winds.
Spread 3-4″ layer of Allgro, (A Thayer product) compost or Nutrimulch, ( also at Thayer Nursery) in beds to provide insulation and soil structure enhancement.
Empty of all soil all ceramic or terracotta pots. Put them away inside safe from moisture or cover with plastic/tarp, etc if you leave them outside.
Edge beds to create a crisp finish that neatens and tightens up the garden as we go into winter. (Purely aesthetic)
Prune deciduous shrubs and trees (can be done throughout winter), except magnolia and cherry.
Here are a few hints on your lawn.
Cut lawn as short as possible, to 2″ once it has stopped growing to eliminate the chance of snow mold and fungus infesting lawn. In addition, fertilize your lawn with organic fertilizer high in phosphorus(about 2:1 ratio to nitrogen content) Organically, it is a good idea to add humates, (liquid form or granular soil building substance) for winterizing.
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