That one bad apple… or melon

There is a melon crisis going on in this country, and it has hurt too many very good grower-shippers. Needless to say, the real tragedy was the loss of 29 lives to Listeria poisoning, all due to the harvesting practices of just one farm. Every produce farm - whether a big grower-shipper or a smaller, local fresh market grower - has to be very conscientious of food handling techniques. This is new to the marketplace, but rather has been an industry concern for quite some time. Quite frankly, food safety hazards can develop right in your own back yard garden.

My beef is this. One guy makes a mistake, and the entire industry takes a huge hit in prosperity due to the media coverage. This time melons were the problem, but with just one farm. One bad apple – or melon - does not necessarily ruin the whole barrel, unless you do not take it out.

But, in Florida a year or so ago, the media was spreading rumors of tainted tomato crops, when the culprit was a pepper. There was a huge loss of income for Florida tomato growers, and it was due to no fault of their own. The media did not have their facts straight.

I have a good friend in South Texas who is one of the top 5 melon growers in the USA. He’s an excellent grower who does an outstanding job of preparing produce for wholesale markets. His melon business is now in the tank because US consumers now believe that melons are dangerous. Who will be on the media’s hit list next?

The fact that poorly-handled produce can make you sick is a viable concern. Good growers with exemplary handling food techniques are able to mitigate food safety risks, and they continue to provide top quality, healthy food for the consumer.

Growers in New York have a couple of good ways to respond to consumer concerns, I believe. First, Cornell Cooperative Extension – like many other State University Extensions – offers extensive resources on growing and post-harvest practices that maximize food safety. Growers can use these Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) to self-audit their operations, even if they don’t decide to pursue GAP certification.

Second, the New York Farmers’ Market Federation recently pulled together a consortium of growers and industry professionals to address food safety at market. They came up with a proactive series of guidelines for handling produce at Farmers’ Markets, CSA pickup sites, Farm Stands, U-Pick Operations, and more. To view these recommendations, click here.

Makes sense…doesn’t it! It’s much better to be pro-active than re-active, like the melon farm in Colorado. A lot of good growers will suffer because of this melon scare, but they can also use the opportunity to improve their own practices…and let their customers know it!

Bad Blogger Dick...

I am one of those guys that is cut from an old piece of cloth… somewhat of an Andy Rooney type. I have shirked my blogging duties in the past, allowing some blog posts to be up on our web site way too long – according to the experts. It’s not because I do not care – I just forget as I move on to other duties. I am also not one of the most tech savvy guys, but I do get by. I guess that complicates the situation too.

Sorry.

In any event, let the blogging season begin. Some people can write about anything, and sometimes they bore the living daylight out of the reader. I really don’t want to do that. I try to comment on things that have meaning and interest for the reader. That’s very tough these days, as I have to compete with millions of fellow bloggers. Maybe I just bored you?

…and you thought I ran away and joined the circus!

My apologies for not attending to my blogging duties for quite some time. It probably has something to do with the “old dog... new tricks” thing.

Anyway... the garden landscape is changing. Although I live in the country (nothing better), many of my fellow gardeners are suburbanites. Garden space can be somewhat restrictive in these subdivisions, subsequently the garden has moved to decks and patios. Countless different types of growing containers are available at most retailers. Even our local grocery chain sells garden planters in the spring.

Many seed companies put forth a concerted effort to develop plants well suited for containers on decks and patios. It is quite easy to find tomatoes that will yield big numbers of tasty fruit in hanging baskets.
Plant growers and garden centers are signing on to offering vegetable varieties that perform well on the deck. It is all about growing quite a bit of food in a smaller space. The Japanese have been doing this successfully for centuries.

Speaking of intensive gardening, we have an affiliation with a company called SPIN Farming. They are all about earning a living or adding to your income by practicing intensive growing techniques in a small space. Their claim to fame is that anyone can grow and sell vegetables from a ½ acre plot and earn a decent income. The grower plants in blocks and eliminates rows of wasted space... seems to make good sense.

The other interesting phenomenon with gardening these days is the movement to roof tops or vacant lots in urban areas around the USA. Gardening in vacant lots, using intensive gardening techniques, is without question a good idea. Gardening on someone’s roof can be a little trickier. After all, gardening requires water, and water needs a place to drain, and not into the apartment below.

There are some significant greenhouse structures popping up on roof tops in the cities, and with proper engineering, it is a mighty fine place to grow vegetables.

Your seedlings will win with Worm Power... and so could you!!!

