SCALING UP YOUR VEGETABLE OPERATION Practical Farmers of Iowa Conference 2011
Started the farm in 1990 with 5 acres
The CSA started in 1991 with 30 members
Through religious organizations and community groups the CSA quickly grew to 650 members.
In 2000 Roxbury Farm moved to new land to gain long term land security.
Through the generosity and support of Roxbury Farm CSA members, Equity Trust, and the Open Space Institute the farm has grown to over 350 acres.
The land, farmhouse, and barns will remain affordable for farmers in perpetuity.
Farm Organization Planning Crop Rotation Crew Management/Communication CSA Management Break Harvesting & Distribution Appropriate Equipment
Farm Organization
Field arrangement
50 ft. sections with 12 ft. driving lanes Irrigation traveler can cover four sections in one pull Sprayer can spray 4 beds at a time Place to drive harvest trucks and tractors Access fields in all weather Never have to carry a full produce box more than 25 ft. Easier record keeping
Each section divided into 8 beds Controlled field traffic system Raised beds provides drainage during downpours Never drive on bed top
6 ft 54 All beds are on 6ft centers with 54 bed tops
2 rows 3 rows 5 rows 1 row or plastic mulch 9 rows
Planning
Designing a share
Things to think about when designing a share: Try to have the same amount of vegetables each week Find out what your members want Include a wide variety in each share Staples that you have each week (i.e. salad mix) What is practical for you to grow? / should you quit growing some crops for the CSA? Can you purchase crops from other growers? Do you have a specialty crop that sets you apart from other CSA s? Do you want to do season extension (early/late)?
Roxbury Farm Shares include: Salad Crop Leafy green crop Root Crop Fruit Crop Flavor adding Vegetable (onions, scallions, garlic) Exciting Item (sweet corn, heirloom tomatoes, fennel, red peppers) Culinary Herbs
Week of June 11, 2010 Salad Mix Spinach Braising Mix Broccoli Raab Turnips Joi Choi Sugar Snap Peas Scallions Radishes Parsley Cilantro Week of Aug 20, 2010 Salad mix Swiss Chard Hot Peppers Red Sweet Italia Peppers Green Bell Peppers Cucumbers Beefsteak Tomatoes Juliet Tomatoes Plum Tomatoes Green Beans Sweet Corn New Potatoes Basil and Cilantro
Planning Program Good record keeping is key to making your planning program work for you What are your units of measurement? (length of bed, bunches, lbs.) Create greenhouse and field planting schedules that are easy to read Easy to use and update
Example of Roxbury Farm Greenhouse Schedule
Example of Roxbury Farm Field Planting Schedule
Crop Rotation
Alternate production of vegetables with cereals and legumes in the context of an integrated farm, whereby the vegetable plant families are rotated at a minimum of four years.
45 acres in Green Manure Crops or Hay 45 acres in Vegetables 200 acres in Hay and Pasture
Green Manures build soil health & provide fertility for crops
Rotation helps control weeds, diseases, and insects
Bell Beans & Oats Fall Broccoli Spring Bare Fallow Sorghum Sudan Grass Potatoes Oats Late Summer Bare Fallow
Vegetable Crops Harvesting Time Irrigation Spraying Row Cultivation Other pest control issues Harvest methods
Early Morning Crops Salad Mix Spinach Herbs Broccoli Rabe Braising Mix Arugula Bunched Beets, Turnips, Radishes, etc.
