Tag Archives: PeggyFogle

food, health, organic

Blooms, Blooms, Beautiful Blooms

Oh I wish you could smell these!

Or walk through the aisles and just listen to the birds chirp and the bees hum as they flit from place to place enjoying all the blossoms.

Watching that big, mean Rottweiler stop and smell the flowers is a real treat too.  Although, I couldn’t get a really good picture of him this year!  It’s just too funny watching him stop and sniff.  

Right now when they are so pretty you can overlook all the grass that is trying to grow under the plants and just enjoy the beautiful miracle that is happening turning those tiny little plants we planted 10 years ago into the beautiful floral beauties and then  a super nutritional berry right before our eyes.   Isn’t the power of nature magical!

Uncategorized

Pruning, Cussing, and Praising

Pruning, Cussing, and Praising

Odd title?  You wouldn’t think so if you joined us the last few weeks in the field.  You see after the 17-year Cicada damage we suffered in June 2014, you’d understand.  Pruning is best done in December-March so the cuts can callous and harden off.  On some of the warmer days we have been out cutting back bushes. It’s a cold, snowy field and the footing is a little slippery.  Secondly, you have to bend down and inspect each branch and remember we have nearly 5,000 bushes, so it seems like it takes forever.  We’re still not done, but we’ll get there a little at a time as the backs can handle it.

I say cussing because It makes you physically feel sick to cut off so much of some of the plants and know how you are cutting down on your yield for the upcoming year.   You have that to deal with emotionally.  I keep telling myself those damned Cicadas layed the eggs in the little branches and weakened the bushes now to the point that they will not support the weight of all the berries they will be having now and in the future.  If the damage isn’t cut out now, they will suffer later.  So I cut and cuss.

At the same time, I praise the quiet time alone in the woods and in the field.   I am so thankful we are where we are and we have a hardy bush that will survive, thrive and be so strong and large in 17 years, the next Cicadas will not be able to damage them this way ever again.  Thus, the life of a farmer.

Uncategorized

What a Summer!

We had such high hopes for our crop this year and were so excited for the changes we were making to our farm.  Yet another lesson in patience.

We ordered our Weed Badger in early April and hoped to be ready to till around the plants in May.  I should never have trusted and sold the little riding mower that went between the small plants.  The weed badger showed up last week!  But it is going to be awesome.  We need some practice with it, but it will do the job, we’re just set back a year.

On June 17th while mowing we noticed all kinds of damaged to the berry bushes.  We couldn’t decide if the heavy winds the night before had damaged our plants or just what had happened.  Turns out it was the 17-year cicada emergence.  They really did a number on us.  The females bury their eggs into the small stems of plants.  Well our place is very wooded and was 17 years ago too, so we had a terrible infestation.  It was like walking on crunchy shells everywhere in our fields.  Turns out they were a problem.  We had lots of branches die and many more erupted and weakened so they did not support all the berry production.  Our crop suffered dramatically and probably will next year too.  We’re thankful it’s only every 17 years!

Cicada Damaged Bush
Cicada Damaged Bush
Cicada Damaged Branch
Cicada Damaged Branch

June 16th our Horizon Building arrived after a LOT of dirt work that was done, thanks to our son.   The wonderful Amish crew had the building up in a week, mostly.  It rained and rained all summer and the inside was muddy, our granddaughter loved mud stomping inside!  The floor was finally poured (in the rain) August 27th.  But we have a place to put all the equipment for winter storage and it’s wonderful.

Mudstomping Inside the Building
Mudstomping Inside the Building

IMG_1893

Through all the rain, weeds, and cicada damage, we’ve been so impressed at how hardy these plants are.  Plants we put in the ground two years ago have really thrived despite the conditions they had to deal with this year.  That field was neglected this summer with all the rain and the lack of a good way to mow between the plants and the cicada damage as well, but they look really good.

We keep believing the plants will be able to produce a nice crop for us.  We have had friends with excellent yields.  Meanwhile, we keep finding new ways to enjoy them.

Uncategorized

Blooms Equal Berries!

Image

Blooms Equal Berries!

May 10, 2014 – We have Blooms! In fact in field two we were out mowing and for the first time we could smell the future. The bushes were loaded with blooms there Woody and I could smell the sweet fragrance of aronia for the first time. It was an unexpected pleasure! We have quite a few blooms even in fields three and even four. The nights of frost worried us a bit, but hopefully it wasn’t cold enough to damage any berry production. Time will tell…

Uncategorized

We Have Berries!

It’s been a long time since I’ve posted.  Mainly because life has been crazy.  If we’re not enjoying our beautiful granddaughter, we’re probably working in the yard or the berry fields.   Truth is there’s nothing we’d rather be doing!

We had a rough winter because after planting last fall, Woody suffered a farm injury and broke two ribs and tore his rotator cuff.  So there’s been a lot of rehabilitation going on.  Needless to say we made a few changes to the equipment and are more safety conscious.

Early in the spring we put grow tubes around the smaller berries in an effort to keep the critters from pulling them out and eating on them.  It was really a good decision for us.  Abe and Sasha chase off deer at least two or three times daily so every little bit of prevention helps.  The berries we put in last fall are coming out the tops of the grow tubes we placed around them and they look really healthy.   We did remove the grow tubes once to use a foliar spray which was the easy part.  Replacing them all after the deer had pulled out five plants, was a pain in the rear.

I’ve been spending a lot of time this summer with “my new favorite tool,”  a DR Power Trimmer.  It really is a good solution for getting in between the berries and taking the grass and weeds down low.   For me especially, the California emission motor, and 16″ wheels makes it far easier to use than either a weed eater or a small lawn mower.  It has been a real help this summer keeping weeds under control.   We have a picture of Woody using the trimmer.

We attended the Midwest Aronia Association Conference earlier this summer.  It was eye-opening seeing and talking to so many other folks interested in the same berries.  We learned even more about these healthy little berries, their history and use in Poland, and their potential.  We also dined on several delicious entrees prepared using aronia berries.

We have fertilized with fish emulsion, watered, trimmed between bushes, and loved up on the plants all summer long.  Now we are encouraged because we have berries!  Not very many yet, because it’s still a little early.  The plants take three to four years to produce a crop, but we have some producing and expect a few more next year.  Our first bushes are two and a half years old.

The few berries we have (that we haven’t already eaten) will be frozen and eaten.  From what we’re reading, 1/4 cup of berries daily is so beneficial for your health.  There are studies which point to lowering cholesterol and preventing diseases.  I’ll post more about that later, but right now, I can’t wait to show the photos!  [slideshow]

Uncategorized

So What Are They?

One question we continually get asked when we tell people we’ve planted aronia berries is – what are they? It’s true, they’re not very common, yet. You don’t see them on the store shelves but once you do your homework, you’ll see why we’ve been interested.

They are very high anti-oxidant berries. Hardy little plants that grow to maturity and are relatively low maintenance. They are not terribly time sensitive when it comes to harvest time, unlike grapes. They are raised organically, which is extremely important to us with all my sensitivities. They are native to cold areas and will thrive in challenging soils. Boy, are we a testament to that.

This link provides more information on the berries: http://www.aroniaberry.org/