Allegan Crop Swap

06/24/2023

chicken poo powered farm! why not!?

06/13/2022

A thick blanket of straw (6 inches) keeps the moisture in soil, slowing evaporation radically. Watering the garden once a week will be the norm, rather than every day or two. They dry out a lot slower in hot sunny weather.

Straw blocks out the sun, preventing most weeds from germinating and growing. First, make sure your weeds are gone from your garden bed. Then lay down the straw immediately.

Straw also saves crops like tomatoes, peppers and squash from developing blossom-end rot and cat-facing; blueberries from shriveling; and sweet peppers from turning hot.

Soil moisture stays even and calcium can be transferred from the soil to tomatoes easily, preventing the diseases.

Gardening with straw saves time, money, and sanity! See post on Almanac.com.

06/11/2022

Rabbits don’t like to stray far from their shelters, so try to reduce the possible rabbit homes around your yard. Rake away piles of brush and leaves, fill in abandoned burrows, and seal any holes under sheds or structures. If a rabbit doesn’t have a place to live or hide nearby, hopefully it won’t stay and munch. Rabbits will also breed much more if they have a good habitat available—all the more reason to have no vacancy!

Tips on identifying, controlling, getting rid of, and keeping rabbits out of your garden or yard with these rabbit deterrents from The Old Farmer's Almanac.

06/07/2022

Walt Pett, an MSU professor in entomology, among others in the bug world, uses this system to sample insects for his research. He also uses this to remove Colorado potato beetle from potatoes. He has observed that this system not only removes insect pests from the plant, but also pulls some soil (especially in sandy soils) up and in the process damages any egg masses located on the underside of the leaves. He stated he has not noticed damage to the plants, but he uses it mostly on potato plants to manage the Colorado potato beetle. You may need to be cautious when using it on young transplants. Having a wider suction nozzle will also reduce the tendency to suck up the plant.

Michigan State University Extension helps people improve their lives by bringing the vast knowledge resources of MSU directly to individuals, communities and businesses.

06/06/2022

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“My company partners with homeowners who have a front yard and want to do something positive,” says Hargins, the founder of Crop Swap LA, a startup that installs and manages the community gardens, which it calls microfarms. Neighbors pay for monthly subscriptions to the ultra-local food, and homeowners get both a share of the produce and a cut of the proceeds. “We maintain it, but they get part of the income every month,” Hargins says.

Crop Swap uses your front lawn to grow vegetables for a produce-subscription program. You get part of the revenue.

06/06/2022

06/04/2022

Crop Swaps are encouraging people all over the world to share their homegrown produce, whether it’s the figs grown on your property you don’t use, the plum jam you have an abundance of, or the seeds ready to sow.

Have plenty of homegrown produce but don't know what to do with it? Exchange it at a Crop Swap, now up and running in two Nelson communities.

06/01/2022

https://www.shareable.net/how-to-start-a-crop-swap/

Backyard gardeners and urban homesteaders are coming together to share excess produce in increasingly popular local meet-ups known as crop swaps, where

05/29/2022