Author:Jon – Maryland Grows

Heat-tolerant greens

June 17, 2022June 17, 2022Maryland Grows2 Comments

Tender spring lettuce and spinach leaves are just a memory for many Maryland gardeners. As we move into the summer season the types and flavors of garden greens expands significantly. While some, like Swiss chard and kale, can be cut or torn and dropped into fresh salads and dishes, most will benefit from some level of cooking, like sautéing on their own or being added to stovetop or baked dishes. Most of the summer greens below grow quickly and have a long harvest period. They help us improve food security and adapt to climate change.

General growing tips for summer greens:

Water, water, water and fertilize to promote rapid, healthy growth and maintain leaf and stem succulence
No row cover! They can cause a heat build-up. Instead, use insect netting to exclude insect pests
Plant summer greens in containers and move them to shady spots close to your front or back door
Create some shade for lettuces and other marginal crops like cilantro … plant on the north side of taller crops or try 30% to 50% shade cloth material
Most leafy greens below can be treated as cut-and-come-again crops: they put on new growth below each harvesting cut. Older, stressed foliage is less palatable
Explore seed racks and online seed catalogs for heat-tolerant crops and varieties

Leafy amaranth

Two well-adapted species for Maryland gardens are Amaranthus viridis (callaloo, also known as slender amaranth) and Amaranthus tricolor (Chinese spinach; leaves somewhat smaller than A. viridis).

Several species are very popular in Central and South America, India, Southeast Asia, and Africa. Nutritionally, they compare favorably with spinach and Swiss chard. Plants in this family use a special C4 photosynthetic pathway, also present in corn and sugarcane, which allows for vigorous growth under hot, dry growing conditions.

Leafy amaranth is basically a tasty and productive pigweed. Flowering accelerates with shorter days after the summer solstice. Frequent harvesting delays flowering and promotes branching. Immediately remove any flower stalks that emerge to prevent re-seeding.

Callaloo growing in 3-gallon bags in a high tunnel. UME Small Farms Program.
Photo credit: Jon Traunfeld

Callaloo can quickly become a weed problem. Don’t let plants flower. Each plant can produce >100,000 tiny seeds dispersed by water, wind, tools, and animals. Photo credit: Jon Traunfeld

Tri-color amaranth. Photo credit: Jon Traunfeld

Other heat-tolerant greens in the Amaranthus family:

Swiss chard and Perpetual Spinach (a.k.a. leaf beet) fall within the beet species- Beta vulgaris- and will produce large amounts of leafy goodness from spring through early fall. Orach (Atriplex hortensis) is another family member that grows best in spring and fall but can tolerate summer heat.

Two varieties of Swiss chard in the UMD Community Learning Garden. Photo credit: Jon Traunfeld

Leafy Brassicas

Several crops in the Brassicaceae plant family tolerate Maryland summers. Collard plants produce reliable and abundant harvests from summer through fall. ‘Morris Heading’ is an heirloom “cabbage-collard” variety found in Baltimore City community gardens throughout the growing season. ‘Green Glaze’ is touted as being heat-tolerant but I am not aware of studies that looked at temperature effects on the productivity of collard varieties.

Collard plant in late July surrounded by common purslane, and edible weed. Photo credit: Jon Traunfeld

Mustard and kale are somewhat less heat-tolerant than collards. ‘Green Wave’ and ‘Red Giant’ mustards and ‘Lacinato’ kale are common varieties grown in summer gardens in Maryland. I’m very curious about Portuguese kale (Couve tronchuda). It resembles collard and is described as sweet and tender and more heat-tolerant than other kales. If you grow it please leave a comment about your experience.

‘Lacinato’ kale (a.k.a Tuscan kale, dinosaur kale, black kale) growing in Baltimore City in late July. Leaves are harvested from the bottom. Photo credit: Jon Traunfeld

Check seed catalogs for mild-flavored leafy Asian greens that hold up well in warm weather like Tokyo Bekana (Brassica rapa var. Chinensis), ‘Komatsuna’ (Brassica rapa var. perviridis), Vitamin Green and Tatsoi (Brassica rapa Napa group), and ‘Chijimisai’ (tatsoi x komatsuna).

Malabar spinach

Basella alba (green stem) and Basella rubra (red stem) below are “summer spinaches” that produces a vigorous leafy vine. Leaves and stems can be sautéed or used to thicken soups and stews.

