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A Brief (and Interesting) History of Rice!

Ever since we at Blue Moon started growing our own rice, I’ve found myself wondering about its history. Where did it originate? How long have we been cultivating it? What makes it so special? Rice, it turns out, is a fascinating crop—and not only because of its history.

When you get right down to it, rice is basically a seed—a grass seed. There are two major types of rice: Indica and Japonica. Indica is the non-sticky, flakey, long-grained variety; Japonica is the sticky, short-grained variety. Basmati and jasmine are two well-known indica rices; sushi rice and Arborio are two well-known Japonica varieties. Indicas are generally grown near the equator, the Philippines, India, Pakistan, Indonesia, etc. Japonicas, on the other hand, are grown in temperate and mountainous regions, including Japan and Korea.

According to Chinese legends, rice domestication began under Chinese Emperor Shennong, the inventor of Chinese Agriculture. (Though from what we know about emperors’ propensity for self-aggrandizement, we would do well to assume it was invented by one of his minions!) More reliable genetic evidence shows that rice originates from a single domestication some 8,200 to 13,500 years ago, in China’s Pearl River valley region. From there, it was introduced to Europe, and later the Americas.

These days, rice plays an enormous role in global nutrition. It’s the staple food for over half the world’s population, providing 20% of total global dietary energy supply. It provides more than one fifth of calories consumed by human beings. And it’s the agricultural commodity with the third-highest worldwide production, after sugarcane and maize. All of which is to say that rice is a pretty big deal!

Rice’s history is a long and interesting one, and we at Blue Moon Acres are humbled to play a small part in its future.

By admin|February 13th, 2015|News|Comments Off

5 Cheap and Easy Ways to Build Your Own Micro-Greenhouse!

When we think of greenhouses, most of us think of hulking, ship-like monoliths made of plastic or plexi-glass. But greenhouses can be small, too. Small enough to fit in your back yard, in fact. Or even in the palm of your hand.

A greenhouse, as defined by Merriam-Webster, is “a structure enclosed (as by glass) and used for the cultivation or protection of tender plants.” Greenhouses allow for more control over the growing environment of plants. Temperature, sunlight levels, fertilizer and water amounts, can all be regulated. Plants are protected against the worst of the elements, extending the growing season. And while most greenhouses are large, there’s no hard and fast rule where size is concerned. Below are five examples of truly mini greenhouses!

1. Two liter soda bottle

What could be simpler? Or littler? Simply remove the top and the label from an (empty!) soda, juice, or water bottle; and turn upside down! Can be used directly on the ground, or around a small planter.

2. Plastic salad-greens container

How ironic! A product that once held greens being used to grow… greens. But anyway. The picture pretty much says it all, but for those of you who prefer narration: fill bottom of container with topsoil and seeds, and cover with either lid or another container. Check out this video for another take on this easy garden hack.

3. Used Windows

My personal favorite! Brace four old windows together, using a fifth window as a lid. The base can be made from an old pallet or crate, or even a simple raised bed. A superbly effective way of not only extending your growing season, but keeping those old windows out of a landfill.

4. Aquarium

Look how happy that couple is with their aquarium greenhouse! Simply take your old unused aquarium greenhouse, turn it over, and, voila: instant greenhouse!

5. Milk Crate and Comforter Bag

If you’re like me, you saved the plastic bag that your comforter came in, thinking you would use it to store your comforter come summertime. But you’re not that kind of person, which is good news, because now you have a perfectly good excuse to build a very cool mini-greenhouse. Just get an old milk crate and place it inside the comforter bag! You’ll be sprouting seeds in no time!

By admin|January 30th, 2015|News|Comments Off

The Season Grows Nigh: Planning for 2015

Though spring may seem a long ways off, we at Blue Moon have already begun to prepare for the 2015 growing season. Planning begins as early as the summer, but ramps up in earnest around the winter solstice. From seed-sourcing to crop rotation-planning, there’s much to do in these cold months.

As early as late summer, we begin by assigning cover crops to specific fields and plots. A good winter cover-crop—radish, rye, oats—protects the soil against erosion and ensures continuity of essential biological processes. With the arrival of consistent hard frost, we remove and compost residual summer and autumn crops. Mulch is applied to blueberries and other essential crops to prepare for the following spring. This ‘winterization’ is as much about protecting the fields from harsh winter elements as it is about clearing the way for the next year’s growing season.

Once the winterization is complete, we gather to review the previous season’s successes and failures, so as to be better prepared for the coming year. New crops are introduced; some are jettisoned. A large seed order is then placed—as early as possible, to ensure we get what we need. At this time too, we finalize our crop rotation plan. Crop rotation, planting different crops on different fields each year, hedges against soil nutrient depletion, ensuring a healthier, stronger, more disease-resistant plant. And finally, we purchase fertilizer and other components to add to our amazing compost.

