WVU Organic Research Project

Project Update (8/07/01)

Farm Field Day

• At least a hundred guests visited the farm for our first field day, on Thursday, August 2nd. Wagons took our visitors from one study site to another, where researchers explained their experiments. Back at the main barn, our guests chatted and browsed through interactive displays. The evening concluded with a delicious dinner, featuring farm fresh produce, prepared by members of the Plant and Soil Science Club.

What's ripe? 

• Zucchini -- we're drowning in the stuff.
• Basil -- doing very well, with the recent heat.
• Tomatoes -- three studies incorporate tomatoes, and ripe fruit is now coming out of all of them.
• Peppers -- we're picking pecks. Pickles, Peter?
   

  Buy our produce at the Mountain People's Market, the Saturday Market on High St., select local restaurants, and the Thursday ice cream sales at the back loading dock of the agriculture building.

Critter counts.

• We mowed our string beans last week to help break the Mexican bean beetle life cycle. We will wait before planting the fall bean crop, to prevent beetles from moving over to the new plants.
• Regular applications of Surround WP (a kaolin clay formulation) seem to be protecting our potato plants from leafhopper damage. The product gives the potato leaves a "whitewashed" appearance.

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