New Zealand spinach

New Zealand spinach (Tetragonia tetragonoides) below is a low growing annual with a spreading habit that has somewhat fuzzy, arrow shaped leaves, and mild spinach flavor.

Molokhia (Corchorus olitorius), known as Egyptian spinach and jute leaf, is an important food plant in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. It’s higher in vitamins and minerals than most other leafy greens. This is the jute plant, known for its strong stem fibers. Young leaves can be eaten fresh, sautéed, or used to thicken soups and stews.

Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) – shoot tips, young leaves, and tender stems are excellent in many top-of-the-stove dishes. Harvesting young foliage, even on a regular basis, will not reduce your harvest of sweet potato roots later in the season.

Sweet potato plants with a less typical cut-leaf shape. Photo credit: Jon Traunfeld

Hibiscus as a Leafy Green?

Sunset hibiscus (Abelmoschus manihot) and roselle hibiscus (Hibiscus sabdariffa) leaves have a compelling lemon-sour flavor similar to garden sorrel. These plants are in the Malvaceae family along with cotton and okra, planted throughout the tropics and sub-tropics. Roselle is also grown for its strong fibers and its fleshy calyx which farmers and gardeners use to make tea, juice, and preserves.

Green stem hibiscus plant harvested for its leaves used in many Indian foods.
Photo credit: Jon Traunfeld

Don’t Dismiss the Lettuces!

Lettuces are generally a cool-season crop but these varieties have demonstrated some level of heat tolerance:

‘Merlot,’ ‘Speckled Bibb,’ ‘Adriana,’ ‘Jericho,’, ‘Coastal Star,’ ‘New Red Fire,’ ‘Starfighter,’ ‘Tropicana,’ ‘Red Cross,’ ‘Magenta,’ ‘Cherokee,’ ‘Green Star,’ ‘Summer Crisp,’ ‘Little Gem,’ ‘Muir,’ ‘Burgundy,’ ‘Bronze Beauty,’ ‘Forlina,’ and most oakleaf types of leaf lettuce. Asian sword leaf lettuces, (pointed lettuce) have long, thin leaves and are described as crisp and tender with a mild bitterness.

One of the sword lettuces growing mid-summer in a Howard Co. community garden. Photo credit: Jon Traunfeld

An Auburn University study found that ‘Aerostar’, ‘Monte Carlo’, ‘Nevada’, ‘Parris Island’, ‘Rex’, ‘Salvius’, and ‘Sparx’ grown in a “hot greenhouse” out-performed 10 other heat-tolerant lettuce cultivars and received the highest flavor and texture ratings.

Give some of these greens a try this summer. The investment in seed, space, and time is minimal and you may discover some surprising new textures and flavors.

Resources:

Callaloo recipes– Dr.Nadine Burton, Alternative Crops Specialist, UMES Extension

The Difference Between C3 and C4 Plants– University of Illinois

The Heirloom Collard Project collects and increases collard seed and documents the history of many American South varieties

Malabar spinach, Basella alba. University of Wisconsin

Lettuce All Year in a Changing Climate– Sustainable Market Farming- Pam Dawling

World Vegetables: Principles, Production, and Nutritive Values. V. Rubatzky, M. Yamaguchi. 1997

By Jon Traunfeld, Extension Specialist, University of Maryland Extension, Home & Garden Information Center.

Read more posts by Jon.

Pollination of Vegetable Crops in a Warming Climate

May 20, 2022June 2, 2022Maryland Grows1 Comment

Pollination is the movement of pollen from male to female flower parts of sexually reproducing plants. It is often accomplished by wind and insects and results in the development of some type of fruit containing seeds for the species’ continuation. Farmers and gardeners in the mid-Atlantic are finding that high day and evening temperatures can cause vegetable plants to drop flowers and small fruits or produce deformed and under-sized fruits. This problem has been observed in crops like bean, tomato, and pepper (mostly self-fertile; individual flowers can pollinate themselves), and in crops like squash and pumpkin (require cross-pollination between flowers).

How do high temperatures affect pollination?