If you're like many of our home garden customers, you're looking for ways to raise seedlings using sustainable products and methods. We - along with growers nationwide - have found improved germination and seedling vigor using certified organic Worm Power when starting seeds. The method is simple, the fertilizer is safe, and the results are impressive. We wanted to share this information about how to use Worm Power to give your seedlings a great start. This article originally appeared in the February issue of our email newsletter. If you’d like to subscribe to our e-newsletter, you can do so here.

And as part of her super-duper give-away week, garden blogger Genevieve Schmidt (www.NorthCoastGardening.com) will be awarding a variety of Worm Power products to four lucky winners who post comments about Worm Power on her blog! The Worm Power give away will start on April 13th – so check out her blog, make a comment, and you could be the winner!

Worm Power is a professional-grade, certified organic fertilizer made by millions of earthworms in a state-of-the-art facility in the Finger Lakes region of New York. It supplies plants with balanced nutrients, and it helps facilitate nutrient absorption through the action of its abundant beneficial microbes. In addition, university laboratory tests using cucumber seeds show Worm Power to be effective in suppressing the soil pathogen that causes damping off. The rich, black, crumbly earthworm compost is odorless and safe to use around kids and pets. Although we didn't doubt the professional growers and gardeners who reported increased germination and plant vigor when starting seeds with Worm Power, we decided to test it for ourselves. We chose untreated Scarlet Red tomato seed, and we planted two trials. The trial on the left was planted into standard seed starting mix, while the trial on the right was sown into the same seed starting mix, blended with 10% Worm Power. The seeds started with Worm Power show markedly greener leaves, thicker stems, and faster leaf development.

Our trial with salad greens showed similar, impressive results.

Starting seeds with Worm Power is easy. First, choose a natural seed starting mix (without fungicide), and measure approximately the amount you'll need for your seeding flats or pots. Then, blend Worm Power evenly into the seed starting mix at a rate of 10% for vegetables, or 5% for flowers. At those rates, a 1 Lb Bag of Worm Power makes 2.5 Gallons of seed starting mix for vegetables, or 5 Gallons for flowers. A little goes a long way!

Water as you normally would, keeping seeds and seedlings moist but not wet. Supply bottom heat and plenty of light, and watch your plants take off! Every 2-4 weeks, continue your organic fertility program with liquid Worm Power Shower or by top dressing with granular Worm Power. Check out our Worm Power Starter Kit for all you'll need to give your seeds a powerful, natural start this spring.

For more Worm Power information, including application rates, university research, videos, news features, and gardener testimonials, visit our newly-launched Worm Power Home Garden page, or click the Worm Power tab on our Facebook page.

Oh, those happy Holsteins…

While growing up in rural New York, I had the privilege of working with my brother-in-law on his small dairy farm. He is gone now, and so is his farm. But, I do recall being there when he would open the barn door to allow his small herd to go outside for the very first time in the spring, after being cooped up in a stanchion during those long winter months. Much to my surprise, they cows would rush through the door and as soon as they got outside, they would kick up their heels as to say…wow, this weather is really nice. They knew greener pastures were right in front of them.

I don’t know about you folks, but I am starting to feel much like those Holsteins did. This winter seems to be longer than usual. It started with cold damp weather in November, and December brought cold snowy weather that has remained into March. It looks like a full 5 months of winter, and I know it is only supposed to be 3.

Well, I am truly looking forward to greener “pastures”, as spring is soon to grace us with its presence here in the North. Planting has started in the South, and greenhouses around the country are filled with flower and vegetable transplants. My brother says his radishes are up in his garden in South Texas, but mine will have to wait for another few months. Then, we all can kick up our heels.

The onion fields of Southwest Texas…



Dixondale Farms - Carrizo Springs, TX



While visiting my brother in southern Texas last month, I had an opportunity to drive out to Carrizo Springs in the Rio Grande Valley to visit Dixondale Farms. We were greeted by Bruce Frasier, the owner of Dixondale Farms.

Everything is truly big in Texas, including his 2500 acre farm. It is almost impossible to see from one end to the other. Within this operation are 400 acres of onion transplants and they were impressive. 400 acres of anything is a lot of ground to cover. He was harvesting transplants started in September for shipment in December to the southern parts of the USA. His harvest runs straight through April where onion transplants are delivered to the northern markets.

The raised bed fields were clean as a whistle with a multitude of plant sizes from tiny seedlings to mature transplants. All plants are hand harvested, and one is amazed how fast his field hands pull and bundle the transplants. Plants are pulled in the morning and shipped that very same day.

We sell many of Dixondale’s field grown onion transplants. It is reassuring to know that we are business partners with the biggest and best onion transplant grower in the USA. For more information on our onion transplant program for home gardeners and professional growers, check them out on our web site or find them in either our home garden catalog or professional vegetable growers’ catalogs.

