Healthy soil and sustainable growing

[tradingpost <tradingpost@lobo.net>]

First, let me agree. Second, we could sell wholesale as many do around 
and lose most of the $300+ at a 3-hour mkt where we sell retail direct. 
We'd go broke. Granted most places don't have the clientele for organic 
and want bargains. So we're limited to a couple markets big enough and 
well off to buy better quality. And this requires us to customize our 
varieties and planting for taste and eye appeal to entice customers. Our 
particular niche is tasty Italian heirlooms not sold in any store.

Now in places where this wouldn't pay, I'd say people need to grow their 
own if they want it. We advise and encourage that even in talking with 
those who buy from us. With high long term unemployment and crushing 
cost of living, millions should be trying some growing work to feed 
themselves and friends and family. Our intensive bed growing needs 
little up front investment but there is a learning curve. But it won't 
get any easier as times get harder and harder. As for us, we need the 
markets to keep up some kind of middle class lifestyle. This is the "new 
normal".

paul tradingpost@lobo.net
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On 1/22/2014 4:39 PM, John D'hondt wrote:
> And maybe there is not enough money in work Paul. I used to grow vegetables
> for sale to organic food shops and restaurants using organic vegetables and
> I had to give it up since we lost money at it. A restaurant 25 miles away
> ringing you up at 9 p.m asking to bring 4 heads of lettuce in a hurry...
> Need anything else? No just the lettuce but it is urgent. And then you get
> paid the going rate of 20 cent per head of lettuce...
> Consumers are crazy and things have not gotten better. Around Christmas
> there were several big supermarkets here that had carrots, brussels sprouts,
> cabbages etc. for sale at 5 cent per kilo. Tons of them.
> And it is no better with meat. At a good time we get maybe $ 50 for a 40
> kilo lamb. Go to a butcher after having sold your lambs and you can spend $
> 30 for one leg of lamb. At bad times I have seen good sheep sell for less
> than $1 per piece and good calves for $ 5.
>
> And if you see what poison people spend their money on it is understandable
> that things are as they are. Go to a supermarket and see how many 2 liter
> bottles of diet coke are being moved. I think I said this before but I have
> been very succesfully using diet coke to get rid of an exploding rat
> population. Before I started using the diet coke our rats were extremely
> smart and healthy on a pure organic diet(our plant crops). They avoided
> traps and bait. It took a few weeks to get them addicted to aspartame and
> they got fat and stupid and more interested in diet coke than organic peas.
> They once more let themselves be trapped in traps that had not worked for
> years. If I had a McD's closer by I might have gotten them used to big macs
> with the same effect.
>
> >From what I see here there is not really a need for more organic food. The
> stalls in Bantry mart never sell out on a Friday.
> And most people who are interested in heating healthy do grow at least  some
> if not all of their own food.
> John