Articles by Farmer Paul Betz

As the season comes to a close, it can be hard to find the motivation to properly shut down the farm.  Steps taken in the fall to organize and protect tools, equipment, and supplies will be rewarded with more efficiency when getting started in the spring.  While all farms and gardens are unique, there are many commonly used systems and...

Home-grown organic corn syrup. In the farming season, I find that when a customer asks me what my favorite vegetable is I often answer with whatever has just ripened and is freshest at that moment. In early spring, it’s bok choy; in June, snap peas; in July, I love summer squash (but only because I’m not sick of harvesting it...

I hate to be the one to the let the cat out of the bag, but now seems as good a time as any: One of the dirty little secrets of organic agriculture is that it runs on coffee and Ibuprofen. They’re two of the most critical things we farmers need in order to operate day-to-day, and yet also two...

Finding the right varieties for the catalog happens in the field. We keep our growers in mind when we make our selections, ensuring the varieties we add bring value to professional and home growers alike. While our Early Jalapeño works well as an open-pollinated variety, we had been given the task of finding a hybrid variety that would bring more...

Over the last several years, innovations in seed production and packing have succeeded in easing the daily tasks of the farmer. One of the modernizations I personally find the most useful is pelleted seed. I utilize pelleted seed every day in the early spring during the high season of sowings; I find it increases my efficiency, and even my enjoyment...

Here in Vermont, it feels like we just finished talking about how much wood we have left to heat the house, and now it’s time to be thinking about storage carrots? It just doesn’t seem fair. I realize that there is still a lot of the season left, but keeping fall crops on the screen is important. So much of...

Paul Betz checking on lettuces at High Ledge Farm No matter where you grow, our high quality lettuce varieties mean a consistent supply all season long. I really like that we offer all the classic market standards, as well as a number of specialty varieties that are exciting visually or offer a unique eating experience. Together they make up an...

Paul Betz, Farmer and Commercial Grower Sales Rep It's that time again - I’m planning for this year’s potato crop and wanted to share some of my excitement for the season ahead. High Mowing has built a comprehensive collection of seed potatoes that brings value to the commercial grower (or gardener) over the whole harvest season. We offer varieties for...

Paul preparing to cut up candy bars for seed One of the things I like the most about farming is access to some amazing food. Even if I don’t grow a particular crop, my network of producer friends allows me to trade around and cover most of my food needs. The wrinkle is that producing food can be exhausting. I...

Pelleted lettuce seed (L), Raw lettuce seed (R) Plants have been doing a pretty good job developing strategies to move seeds around for a few hundred million years. The ranges of sizes, shapes, and packaging have clearly suited them well. There are some, particularly the round ones, that are pretty easily adapted to modern agriculture. But what about the really...