Plant Cities
Big plants are magical. There is a certain feeling walking into a forest, surrounded by trees and a low understory. The air is different, the ground softer. So much life is contained in the overhead branches. How many insects, animals, and fungi surround us on a walk through the cottonwoods by the river?
Vegetable farms are very different than forests. Most of the crops we grow barely reach hip high. A field of lettuce feels like a suburb of single family dwellings. Quiet, until you drop in and notice the moist soil beneath the lower leaves, the insects living within the folds.
Step into a tomato tunnel and it feels like Times Square, bustling. The vines tower overhead. Bumble bees fly though the canopy, trundling over the yellow flowers. The ground floor is alive with all kinds of daddy long legs, earwigs, and praying mantis. In between ripe fruits full of seeds and the next generation of life.
A great part of growing crops for seed is witnessing a small lettuce plant become several feet tall and laden with thousands of babies. The sheer possibility and life giving nature of a seed crop is overwhelming. One crop can literally provide acres of offspring.
When you consider carbon to be the structure of life, it makes sense the larger plants hold more energy. A corn plant will provide our soil with multitudes more carbon than a head of lettuce. Tall, large plants provide homes for many more critters ranging from insects to mammals and birds.
If our job as farmers is to transmute free sunlight into plant life than fostering big plants is the goal. Especially now when the sunlight is long and bright we work to take advantage of the light before it descends into winter.
Consider too the understory of these larger plants. When we sowed the corn we also planted rows of radishes and turnips in between. As the corn grows, those roots crops mature under the shade of the corn leaves. Stacking these plants in a community reminds me of an apartment building vs. a ranch home. The sheer diversity a skyscraper can hold surpasses even the largest mansion.
I invite you to come to the farm and feel for yourselves. Whether in the Cut Your Own Flower patch, Kitchen Garden Herbs, or on August 2nd for the Poudre Food Partnership Farm Hop. Now is a great time to experience the diversity of a thriving organic farm. More info below
Farm News
Farm Store Hours: Tuesday-Friday 10-6, Saturday and Sunday 10-4
What is stocked in the Farm Store?
Greens- Hearts and Souls Salad Mix, arugula, spicy mix, kale, chard, collards, radish microgreens, herbs (mint, basil ((Italian, Thai, Tulsi)), parsley, oregano, thyme, sage, lemon balm, peppermint,
Roots- Radishes, turnips, beets, spring and red onions, kohlrabi, carrots
Fruits- cherry and heirloom tomatoes, summer squash, cucumbers, apricots, peaches, cherries, sweet corn
Flowers- U-Pick Flower Field opens Tuesday!
Local Products- KREAM Kimchi, Crown Mushrooms, Bread Chic Sourdough, Fox Den Coffee, Bee Squared Honey (from the farm), What a Yolk Pastured Eggs