Plasticulture Cucumbers Summer Squash/Zuc Tomatoes Peppers Eggplant Cantaloupe
Fall Brassicas Broccoli Kales Collards Cauliflower Cabbages
Sweet Corn Root Crops Snap Beans
Crew Management
Written Policies & Agreements
Clear Harvest Standards
Crop Manual
Planting & Seeding Schedules
Roxbury Farm HOME DATA 2006 Lindenwald Field Map Section 1 Section 2 Section 3 5.8 bu/bed 44.8 bu 5.8 bu/bed 44.8 bu 5.8 bu/bed 44.8 bu 1st Peas 1st Peas 1st Peas 1st Peas 2nd Peas 2nd Peas 2nd Peas 2nd Peas Chard Scallion 1 Chard 2 Scallion 2 3rd Peas 3rd Peas 3rd Peas 3rd Peas tatsoi Tatsoi / Turnips turnips Radish / Arugula Mini Cabbage Mini Cabbage / 2nd Tatsoi Broccoli Rabe Broccoli Rabe / 3rd Tatsoi 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 ROUTE 9H Field Maps for Planting & Seeding
TRANSPLANT SPACING CROP ROWS SPACING (IN.) NOTES Basil 3 9 lannen: 9" sprocket, every cup Broccoli 2 12 lannen: 12" sprocket every cup Broad Beans 2 5 lannen: 5" sprocket, every cup Brussel Sprouts 2 36 lannen: 18" sprocket, every other cup Cabbage 2 12 lannen: 12" sprocket, every cup Cabbage, Mini 3 12 lannen: 12" sprocket, every cup Cantaloupe 1 12 water wheel Cauliflower 2 24 lannen: 12" sprocket, every other cup Celeriac 2 12 lannen: 12" sprocket, every cup Celery 2 9 lannen: 9" sprocket, every cup Chard 3 9 lannen: 9"sprocket, every cup Collards 2 24 lannen: 12" sprocket, every other cup Corn, Sweet 2 14 lannen: 14" sprocket, every cup Cucumbers 1 12 water wheel Eggplant 2 18 water wheel Flowers 2 9 water wheel (use two wheels from onion wheel) Fodder Beet 2 12 lannen: 12" sprocket, every cup Garlic 2 9 lannen: 9" sprocket, every cup Joi Choi 3 12 lannen: 12" sprocket, every cup Kale 2 12 lannen: 12" sprocket every cup Kale, flowering 2 14 lannen: 14" sprocket, every cup Kohlrabi 3 5 lannen: 5" sprocket, every cup Leeks 2 9 lannen: 9" sprocket, every cup
Weekly Task List
Daily Crew Meetings
In the field instruction
Assigning responsibility
Transitions between jobs
CSA Administration
Keep members connected to the farm
Member Workdays
Membership Databases
Roxbury Farm Database (Legrand CRM)
Membership Database Components Contact information Purchases Pick up location Payment Options Easy to print lists and sorting ability Easy to email Connect to your billing/accounting program
Managing Distribution Sites
Distribution Sites Site location: parking / easy access for delivery truck Member volunteers Paid site coordinator or volunteer site coordinators Farmers at the pick up site Relationship to the site host Other vendors using your pick up site and CSA members Relationship with a food pantry / community kitchen
Harvesting and Distribution
Harvest Standards
Food Safety & GAPS
Harvest List
Reduce number of harvest techniques
Large enough harvest vehicles/wagons
Harvest Containers
Early Morning Harvest
Salad Mix & Greens
Barn remodel Washing Barn Remodel
Hydro Cooling
Bunch Washer
Hydro Cooling
Late Morning Harvest
cornveyor
Packing
Storage Crops
Root Digger
Curing Onions
Root Crops Storage
Washing
Distribution
Cheat Sheet
Deliver Shares in Bulk
Boxed Shares
Equipment
Cost of Salad Harvester Acquisition $ 30,000.00 Cost Salad harvester per hour Tractor $ 25.00 Labor 3 people $ 37.00 harvester cost per hr $ 28.13 Total cost per hour $ 90.13 Total cost per lb salad harvester $ 0.23 Cost hand harvesting by hand $ 0.24 Depreciation = $ 24,000.00 = $ 1,200.00 purchase cost minus salvage value 20 years of use (purchase cost+salvage value+depreciation) X Interest in $ = $ 1,260.00 = $ 630.00 real int. 2 2 (purchase cost+salvage value+depreciation) X Insurance in $ = $ 214.20 = $ 107.10 ins. rate 2 2 Housing in $ = $ 0.31 = $ 94.20 cost of building per sq foot X sq feet required Maintenance $ 500.00 Cost per year: $ 2,531.30 Cost per lb @ 36,000 lb 36,000 $ 0.07 Capacity hand labor per hour 50 lb 50 $12.00 harvester per hour 400 lb 400
Determine the working width of all equipment and set the wheel width of all tractors 54 72 row 1 row 2 row 3 row 4 row 5 row 6 row 7 row 8 row 9
High Clearance with creeper gear Utility with creeper gear
Cultivating tractors
Quick Hitches
Jiffy Quick Hitch System
Tillage & Cultivation
Flail Mower to incorporate cover crops and green manure
Sub soil or Yeoman Plow
Imants Spader
Chisel Plow
Coulter Chisel Plow with S Tine attachment
Perfecta II Harrow
Bed Former
Multi Discbedder
Weed Control
Seed bed cultivators with adjustable working depth
Basket Weeder
Row Guards on Basket Weeder
Bezzeride Spring Hoes
Rear Cultivator Tool Bar
Lely Tine Weeder
Parallel suspended 2 row Cultivator
Williams Tool Bar System
Hillside Cultivator
Plant Production & Transplanting
Greenhouse Trays
Flat Filler
Vacuum Seeder
Plug Popper
Water Wheel Planter
Carousel Transplanter
Fingers hold the plant in upright position
Seeders
Grain Drill
Other Equipment
Plastic Mulch Layer
Bale Shredder for Mulching
Hoops and Floating Row Cover for Season Extension
Spray Equipment
Raccoon fence and Birdgard
Offset Disc