May 1st, 2020 By Christy Bassett, NOFA/Mass Dairy Program Coordinator If there was a way to nurture natural systems, reverse environmental damage, and increase the health of people and animals around us, wouldn’t you want to support it? If so, maybe you should start drinking more milk. Dairy farmers throughout the Northeast are embracing farming methods that sequester carbon from…
Read MoreHarvest Great Lettuce All Season with Succession Planting
May 1st, 2020 By Richard Robinson, Farmer at Hopestill Farm farm@hopestill.com When I started gardening, I thought everything got planted only once; when it was harvested, you waited until next year to get more. But over time I learned nothing could be further from the truth—with succession planting, you can reap multiple harvests of the…
Read MoreDandelions
May 1st, 2020 By Julie Rawson, NOFA/Mass Executive Director The gifts of nature are all around us, and in the springtime they are constantly reappearing. Right now I am spending a lot of time with dandelions. Probably you knew already that dandelions are good for you. But did you know all the names it has…
Read MoreCan I Plant My Tomatoes Now? How About Now?
April 1st, 2020 By Richard Robinson, Farmer at Hopestill Farm Most of the gardeners I know are optimists, and there is nothing quite as tempting to the optimistic gardener as getting the earliest possible start on the tomato season and, one hopes, the earliest possible harvest. But after a number of years of succumbing to…
Read MoreThe Intersection of Community, Organic Growing and Youth; Youth Leaders in the Forefront of Organic Growing at Home City Housing
March 1st, 2020 By Anna Gilbert-Muhammad, NOFA/Mass Food Access Coordinator Home City Housing, Inc, a part of Housing Management Resources, provides low income housing to over 140 families in Springfield, MA. Two of their developments; Tapley Court Apartments and Twiggs I and II are nestled within the Mason Square Community, an area in Springfield that…
Read MoreFarmer Drive-In for Healthy Soils Advocacy
March 1st, 2020 By Caro Roszell, NOFA/Mass Education Director and Marty Dagoberto, NOFA/Mass Policy Director On February 12, 2020, 21 farmers from across Massachusetts drove in to the Statehouse to urge legislators to support the creation of a Massachusetts Healthy Soils Program. Gathering in a briefing room, legislators, staffers, press and supporters of the bill heard comments…
Read MoreMarch Madness (and Gladness!) in the Garden
March 1st, 2020 By Richard Robinson, Farmer at Hopestill Farm I begin planting spring crops inside in late January, and by the beginning of March I’ve already got lettuce transplants, arugula, and radishes growing in the hoop houses, along with fall-planted spinach which is ready to harvest. But the month of March brings an exponential…
Read MoreA Home-Grown Response to Insect Population Collapse
March 1st, 2020 By Caro Roszell, NOFA/Mass Education Director A version of this article was first published in the Montague Reporter in Spring 2017 and was updated to include more recent information. In this time of the Anthropocene, when human activity has been the dominant influence on climate and the environment, stories about biodiversity loss…
Read MoreThe Carcinogenic Threat to Children from the Massachusetts Pesticide Law
February 1st, 2020 By Donald Sutherland UPDATE from NOFA/Mass Policy Director, Marty Dagoberto: On January 31st, 2020 the Joint Committee on Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture passed H.791, mentioned below! Supporters should contact and THANK legislators and ask them to push for the bill to voted on by the full house ASAP. Stay tuned for more…
Read MoreThe Real Climate Change Mitigating Diet
February 1st, 2020 The Real Climate Change Mitigating DietBy Caro Roszell, NOFA/Mass Education Director Lately there has been a lively discussion about what diet best combats climate change across a range of mainstream and social media platforms. Every major food movement—from vegetarianism to fortified grains to the organic movement—is motivated by the conjoined aspirations of better health and…
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