Tuesday, May 10, 2011

May 10, 2011...The Veggies are in Full Swing!!!

It has been entirely to long since my last entry.  I have no real excuse other than I have been lazy.  Any way, I have some new pictures of my vegetables.

The main plot
This has been a great learning experience.  The main thing I have learned is adequate spacing is a must. Having each plant that close not only takes away from potential fruit growth, but also makes it a pain to search for fruit.  At the same time, have them close together did give them a great deal of stability. Next season, I have to plan my spacing better.  I have also learned that caging the tomato plants are much better than staking them.  The cage give the plant 360 degrees of support while the stake barely maintains the weight.  Next season, I will buy all new cages and make sure to get the largest they have.

Bell Pepper
  This is small bell pepper that I picked right after Allison took the picture.  I am a bit disappointed with the size of my bell peppers.  I imagined them to be as large as the ones in the grocery.  I have to do some research on why they are so small.
LA Roma's
My LA Roma's are getting really big. There are so many of them popping up.  I can't wait to they ripen!

Yellow Squash

This picture doesn't do justice to these little guys!  The leaves are so big an prickly around them that it makes it kind of difficult to get a good picture.  Just like the bell peppers, the squash an zucchini (not in picture) are not getting big.  I am not even sure when they should be harvested.  I have had a few that rotted already, so I think they are not going to get much bigger.

The Creole Tomato
Pride of Southeast Louisiana, the Creole Tomato is a favorite among locals.  Each year in late May to early July, Creole tomato's are seen all around Southeast Louisiana.  You can buy them in grocery stores, but the best come from road side produce venders or farmers markets. Restaurants also feature Creole tomato' s in a lot of specials.  My close friend Chef Josh Garic is actually having an entire supper club evening devoted to creole tomato's in June!
Creole

Creole 

I am very proud of my mini farm and I think my dad would be to!  My dad grew up on a family farm in St. Bernard Parish.  After this his family sold the farm and went into other businesses, he still held on to that love of farming.  He and his uncle leased land in Plaquemines Parish and farmed as a secondary income.  I was lucky enough to go a few times before he got sick and could continue farming. 

This project is making me realize how much I enjoy agriculture production.  I am strongly considering working toward starting my own small scale commercial farm.  I cannot stay what exactly I will grow and the method (organic vs. non-organic), but I will not over produce and sacrifice quantity for quality.  The mission on my farm will be something along the lines of to first give my family and my community nourishment that came from their own backyard, and  second give local restaurants the option to buy from an eco-conscious farmer that doesn't deplete our state's renewable natural resources by overproducing for financial gain.

Until next time!

2 comments:

  1. good job Matthew I am sure your dad would be proud of you. and I sure would love one of those Creole tomatoes only if I lived closer.

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  2. Mignon, thank you so much for the support it means a lot! This year was really an experiment. Next year, I should have a better idea of my production potentiality and try to take orders! I have no experience with shipping produce, but when I worked in the restaurant industry there was a company that shipped that day caught fish to your restaurant the next day. If they can do it with seafood, I am sure I can do ship you a few tomato's haha!

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