Local Foods and Small Farms

We are certainly wetter now than we probably have been in a few years at this time of year.  After starting 2024 in a drought we have rebounded on moisture.  I have tracked rainfall for CoCoRaHS personally and also tracked rainfall at the...

Trent Ford, Illinois State Climatologist, provided this weather update. Since the calendar turned over to 2025, we have been experiencing winter weather that, especially in southern Illinois, conjures memories of winters of yore. Average temperatures over the last 30 days ranged from the high teens...

The Unity Community Center’s Food Production and Demonstration Garden I manage every year has had to move. We are in the process of relocating the Food Production and Demonstration Garden to an area behind Unity Community Center that Extension owns – formally the site of a children’s garden. The...

With all seeds ordered and in hand, pepper seeds were germinated and potted up into flats during the second and third weeks of February respectively. Tomato seeds have started to germinate and will be potted up by the end of this last week of February. It has been our experience with the greenhouse...

During the 2025 Southern Illinois Fruit and Vegetable School recently held in Mt. Vernon, a short survey was created to go along with discussion in the Small Fruit Q & A session. The survey asked participants basic questions regarding crops raised, pricing, varieties, etc. These questions...

With the worst of the winter cold hopefully behind us, pruning of tree fruit and small fruit should be kicking into high gear.  Based on grower feedback, both the apple and peach crop have sustained little to no cold damage and hopes are high for a full crop. Pictured is a high density peach...

The winter season gives us time to relax a bit and to plan for the next growing season. University of Illinois Extension would like to work with you in meeting some of your food safety learning and implementation goals. You may have already taken a food safety training related to fresh produce and...

Sarah Farley and I are looking forward to seeing many of you at our Stateline Fruit and Vegetable Growers Conference at NIU Rockford on Monday, February 17th. We have a number of...

Fresh produce packing facilities come in different sizes and designs. Some maybe fully closed and others partially closed with a few legs and a roof. Some may be permanent structures and others temporary. Farms may also use their limited space to accomplish multiple activities which may include...

Did you know that the USDA has a crop insurance policy tailored for the small organic or specialty crop farmer? It is called the Micro Farm policy for farms with no more than $350,000 of approved revenue. These are an “insured revenue” type of policy and is available in all 50 states. There...