For 2025 we are growing for sale raspberries, strawberries, and blackberries.
For 2024 Scenic Valley Farm is planning to grow raswpberries, strawberries, blackberries, heirloom slicers/cherries/romas, red slicer tomatoes, peppers green/red,yellow/orange, jalapeno, poblano, mini, hungarian wax, zuchinni, butternut squash, broccoli, cauliflower & herbs. The berries should be available mid May through November at the the Driftless Cafe in Viroqua. We deliver to restaurants in the Twin Cities and La Crosse.
Grants: Establish Self-Sustaining Local Food Sources For Readstown, Wisconsin Project> This is a USDA UAIP grant for $350k. It will be submitted in 2025. To grow produce for the food pantry and community gardens compost will be used from compost produced by the Recycle Compost System (RCS).
The UAIP grant for 2025 is on hold, like all R&D Federal grants
In 2024, we had record yields in quanity and size of individual produce. We attributed it to the compost over the years that we have added to the tunnels. Also growing in tunnels provide an ideal climate for growing circumventing early season excessive rainfall and late season drougth. Here are some fall 2024 pics:
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Good compost can inhibit plant diseases and pests, suppress certain pathogens, and improve soil health, ultimately leading to healthier and more resilient plants.
You ask: How important is compost?
Over the years adding compost to our tunnels has increased the soil depth 8″-12″, since 2009. We used to do soil analysis on all the tunnels in the early years. But only occasionally now. See 7.3.23 HT 11 SB soil trst. Nutritionally, if we’re low in something, it’s an occasional micro. The organic matter is 10-15%+.
Our yields (tomatoes & peppers) last year were the best ever. The fruit size, bell peps and heirloom beefsteak toms, were, in general, the largest. The only pest we had on the toms & peps were broad mites on the peps at the end of the season in Oct & Nov.
The years of compost did good.
Do composted plants produce best tasting fruit?
Yes, plants grown with compost, which provides a slow-release source of nutrients and a healthy soil ecosystem, are often said to produce fruit with better flavor and higher nutritional value compared to plants grown with synthetic fertilizers.
Compost, unlike synthetic fertilizers, doesn’t just provide the macronutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium) but also a wide array of micronutrients and beneficial microorganisms that enhance plant health and nutrient uptake.
Does composted plants produce fruit with higher brix level?
Yes, plants grown in compost-amended soil, which promotes healthy soil and nutrient availability, tend to produce fruit with higher Brix levels, indicating increased sugar content and potentially enhanced flavor and nut
rient density.
Here’s a more detailed explanation:
Brix and Plant Health:
Brix is a measurement of the sugar content in plant sap, and it’s often used as an indicator of overall plant health and vigor.
Compost and Soil Health: Compost improves soil structure, water-holding capacity, and nutrient availability, creating a better environment for plants
Nutrient Availability:
Healthy soil, enriched by compost, allows plants to access a wider range of nutrients, which can lead to increased sugar production and higher Brix levels.
Increased Sweetness and Flavor:
Higher Brix levels in fruit often translate to sweeter and more flavorful produce.
Plants with higher Brix levels tend to be more resilient to pests, diseases, and environmental stresses.
Here is
Brix.xlsx – Sheet1 of our produce grown in will composted soil.. We have included hydroponically grown produce to show the increase in Brix levels of will composted soil vs hydroponics. There is a sceintific reason why home grow tomatoes taste better than tomatoes grown in water,
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We had a severe thunderstorm with very strong winds go through the farm on Dec 15, 2021. A suspected 90 mpg wind destroyed high tunnel 15. We had just constructed this high tunnel the previous year.
before
after
The storm also blew off the roof on three other tunnels. This spring, 2022, we have had some of the strongest spring winds ever on the farm.
We have two research & development projects going; 1) Vertically Growing Strawberries in Stacked Pots, 2) Recycle Compost System for Growers. Both project are described in detail in the BLOG. We also will status the projects in the BLOG as we proceed….