Worm Power is ready to go…

We have busted our butts this fall to get our new OMRI approved earthworm fertilizer ready for shipment for the first of January. Although it was an uphill battle at times, the effort has been more than worth it. All sizes are now on the shelf and ready for shipment.

The Harris Seeds company has been very fortunate to work with a group as innovative and forward-thinking as the team at Worm Power. We are even more fortunate to be participating on the ground floor of Worm Power’s introduction to the national marketplace. We believe that home gardeners, professional bedding plant growers, and professional vegetable growers will find this product to be exceptional for plant growth and vigor. Conventional growers can use it as an alternative to conventional synthetic fertilizers, while organic growers will find Worm Power to be a highly effective component of their plant care system.

Greenhouse growers and vegetable growers alike are seeking sustainability in their operations, and they are widely using Worm Power as a high performing seed-starting and transplant fertilizer. University laboratory research has also proved that Worm Power is effective in suppressing Pythium “damping off” in cucumber. Ongoing research is exploring these natural disease-suppressive properties further, and we are truly excited to see the results.

Surveys tell us that most home gardeners prefer to use organic methods, and Worm Power is a perfect fit. It is odorless and certified organic, looks and feels like ground coffee, and is safe to use around kids and pets. Worm Power may be used on indoor house plants, in potting mixes, for transplanting, and for general application in containers and garden beds.

When all is said and done, Worm Power not only produces stronger, healthier, organically grown flowers and vegetables, but it also ultimately improves your soil. University tested and grower approved, Worm Power is a truly exciting introduction for growers and gardeners nationwide.

We encourage you to try Worm Power this season…we think you’ll be impressed!

The Harris Seeds Professional Vegetable & Cut Flower Growers’ Catalog

Three down and one to go…this is our busy season in marketing as we have a relatively short window to complete 4 Harris Seeds catalogs. We just finished our 2011 Professional Vegetable & Cut Flower Growers’ Catalog, and to be honest, we think it may be our very best. We hope you do as well. Here is why:

• We have added over 50 new varieties to our 2011 catalog. You will want to take a close look at 5 new augmented supersweets from the Abbott & Cobb plant breeders. We believe these new augmented shrunkens put the whole package together for our customers. Eating quality is absolutely superb. For those growers that prefer the se types, do not pass up two new synergistic se varieties from the Mesa Maize plant breeders.
• Vanguard, a new hybrid green to red bell pepper from Harris Moran, was very impressive in our trials. Big size and yields with a great disease package. The plant breeders at Harris Moran have also established themselves as market leaders with a terrific fresh market bean, pepper, pumpkin, squash and tomato program.
• Organic and sustainable growers will be pleased to know that our offerings of high quality seeds for this marketplace have grown again this year.
• Perhaps the single most exciting product in our new catalog for this upcoming season is Worm Power. It is an OMRI approved organic solution for your plants and soil. University tests have determined that it is the very best product available, and for good reason. Watch for it or for more information, e-mail us at: growers@harrisseeds.com

The Harris Seeds Professional Vegetable & Cut Growers Catalog will be in the mail on November 8^th. If you would like a free copy, call us toll-free 800-544-7938 or request one on our web site… www.harrisseeds.com.

Mr. Mini Mirai wins hands down!

We have completed our product launch of Mr. Mini Mirai in the Rochester area. We sampled 500 cooked ears with consumers at the Rochester Public Market and mailed a dozen ears to 50 of our e-mail subscribers to sample at their dinner table.

The Public Market…everyone that stopped by at our booth to try this wonderful and unique supersweet raved about its quality. Time and time again we heard the taste testers say that it was the very best sweet corn they have ever consumed. We kind of expected that response but it was good to hear the taste testers confirm what we actually believe.

Mr. Mini Mirai by mailorder…the response from these folks was much the same. Most of these taste testers ranked this variety as a 9 or 10, with 10 being the very best. We were concerned that this ear size might be too small for families, but most everyone preferred the smaller ear as it fits on the plate.

Mr. Mini Mirai has a place in the marketplace. Growers and home gardeners should strongly consider making this variety part of their production plans for next season.

Give us feedback on your growing experiences!

We are most anxious to hear about what’s up (or ripe) in your garden or on your farm. Both growers and home gardeners are finding Harris Seeds varieties are rapidly becoming favorites for the family table or at the farm market.

Just recently we received photos and a letter from a grower in the Northeast who said that Primo Red is the finest fresh market tomato he has ever grown. It has great size, earliness and wonderful eating quality. Not all new tomato hybrids can boast of the same.

If any of you folks out there have some information and photos to share with us, please send them along. With your permission, we might publish some of these testimonials in our catalogs or newsletters.

If you can send them via e-mail at: growers@harrisseeds.com.