All fruiting plants have an optimal temperature range for the pollination/fertilization process. High temperatures can reduce pollen production, prevent anthers from releasing pollen, kill pollen outright, and interfere with the pollen tubes that serve as conduits for uniting sperm cells and eggs (fertilization) inside undeveloped seeds (ovules). High temperatures can even injure flowers before they open. Night temperatures are increasing at a faster rate than day temperatures as a result of climate change, and seem to be most responsible for these pollination problems.

Continue reading →

Improve Soil Health for a Climate-Resilient Garden

April 15, 2022April 21, 2022Maryland Grows1 Comment

Soils, plants, and animals are highly interdependent. Soils support and feed microbes and plants which feed animals. Dead plants and soil critters replenish the soils’ organic matter and nutrient supply, completing the cycle. We know that healthy soils produce healthy plants. Many experts believe that improving soil health is the most important thing we can do to make our farms and gardens more climate-resilient.

Why are soils so important in dealing with climate change?

They store huge amounts of carbon in the form of carbon dioxide (CO₂) and organic matter, all of the living, dead, and decomposing plants, microbes, and animals that live in soil. Carbon dioxide is the primary greenhouse gas that is warming the planet. Deforestation, the removal of wetlands and peatlands, and soil tillage cause the release of huge amounts of CO_2.Warmer temperatures cause more rapid organic matter decomposition and turnover, especially if soils are tilled and uncovered.
Climate change is causing mid-Atlantic weather to be warmer and wetter with more extreme weather events, including periodic drought. This increases the risk of soil erosion and nutrient run-off from intense rainfall, and the risk of plant stress from excessively wet or dry soils.

Soil from a landscaping project that moved off-site in 2018. Maryland averaged 73 inches of rain that year!

Continue reading →

Heat-tolerant vegetable crops and cultivars for the changing climate

January 21, 2022January 26, 2022Maryland Grows5 Comments

Our food-growing spaces allow us to grow healthy produce, connect with Nature, and hopefully save money. They are also a solid response to climate change and COVID.

My blog articles this year will be about climate-resilient food gardening. Each month I’ll address one or more aspects of how climate change is affecting our food gardens and changes we can make to reduce global warming and ensure a future of healthy harvests.

HGIC has a new Climate-Resilient Gardening section (thanks to Christa Carignan!) where you’ll find more information on these topics. We plan to continually update content and add new pages. And please check out the University of Maryland Extension’s new Healthy Garden, Healthy You project that connects food gardening and human health.

This first installment includes an overview of how our mid-Atlantic climate is changing and a look at heat-tolerant crops and cultivars. Future articles will explore low-dig soil prep, composting food scraps, peat alternatives, heat stress in plants, reducing plastics, and “hardening” our garden spaces.

Resiliency is mentioned a lot with respect to climate change. A climate-resilient garden can both withstand and recover from warmer, more extreme weather. Resiliency can also mean transforming how we grow food by creating and sharing a community knowledgebase of new ideas and techniques.

Continue reading →

Blueberry success is all in the soil

February 19, 2021June 8, 2022Maryland Grows4 Comments

Farmers and gardeners learn much by daily tending soils and plants. But the winter “off-season” affords us time to dig deeper into topics of interest and learn from co-cultivators and experts in the field. I spent some time in a variety of grower meetings, conferences, and webinars in January and February where research findings were shared. Many gardeners are interested in growing blueberry so in this article I’ll share tips for success including some insights I picked up from presentations by Oregon blueberry researchers David Bryla, Ph.D. (USDA) and Bernadine Strik, Ph.D. (Oregon State U.)

Blueberry background

Highbush blueberry plants evolved to grow in low pH, high organic matter sandy soils with high water tables. These soils contain more ammonium nitrogen than nitrate nitrogen, hence blueberry’s preference for the ammonium form of plant-available nitrogen. The shallow, fibrous root system grows almost entirely in the top 12 inches of soil. Most of the roots are very fine, the width of a human hair, and can’t penetrate or thrive in clayey, compacted soils. The key to success is create garden conditions that mimic those in blueberry’s natural environment.

Blueberry thrives in well-drained, porous soils, high in organic matter (4% – 20%). The soil pH should be in the 4.5-5.5 range.

Soil preparation starts in fall

Begin by testing the soil in the late summer or fall prior to spring planting. For gardeners, soil testing labs provide the most accurate pH measurement of your soil, as well as baseline information on organic matter and nutrient levels. pH probes sold to gardeners are generally inaccurate and pH color kits using litmus paper are only accurate to ½ of a pH unit (5.5, 6.0, 6.5, 7.0, etc.

