Brookings Register Front Page News

A nice article about the farm in the local paper

http://www.brookingsregister.com/v2_news_articles.php?heading=0&story_id=10984&page=76

Hanna directing where the water should go.

our savior

Very small vegetable farms (under 5 acres) can rarely afford the luxury of automated farm equipment.  Our farm relies on small human powered tools  and very small engines which makes our venture very labor intensive.  We have a small tiller and a simple tractor, but most of the weeding, etc. is done by human power. But this year we decided to tackle the most hated job on the farm--plastic mulch laying.  Plastic mulch is one of the keys to our produce as it warms the soil and keeps weeds to a minimum.  The problem is that laying it by hand is back breaking and is the epitome of donkey work.

The jury rigged tractor in the photo is our reverse engineered version of an automated plastic mulch layer, which hopefully will end our long, grueling days of hand laying plastic mulch on the fields.  Mounted on the front are two small shovels for digging the trench.  The plastic roll is attached underneath with materials scavenged from an old weight set and on the back two coulters hill soil onto the plastic to keep it in place.  Its maiden voyage is the other picture.  As you can see it was somewhat of a success, but it is still a work in progress.

Garlic - picture update

04/2011 - new garlic poking through this spring!

 10/2010 - garlic planting last fall

2011 CSA Sign Up

03/2011 - new spinach seedlings reach towards sunlight

Let us know if you are in for the 2011 season!  You can sign up either by using PayPal, which we've set up on the new site (see previous post), or by sending us a check in the mail.  Either way, be sure to get your payment to us by Monday, May 2nd in order to reserve your space.  For those choosing to pay for your share by mail, you'll have the option of paying in full by the 2nd, or in two installments, as follows:

Full share - $275 by May 2nd, $250 by June 6th
Half share - $165 by May 2nd, $150 by June 6th

Please make checks payable to Hillside Prairie Gardens
and send to 47057 220th St. Brookings, SD 57006

Thanks for your support!
We look forward to sharing our third CSA year with you!

Questions?  605.695.0223 or info@prairiegrown.com

New Website Up and Running!

www.prairiegrown.com