After the orders have been placed, we begin the seeding process. Early January sees the planting of cold-weather loving crops—kale, cauliflower, cabbage, and broccoli— in heated greenhouses. Come February, these seedings will be large enough to be transplanted into our high tunnels. And by the end of March, weather permitting, our first crop of baby lettuce heads will be ready to be harvested!

There’s always something to prepare for on the farm. Fortunately we have the winter to get it all done!

By admin|January 16th, 2015|News|Comments Off

A Roadside Cleanup Event with Blue Moon

On Wednesday, October 8^th, Bucks County got a little cleaner. In concert with Heritage Conservancy, Blue Moon Acres held a roadside cleanup event on Upper Mountain Road between Durham and Quarry Roads. It’s a gorgeous stretch of road—wooded, cloistered, populated with deer, raptors, and wild turkeys. It’s also a favorite dumping ground for litterers.

Litter is a massive problem, both environmentally and economically. Each year, 1.9 billion tons of litter wind up in the ocean, harming marine life and damaging riparian communities along the way. Each year too, $11.5 billion is spent to clean up that litter, money which could be better spent on health care and housing. Cigarette butts, which are made of cellulose and take more than 10 years to disintegrate, comprise around 50% of roadside trash. But the most commonly-found object during clean-up events such as ours is fast food wrappers.

But litter creates more than economic and environmental problems; it creates aesthetic problems too. Litter just looks bad. It’s demoralizing. It forces us to confront the fact that there are those in our society who would rather sabotage the landscape than exert the small effort to properly dispose their waste. It turns even the most beautiful roadside into a landfill.

Organizing a roadside clean-up, however, is a way of combating this demoralization. In addition to benefitting the environment, and the biology dependent on that environment, it provides a sense of empowerment, a way of overcoming the helplessness that a littered landscape elicits. And if conducted with coworkers, it provides an extraordinary sense of camaraderie. Cleaning up that stretch of road was fun. It gave us an opportunity to bond over a meaningful and important action, and helped us remember that we’re friends as well as coworkers.

It’s easy to take the view that roadside cleanup events are little more than symbolic, that the problem is too huge to solve with volunteer efforts alone. But such a view misses the point. We clean roadsides not because we think we are going to save the world, or even because we think those roadsides will remain litter-free, but because it is the right thing to do. And doing the right thing, reflexively, without consideration for what’s practical or achievable, is precisely what’s needed in this age of deeply-rooted, unconscious cynicism.

By admin|January 2nd, 2015|News|Comments Off

Five Steps to a Greener, Gentler Christmas

This just in from the North Pole: Jolly Ole Saint Nick’s going green. That’s right: Father Christmas is reducing his carbon footprint, and so should you. As you probably already know, Christmas is a notoriously wasteful time year, contributing greatly to swollen landfills and polluted skies. According to one source, 1.9 billion Christmas cards are sent each year, and 20.8 million trees are cut down. In Australia alone, the holiday is responsible for the emitting of 2,285,000 tons of greenhouse gas. Santa’s doing his part; what can we do?

1. Support locally-owned businesses

Ditch the malls. Boycott Amazon. Find local purveyors of your favorite goods and patronize them. Not only will this reduce your carbon footprint, it’ll boost your local economy. What’s more: small, independently-owned storeowners are more likely treat their employees fairly. And that’s what Christmas is all about.

2. Cut down on the lights

They’re bright and pretty, but they sure use an awful lot of electricity, 50% of which comes from coal-burning power plants. If you must use lights, why not try LEDs? They use 90 percent less energy and are even prettier than conventional lights. (In my own humble opinion….)

3. Say no to disposable dishes and cutlery

Yes, doing dishes is anathema to the very idea of holiday, but do you really have to use paper plates? The little effort it takes to load the dishwasher is well worth the rewarding feeling you’ll experience having not used disposable dishware. And you’ll save money to boot!

4. Consider purchasing a living Christmas tree

Unless you plan on using a single artificial tree over the span of your life, it’s more environmentally sustainable to get a living tree. Living trees can be composted after use, or used in other beneficial ways. And they smell really really good.

5. Make your own decorations!

Because, why wouldn’t you? It’s fun, it’s creative, and it allows you to have complete, aesthetic control. Plus, if you use items from nature (pine cones, berries, evergreen sprigs, apples), it’s ecologically friendly. You can also make edible ornaments—popcorn, cranberry strings, et cetera—which can be snacked on while creating! What can be better than that?

By admin|December 5th, 2014|News|Comments Off

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