Add organic matter

The top 12 inches of soil should be one-third to one-half organic matter by volume. Peat moss (3.0-4.5 pH), plant-based compost (7.0-7.5 pH), and lightweight potting soil, a.k.a. soilless growing media (5.5-6.5 pH) are the materials most often mixed into the soil. Research has shown that adding compost (especially animal manure compost) can increase soil pH.
Some Oregon growers incorporate 2-3 inches of aged softwood sawdust into topsoil prior to planting. The benefit is that sawdust has a low pH, decomposes slowly, and increases organic matter levels. For Maryland gardeners, large amounts of sawdust are difficult to come by, but bark fines are readily available. You would need to apply 1.0 lb. of additional ammonium sulfate (21-0-0) per 100 sq. ft. nitrogen for the soil microbes that slowly decompose the bark fines.

Lower soil pH

Elemental sulfur is applied (based on soil test results) in the fall prior to spring planting, and incorporated to a 6-8 inch depth.
Pelletized and prilled forms of sulfur are easier to apply than powdered sulfur but take longer to lower soil pH.
An oxidation process, driven by special soil bacteria, converts the sulfur to sulfuric acid, releasing hydrogen ions that lower soil pH. The bacteria are most active in warm, moist soils. The process takes 6-12 months. Iron sulfate can also be used to lower soil pH but 6 times as much is required, increasing the cost.
Re-test soil pH to monitor pH levels and apply sulfur as needed to maintain the 4.5-5.5 range.
For container blueberry plants, mix 3 TBS. of sulfur into the top few inches of growing media, for a 15-gallon container, to reduce the pH by one unit (e.g. from 7.0 to 6.0).

Bag of sulfur — Elemental sulfur is available in powdered and pelleted forms

Fertilizing

Ammonium sulfate fertilizer is recommended because it supplies nitrogen in the ammonium form and helps acidify the soil.
Fertilize at full bloom and again three weeks later.
Urea is another good nitrogen source, recommended when soil pH is below 5.0 because it is only one-half as acidifying as ammonium sulfate. The nitrogen in urea is converted to ammonia and then to ammonium.
Oregon research studies show that feathermeal (12-1-0.5) and soluble fish fertilizers (4-1-5) work well in organic blueberry production. Organic growers prefer to inject fertilizers into irrigation water, known as “fertigation.” Another interesting finding was that there were no significant yield differences between the lowest (20 lbs./acre) and highest (240 lbs./acre) nitrogen fertilization rates.
Organic matter and organic fertilizers release ammonium ions with relatively little oxidized to the nitrate form as long as soil pH is in the 4.5-5.5 range. When soil pH is >6.0 most of the nitrogen from decomposing organic matter will be converted to the nitrate form with negative effects on plant growth.
Oregon research indicates that organic acids (humic and fulvic) applied in liquid form, increase blueberry root growth while lowering soil pH.

Developing blueberries — Blueberry fruits developing

Watering

Blueberry root systems need to be kept moist. Plants can tolerate hot weather but not drought. Water your blueberry bed thoroughly and consistently when rainfall is lacking. Soaker hoses and drip irrigation work well.
Blueberry grows and produces best when the pH of irrigation water is <7.0. Commercial growers often acidify irrigation water to maintain low soil pH. The pH of municipal water in our region is typically 7.5-7.8 and has a high salts and bicarbonate content. Just be aware that your irrigation water can drive up soil pH.

Mulching

Blueberry roots cannot compete very well with weeds for nutrients and water. Mulch is essential to keep soil cool, improve water infiltration, conserve soil moisture, reduce weeds, and increase organic matter.
Use aged wood chips (never fresh), shredded bark, pine needles, or sawdust as a mulch. These materials are low in pH (4.5-5.2) and salts, and decompose slowly.
Interestingly, a recommended growing system in Oregon uses strips of heavy-duty weed barrier to cover beds after they have been mulched to further reduce weed growth and moisture loss.

A well-planned and maintained blueberry bed can produce well for 20+ years. Start yours in 2021!

Resources:

Lowering Soil pH for Horticulture Crops. Purdue Extension

Organic Blueberry Research– eorganic.org

Author: Jon Traunfeld, Extension Specialist

Cool-Season Vegetables: First, Fresh, Foods from the Garden

January 15, 2021January 18, 2022Maryland Grows2 Comments

Erica got us all thinking about spring crops in December and her New Year’s Day article made me feel hopeful and excited about growing food in 2021.

