August 2019 - 15

FARM MARKET & AGRITOURISM
wastes your time and money, and it can
break you, " Garcia said.
New crops are often added to the
mix, which involves educating the CSA
members. " We encourage people to eat
more greens, " Angela said. " We want to
grow greens year round. "
That meant growing Malabar spinach
to have a productive leafy green available
in hot weather. Malabar spinach is
actually a climbing vine and is more
heat- and drought-tolerant than regular
spinach. " It's not a spinach at all, but we've
taught people about it and they like it, "
Garcia said.
" It's been good for us, " Angela said. " It
loves the heat. "
Putting recipes in the CSA boxes
helps. That worked well when the
Magneys introduced kohlrabi and
fennel to their customers.
" We will include a couple of recipes for
unfamiliar crops, " Angela said.
Garcia assesses on Monday what should
go in the CSA boxes based on a variety of
criteria. " It's what we have, what looks the
best and do we have enough for all of the
members, " he said. The goal is six to eight
items in each box.
Presentation is important and leafy
greens are usually arranged in a bouquet.
" We deliver straight to their door, " Angela
said. " Most CSAs do pickup locations.
think this will really help our business, "
Angela said.
Weed pressure has been an issue on the
farm. The fields were once used for cattle
production and weeds weren't controlled.
There was also a learning curve and
weed control wasn't as timely as it should
have been when the Magneys started the
farm. Frequent tillage also brought more
weed seeds to the soil surface where they
could germinate.
The south facing location of the high
tunnels on a hillside also exposed the area
to the wind, which brought in windborne
weed seed.
Less tillage has helped. " We broadfork
our beds about once a year, " Angela said.
" Our tillage doesn't tear up the
ecosystem of the soil, " Garcia said.
" If we take care of the soil, it will take
care of everything else, " Angela said.
A landscaping fabric is also put down
for weed control. The landscape fabric
is breathable, lets air and water through,
but not the weeds. " It's really made a
difference in quality, " Angela said, " and
saved a lot of time. "
" The landscape fabric is worth one
employee weeding, " Garcia said.
The fabric doesn't leave itself in the
ground like plastic mulch, which is
important on an organic farm.
" Landscape fabric can be reused
for up to five years, " Garcia said. The
fabric is measured and a burner is used
to make the holes. There are different
spacings in the fabric for different crops
and plantings. " That's one of the biggest
challenges, " Garcia said.
A black tarp on the beds that aren't in
production also suppresses weeds and
decreases weed seed pressure.
Besides the CSA, Magney Legacy Ridge
Farm also sells at two farm markets and
has some restaurant sales. " That was the
easy one, " Angela said. " We just brought
the restaurants some samples. " The
restaurants are a little more upscale and
the best quality ingredients are a must.
" Knowing your market and your outlets
- that's the starting point, " Angela said.
" We have the outlets, " Garcia said. " We
have the people who want locally-grown,
fresh produce year-round. " VGN
The USDA Agricultural Research Service's
Plant Hardiness Zones help estimate the
day of the first frost on Magney Legacy
Ridge Farm near Princeton, Kentucky.
We're the ultimate convenience. "
Magney Legacy Ridge Farm has a
newsletter to educate CSA members.
" We consider them partners on the
farm, " Angela said. The CSA has about
50 members and the goal is to increase it
to 80.
The Magney Legacy Ridge Farm
team also includes Ray and Angela's
daughter, Hannah, who is a student at
the University of Kentucky (UK) and
Patrick Ranval, the horticulturist on the
team. Hannah provides fresh insight from
what's she learned at UK. Patrick does
most of the planting and bed preparation.
" He's very in tune with the land, " Angela
said. " Everyone's on a different learning
level; we're a pretty good team. "
The space needs for winter production
and the pressing need for more room to
start seedlings recently added a fourth
high tunnel. The new high tunnel will be
modified to serve as a greenhouse.
Magney Legacy Ridge Farm is close to
being certified as an organic farm. " We
Tired of replacing
your growing trays?
Discover how a tough, super long-life
injection molded Proptek propagation tray
can transform your nursery's profitability
and produce high quality, easy to pull
plants. Suitable for vegetables, ornamentals,
hemp + more!
proptek.com
sales@proptek.com
(800) 487 1381
VGN | AUGUST 2019 | 15
http://www.proptek.com
August 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of August 2019
