by Paul W. Keiser
When Gene and Cathy Purdum moved to their rural 2-1/2 acre farmstead near Williamston, Michigan, in March of 1996, living the farming dream was not new to either of them. Gene had grown up next to a beef farm in central Maryland, where he had helped with farm tasks such as filling silo with forage feeds, making hay, cleaning stalls and unloading fertilizer. Cathy’s mother had a kitchen garden, and for years, Cathy worked in greenhouses in Massachusetts. She also cleaned lots of animal stalls. It’s amazing what can happen when one handles animal manures as a child!
At their Dietz Creek home, the Purdums cultivate 170 100-square-foot beds, producing more than 60 varieties of plants. Intensive crop rotations include oats, rye, soybeans, red clover, white clover and hairy vetch, following many of the vegetable plantings. Soil building is part of the cropping. Detailed records of all plantings are kept to qualify as a certified organic farm The Organic Growers of Michigan is the certifying organization, and Gene is the president of OGM’s Lifeline Chapter. Cathy handles the secretarial work of the organization, which has 15 member growers. One of the 15 is in beef production, two are in poultry, with the remainder growing vegetables on less than 15 acres.
Only untreated seeds are used at Dietz Creek Farm. Some seeds are from organic production sources. Soils range from a rich loam near the stream to a field parcel that has needed extra fertilization help. Soil testing is done in cooperation with Michigan State University and the Purdums’ remedial work has restored 3 to 4 percent organic matter. Vegetable cropping reduces fertility, so compost, cover crops, crop rotations and fish emulsion (on seedlings) are all used to improve the soils. Crops are hand-watered when needed.
When crop planning, Cathy and Gene’s end-product goals are home consumption, customer needs, holiday gifts, labor/food exchange and soil improvement. In addition to recording crop rotations, the Purdums also estimate seed and space needs, and track hours spent on various tasks. For example, last year’s work required nearly 100 hours mowing, 250 hours weeding, 260 hours harvesting, and 300 labor-hours for the farmers markets (including prep time). Cathy did most of the seedling and outdoor planting, and flower culture.
Market days were Wednesday and Saturday in Okemos and Sunday in Howell. Daily sales of each item were recorded, as were income per square feet of bed. Cut flowers generate one-third of sales and are marketed from early July to early October. Flowers are cut in the morning before market day and kept in a cool, shady spot in water. Bunches sell for $3.50 each.
Twelve culinary herbs are grown at Dietz Creek Farm. These include basil (two varieties), chives, dill, oregano, parsley (two varieties), rosemary, sage, spearmint, tarragon and thyme. Herbs are hauled to market in a cooler and sold for 50 cents per bag.
In 1998, Moon & Stars watermelon (an heirloom), garlic, beans and several varieties of flowers were all harvested for future replanting. Cathy and Gene plan to add more heirloom varieties in the future.
Sixty quarts of tomatoes were processed and canned for the winter. Sweet corn and green beans were put into the freezer for winter use. Herbs were being dried on screens during the writer’s visit (January 1999). The Purdums intend to develop a root cellar beneath the house when they can get to it.
At present, both of these intensive growers have off-farm jobs. In 1999 they want to reduce or eliminate the time and travel spent going to markets by having customers visit their farm and make purchases there. To this end, they sent out surveys to customers inquiring what crops are of interest to them.
Additionally, they maintained a farm website with available crops listed for customers to view the evening before the sale.
----Paul Keiser is a longtime organic and biodynamic grower operating a CSA farm in Marne, Michigan