So let’s get this season started as soon as possible with cool-season crops. These are the plants adapted to grow best with cooler daytime temperatures, 65⁰ F-75⁰ F, compared to warm-season crops like tomato and chile pepper. They are planted in Maryland from early March through mid-May and again from July through September. Thinking about these crops in January gives us time to plan and prepare for success!

Some cool-season crops are hardy, very frost-tolerant, like pea, spinach, and onion. Others are semi-hardy, more easily injured by cold temperatures, like beet, carrot, and lettuce (although this depends a lot on cultivar, stage of development, and growing conditions). Cool-season crops germinate at lower soil temperatures (40⁰F-45⁰F) than warm-season crops like cucumber and squash (55⁰F-60⁰F).

Some cool-season crops need both cool and warm temperatures. Onion and garlic need cool temperatures for rapid leaf growth, and warm temperatures for bulb enlargement. Leafy greens grow well in spring and fall while broccoli and cauliflower tend to produce better yields and higher quality heads in fall. That’s because leaf and root growth is favored by warm temperatures and head development is best with cooler weather.

We’re mostly interested in eating the leaves, stems, and storage roots of cool-season crops. Cool temperatures cause these crops to produce more sugars which makes them more cold-tolerant and better tasting. Rising temperatures can reduce crop quality, causing bitter or off-flavors, and force plants to send up flower stalks and produce seeds (bolting). Increasing daylength may also induce bolting in lettuce, spinach, radish, potato, and carrot.

A few cool-season crops are perennials (rhubarb, horseradish, and asparagus) but most are grown as annuals, even though many are biennials.

Most commonly-grown cool-season annual crops by plant family:

Bean family (Fabaceae)- garden pea, fava bean
Cabbage family (Brassicaceae)- radish, broccoli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, kale, mustard, turnip, collard, kohlrabi, Asian greens, Chinese cabbage, rutabaga, arugula
Garlic family (Amaryllidaceae)- garlic, leek, onion, shallot,
Beet family (Amaranthaceae)- spinach, beet, Swiss chard
Carrot family (Apiaceae)- carrot, parsnip, celery, celeriac
Lettuce family (Asteraceae)- lettuce, endive, escarole, radicchio
Tomato family (Solanaceae)- potato

See HGIC’s Vegetable Crop profiles for specific planting and care information.

Tips for success:

Seeds or transplants– most gardeners plant cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, and Brussels sprout transplants but sow seeds directly in the garden for all other cool-season crops. This year, try growing or buying transplants instead. Even peas can be started indoors under fluorescent or LED lights.

Growing lettuce, kale, pea, arugula, etc. for just 2-3 weeks indoors will give you a head start on the growing season and eliminate the need for thinning excess plants (tedious!). Transplants are also less likely than seeds to be washed away in a storm. Even carrot and beet can be transplanted as long as the tap root doesn’t hit the bottom of the container while growing indoors.

Soil preparation and nutrients– it’s possible to plant and grow warm-season crops, like tomato and squash, in cloddy, clayey soil. The same is not true for most cool-season crops. Whether you plant seeds or transplants the topsoil should be loose, well-aerated, and high in organic matter. Heavy, cloddy soil slows seed germination and restricts root growth.

Preparing a bed in spring requires minimal tillage- cutting winter annual weeds at the soil with a weeding tool, fluffing the soil with a garden fork, and raking the soil smooth. If a cover crop is in place, cut it to the ground with a string trimmer, cover the area with a tarp or weed barrier for 2-3 weeks, remove it and plant through the cover crop residues.

The majority of cool-season crops have a medium to high requirement for nutrients. Fertilize seedlings and transplants in spring with a soluble fertilizer to get them off to fast, strong start. Nutrient release from soil organic matter is low at this time and root systems are too small to adequately mine the soil for nutrients may be inadequate. Fertilize fall crops once they are established.

If the soil is not suitable, plant in containers filled with a mixture of compost and soilless growing media (lightweight “potting soil”).

Salad table of mixed baby greens. Growing spring crops in containers is easy and convenient. A row cover is used to accelerate growth. — Salad table of mixed baby greens. Growing spring crops in containers is easy and convenient. A
row cover is used to accelerate growth.

