Join Jean-Martin Fortier (JM), author of award-winning book “The Market Gardener”, as he explains how he generates over $100,000 in sales annually from 1 1/2 acres of bio-intensively managed vegetables on his farm in Quebec. JM has inspired thousands of readers worldwide to reimagine human-scale food systems. His message is one of empowerment in order to educate, encourage and inspire people into pursuing a farming career and lifestyle. Part three of a five-part series recorded at the 33rd annual NOFA-VT Winter Conference on February 16, 2015.
Gardening Supplies
23 Comments
Thank you for posting this. An amazing companion to the book.
If you are wondering about composting. I'm pretty sure I see the farmers here in Northern Holland do it all the time. They just take manure and mix it with hay, can't tell you wet or dry, they tightly seal it under a tarp and place heavy tires over the sides. It always stays warm and doesn't wash away. I think they do it like that because it seems to be a construct and forget thing. This is then used once a year to reinvigorate the grazing lands.
Making your own compost is indeed tricky part will try to start my own pile this year and see how it goes, I'm using horse manure this year and already have anew batch delivered which will be hot composted hopefully there will be less weeds in it. Great to see how Jean is preparing the beds. This whole presentation is amazing !
Soil aggregates are aggregated by the "microbes,….that feed the fungi,…that feed the nematodes that feed the……without the 'living critters' in the soil…..there is NO soil….there's only "dirt".
Dirt is dead…soil is living……plants feed the "critters"…and conversely, the critters fix nitrogen and minerals for the plants to "take up" and make "food". That's basically it….now…THE WORK.
FOLKS….try this too….visit "Garden of Eden" for more information….on alternatives to tillage for stuff like "apple trees, pear trees, etc.
Large trees can be pruned to amend growth patterns…..and using "cover crops" is not as viable for trees…but "wood chips……aaaahhhhhhHHH!" Wood chips cover the soil…acting as an insulator….keeping the soil damp and hotter than without it….also…the breakdown of the chips provides years round fertilizer too!
Question…..?? Does God fertilize the forest? No…leaves and wood chips 'drop' and add consistent fertilizer….
Bottom line…..uncovered soil is dead, or will be very quickly.
1) bacteria don't like it…..they feed the larger "critters; nematodes, etc.
2) the plants don't like being cold….
3) worms like dark, damp, loose conditions…augmented by coverings.
4) coverings,….speed up reactions….heat in/on this earth….speeds up reactions universally- just like an enzyme(s) do.
5) God wants our planting to be done once….then leave it…let nature mature the soil…but one needs "coverings…on everything".
Nice video. Don't forget to visit….http://www.BackToEden.com
So a Harrow is kind of like a tilther but with a garden tractor?
Earthworms definitely take vegetation down into the ground, my lawn mowing clippings disappear over night and on a house we were renovating we'd stripped the top layer of topsoil off and you could see leaves from the tree sticking up out of their burrowed holes. They are industrious little animals and invaluable to good land management… and they work for free!
Broadfork is a traditional tool in Navarra in northern Spain before tractors. We call it "Laya" pronounced (layer) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ry1mTJh_NU
quick question with any monetary figures. are these net or gross? when you own your own business 100k is equivalent to a 50k salary. 100k in sales is even less.
Thank you for your time. Could you please add links for when you mention products? Like for the power harrow and such as well as organizations you work with like in you mentioned in your earlier videos. Thank you again.
Bless you JMF! You've paid your dues and instead of being secretive you share the details with others. Love your system. If I were young enough I'd go to farming. So I'm applying it to a large vegetable garden. Thanks again. I'm taking notes.
Jean-Martin Fortier: Small tip regarding tarps. We at Hell's Half Acre Urban Farms visit the lumber yards here in Kelowna and pick up of their used lumber covers for free. They give them away. They may be a little thinner than what you have but they also don't breathe, they are black, lightweight and the results speak for themselves – dead weeds in two to three weeks. I just uncovered a bed yesterday, weeds fried right to the tip of the roots! So save your money, go to a lumber yard. The only draw back is that they aren't super large and they aren't standardized to 30" beds, they are standardized for lumber. But, when balancing the cost advantage versus the small hassle of using multiple tarps it is a no-brainer.
I love this, I wish everyone would do this, with the subtitles of the questions.
1. Aha moment with the uv treated silage tarps to take care of the weeds is so amazing!
2. Flail mower ok cool.
3. Agronomists to test soil composition ok.
is plastic on all winter?
I'd say that "we should trial….." How about we "trial – functional medicine", which includes a strict calorie exchange of the S.A.D.of McDonald's for real food. Our food chain is broken….and therefore, so are we. McDonald's food, should be food….no…it's not even good enough for our chickens!
Can you just hit the soil / microbes with molasses to recharged once you got your organic matter built up? They love sugar
How did you go about getting your grant? I have six acres that I would like to get started next year.
This is my favorite thing farm experience yess 🙏🏽😀😀😁
40:50 – beet seed to indicate carrots emerging. Brilliant.
Gxxrdddddddddffffkhv:vvvdtttt[tttttttttt
Biochar? Do you ever use it?
i mean i love all the info and will most def apply it in my venture … but for a farmer, he's kinnda arrogant you know or probably like all the other Canadians, he forgot his daily dose of Tim hortons. damn Jean-martin Fortier, go easy, people just wanna ask you questions cause they are interested.