Revolutionary Agriculture

 Revolutionary Agriculture means we are trying to change the food system, from agricultural practices to the way people think about where their food is coming from. The current agricultural food growing system is severely flawed to say the least. We see people using centuries old acequias that divert river water to crops which affects both wildlife and everyone downstream, or farmers irrigating blindly from aquifers that are being drained possibly forever. We are in the midst of a devastating drought but we do not have to make things worse for ourselves, we can make a change for the better. By using water we catch from our roof we can grow a revolution.We grow food in a forest in the foothills of the Rocky Mountain Range, specifically the Sangre de Cristos. We are located in a valley that gets significantly more precipitation than areas a mile or two away. We take advantage of this and capture as much as we can. With a 30x30 foot roof and a 16x16 foot portal we can catch most of the water we need for irrigating. Utilizing micro sprinklers under shade cloth or row cover we can have more control over soil moisture and using frost blankets we can extend the growing season. Utilizing knowledge of plants environmental needs we can grow at least ten if not twelve months of the year. We refuse to use coal burning electric power to pump water for irrigating or any purpose.  By not using tractors or tillers we are starting a revolution in the way food is grown. No longer does my food come from a corporate goon in a million dollar combine, we are taking back our consumer rights.This week we have some connectors and cables coming in the mail as well as a small pressure tank for irrigating. Our 12 volt system is totally off the grid and self reliant from oil, petroleum or coal burning power. Petroleum free farming. People don't actually believe you can farm with a shovel and a hoe, but if it worked a hundred fifty years ago why can't it work right now?

Garlic braids, tomatillos, taxi tomatoes, carrots, tarragon 

Scallions and beets sell always 

Lettuce mix including some new red lettuces we are trying out: Lolla Rossa, Marveille de Quatre Saisons, Redina, Red Oaklaef, Red Salad Bowl, Rouge d'Hiver, Garnet Rose Romaine and Ruben's Red  

Chard, purple basil and rosemary

Plant, Harvest, Rain, Repeat

We have been busy planting everything from Red Russian Kale to carrots and beets, Broccoli, Lettuces, collards and all sorts of fall crops the last four days. Every day we plant a bunch of seeds it rains in the afternoon. Most everything is under shade cloth now (as far as the tender greens) with micro sprinkler irrigation with drip also set up. Infrastructure makes the farm what it is. Water cisterns are filling up and we are soon completing the irrigation system with 100% Off the Grid technology; solar panel, small pump, water from the sky and an old battery. Just waiting on some cables to connect everything and a transformer for backup.

Harvesting the first cutting of this Valentine Lettuce this morning for the Farmers Market this afternoon. That's fresh! 

Four days ago we planted all these seeds then got rain everyday since. 

Farmers Market Today!

RAdish 

Healthy soil in the herb garden with mushrooms growing up in the mint.

Newer lettuce planting doing very well. Just need to be thinned this weekend.

New pasture for the hens. We are getting a hundred or so day old chicks next month.  

Pastured Poultry in Drylands

These hens have been getting moved on our native drylands pasture at least twice a day ,,,,sometimes four or five!

Hens on a diet of leafy greens, sprouted wheat berries and barley, and organic scratch, no soy whatsoever. 

These three hen tractors can on a good day produce three eggs each!

Growing

Purple Basil in the ground... no transplanting needed

Tomato plant in the same bed 

Yarrow on it's second year

Chives

Talk is Cheap

Roma

Basil

Cabbage in coldframe

Putting up zucchini

Bartering With Eggs

 At the Santa Fe Farmer's Market this morning I took a few dozen eggs with and set out to barter our excess of eggs for some other things we needed.

Canning Tomatoes

25 pounds of fruit makes roughly 18 pints. (3 - 3 1/2 lbs. per Qt.)

The big harvests are just around the corner.

many silvery fir tree tomatoes in today's harvest wagon:

some nice sunsets.

sunset the other night:

spotty sign

our sign as of this morning:did pretty well today

Spotty Dog Farm

4-way


3 gpm

our first farmer's market!

irises we cut for market:

progress

had to put a name on the papers so we decided on Spotty Dog Farm. what do you think? we heard a lot of suggestions and this one was the best. By Saturday we will have turned in the complete application (15 pages ) and paid all dues and then stuff just needs to grow! kinda exciting and frightening all at the same time. we just kinda comfortably fell into this. just let it ride.

january was too warm.

the rest of our seeds arrived the other day..this is most of them. if you click on the photo you can see the names and pictures betterthree sisters test pot

good start to 2009

my bounty from the farmer;s market this morning, plus some delicious oatmeal cookies from Carol
later on I cut quite a bit of fire wood and wheel-barrowed it all to the road and loaded the Chevy

tues

more yellow squash, lemon cucumbers, more green beans everyday. Also our first real jalapeno harvest. Salsa tonight plus a couple of grilled chicken legs. mmm

knee high by when?

corn knee high by the fourth of July. not sure who coined this one, but I've heard a lot of people reference this phrase. Either way I don't see any way this will be ,but it is progress as usual.