heartseed McCoy

HEAVY FEEDERS.  Really they are.  If you don't see signs of virus ( visual) then there is not one present.  If they did not size up, they probably did not have enough to eat.  How far did you space them? How deep did you dig them in?  Did you hill them?  How did you prepare the bed?  How tall did the plants grow?  When in relation to them flowering did you dig them up?

I have not used specific biodynamic preps, I try to read signs in the soil and plants and supply what seems neccesary.  If you are composting in place or sheet mulching (sort of the same) you need sugars, that is a definite.  I like using mollasses, you can dillute it with water or tea, somewhere around 10:1 to 15:1 depending on what your soil life looks like, active or inactive.  Just small amounts of sugars at a time are needed when your soil is looking fairly active.  I use yarrow, comfrey, stinging nettle and chamomile as my main herbs for teas. 

If you have any specific questions, just ask away.  There is an awful lot of info on the subject, and many people do things differently.  I am a commercial grower implementing permaculture techniques and what is called biological techniques.  Growing at this scale, feeding lots of people, it is difficult to use permaculture in every area.  Permaculture is patience and trust in nature's way, commercial growing gets closer to humans pushing a little harder and maybe even rushing things a bit.  Composting in place, this is one of the things I'm talking about:  if you start throwing lots of compost out on your beds, this isn't nature's way.  It probably won't work out without the right variety.  Nature grows then withers in place and it happens slowly.  This is what you are mimicking when composting in place.  Now, you can push it a bit, but it takes patience still.  I hope I've been helpful.

@ sunshine ax:
I use oat, rye, hairy vetch and field pea straw.  I grow these myself and scythe them so I know that they are ripe.  Around my parts I think I recall $5/bale for straw.  I do have some tea recipes that I am pleased with.  They vary greatly depending on the season and the signs I read in the field.  They all begin with a culture I grow from specially formulated compost made in small batches.  I feed the culture until it has reached a suitable quantity.  Then I brew the tea and continually aerate for at least three days.  It really works wonders, you can brew soil, foliar and compost sprays and dilute for soil soakings.  I find these teas a neccesary step in sheet mulching.

If you eat raw potatoes straight from the earth, there's no harm.  I've been farming for some years now and eat them raw in salads all the time, no issues.  It's pretty obvious if you can connect with the animal that's in all of us, poison tastes like poison especially when it comes to food, plain and simple.

Hey Connor,  It makes me proud to hear about people taking initiative to DO something.  I like to stay positive, can you sense a "but" coming?  I know you don't want to think too far ahead but, who are you, what do you like, where do you see yourself in years to come?  What are you really interested in doing?  It is important to have a vision in business.  I think it could help others help you as well.  What do you want to see your business achieving in years to come?  It's okay to dream a little, get lifted off your feet.  Most great businesses start with a dreamer who inspires others who surround them.  But running a great business requires an unrelenting comittment that must last a lifetime.  This is a hard field to enter, the people that help are more helpful than you can imagine, but there are many obstacles and an entire nation living a way of life that people like us are endangering.  So that is my advice: dream, inspire, share, be inspired, follow your instincts and you will be led to where you are meant to be.  There is no rulebook.  I hope that I may have inspired you!

I always eat my first new potatoes raw, it's the only way to see if you've grown truly magnificent taters!  If the taste isn't close to pleasing raw, then it's not worthy of cooking in my book.

I am with Travis, this is simple stuff, like nature.  I would add that it helps to spray a homemade batch of bacteria (compost tea or something similar, as long as it is native soil bacteria), throw some sugars in there (mollasses) and call it good!  I like straw better than hay mostly because hay will tend to form a biological mat in places which will inhibit some anaerobic decomposition.  Hay also tends to be a more favorable place for pests to hide. 

I am looking for a site to farm and live in western Oxford County ME (at least an acre of suitable garden space).  Does anyone know of some space like this for rent?  Thanks so much.

They are out in the day as well, they are just harder to find.  They tend to nestle themselves in nooks and crannies and the undersides of leaves and stems to avoid the intense sun.

definitely prune your tomatoes, they can be finicky and pest prone, but you shouldn't ever have to use any kind of insecticide for hornworms.  Look for droppings around the plant and if your plants are pruned you'll spot them no problem.