Protection– climate change is giving us a longer fall season allowing big harvests of cool-season crops into December. But climate change is also making spring weather even more unpredictable than “normal.” The average last frost date is earlier but seedlings and transplants are subject to wide temperature swings, excessive rainfall, and late freezes (as we saw in 2020).

Floating row covers and cold frames provide a buffer against unfavorable and rapidly changing weather conditions. They allow us to extend the gardening season so that we can plant earlier, harvest latter, exclude insect pests, and increase yields. Protective covers, whether, glass, clear plastic, or polyester fabrics, increase the air temperature around plants and reduce damage from wind and driving rainfall.

Pieces of #9 wire form bows over a raised bed to support a floating row cover protecting leafy greens.

Timing– planting calendars are helpful but planting decisions should also be based on the 7-day forecast. Transplants give you some added flexibility as they can be set out earlier or held back depending on conditions. The key is to have all the pieces in place- seeds or transplants, prepared soil, protection, and fertilizer- when conditions are right for planting. Some years you may find yourself planting with a headlamp or flashlight!

Future articles will focus on planting and caring for specific cool-season and warm-season crops, and how to extend the gardening season and adapt to climate change.

Resources:

By Jon Traunfeld, Extension Specialist. Read more by Jon.

Growing and Working for Food Justice in Baltimore

December 18, 2020January 18, 2022Maryland Grows1 Comment

COVID-19 has been devastating for poor people and people of color. Systemic racism and economic inequality have resulted in higher death rates for Black and Hispanic people. Food insecurity is twice as likely to affect Black and Hispanic households as White households and the Maryland Food Bank estimates that one in seven of our state’s children suffers from food insecurity.

As individuals we can volunteer for community kitchens and food banks, donate produce from our gardens, support local farmers, and learn about the root causes of these problems and disparities. We can also support the awesome groups that are educating, organizing, and growing food to address food apartheid and food insecurity. Here are a few outstanding examples with Baltimore roots:

Black Church Food Security Network – blackchurchfoodsecurity.net/

Our mission: The Black Church Food Security Network (BCFSN) utilizes an asset-based approach in organizing and linking the vast resources of historically African American congregations in rural and urban communities to advance food and land sovereignty.

The Black Farmer Directory was created by BCFSN to connect Black Farmers to African American churches, other faith-based institutions, and all who wish to support them.

Articles, blog posts & interviews

YouTube gardening & food preservation tutorials

Donate Link

Black Farmers’ Resilience Fund – farmalliancebaltimore.org

This fund is a special project of the Farm Alliance of Baltimore and supports 10 Black-owned farms and Black-led food and farming organizations in Baltimore.

Denzel Mitchell, Deputy Director for the Alliance, says “2020 has been stressful but work has ramped up. On top of organizing and assisting farmers we’re dealing with racial tensions and pandemic issues. How do we help farms succeed and how do we move as an organization in this current climate of fear and anxiety?”

He noted that the City has provided support for the Alliance and donors helped get the Resilience Fund started mid-year. Farmers in need receive cash assistance, tools, and equipment.

Donate Link

Great Kids Farm – friendsgkf.org/

Great Kids Farm is a 33-acre educational farm operated by Baltimore City Public Schools’ Office of Food and Nutrition Services. The farm is home to goats, chickens, turkeys, sheep and a lot of veggies and fruit.

In the 2020/2021 school year, we are offering virtual field trips for any Baltimore City Public Schools’ class (http://Bit.ly/GKFfacetime ), a pre-recorded virtual program for 2^nd grade students (http://Bit.ly/virtualGKF), and agriculture-based activity kits for students to gain hands on experience in their own homes. Great Kids Farm also offers youth employment to high school students, and we are looking forward to hosting our 2^nd annual African American Foodways Summit for high school students this February (a virtual event). For more on our programs, contact: farms@bcps.k12.md.us.

Do you have gardening supplies and tools to donate or would you like to become a volunteer? Contact farms@bcps.k12.md.us

Donate Link

Let’s all pledge to do more in 2021 to learn from one another, feed one another, and work for a more healthy, equitable, and just food system.

Best wishes for a safe and peaceful holiday season!

By Jon Traunfeld, Extension Specialist. Read more posts by Jon.