Growing Practices

At Arugula’s Star Farm, our desire is to grow high quality organic produce. Our farm grows crops by following the USDA National Organic Program  Guidelines and in some cases we believe in further sustainable methods that actually exceed these standards. 

All of our farming practices are developed to uphold and rejuvenate the farm's soil and to create full cycle's of energy that occur on and within the farm.  When farmer's can strive to farm in this way, Matthew and I feel there is the least amount of negative impact that occurs to all of the earth's organic (carbon containing) constituents --  lands, waters, plants, animals, and humans.  Our farm operates in much of the same way that a very small scale, backyard farm would operate, but the difference is we are farming larger areas and producing larger quantities, which generally in tells more manual labor and intensive planning.   Matthew and I really want to provide the local community with as much diversity as can be offered, which  promotes the preservation of many varieties while at the same time allowing local folk to also be apart of seeing and eating many many varieties of vegetables, fruits, and herbs that can and will grow in number with each coming year. Also, in the coming years we want to slowly but surely work on saving many of our farm's own organic seeds.  

Our farming practices are as follows:
-Cover cropping with certified organic legume and grain seeds

- Using our own or locating organic hays and straws for mulch and composting

-Using compost that is created on our farm and that is made from our own organic materials, like our forest fall leaves, vegetable crop matter, grains, straws, hays, and herbs.

-Collecting certified organic coffee grounds from Fido's in the Hillsboro Village in Nashville that is used in our compost and as a soil amendment.

-Making our own potting mix, that is used to start all of our certified organic seeds, when we do transplant.

-Direct Seeding many of our crops right into our healthy fields' soil.

-Using Surface Cultivation for planting ground preparation.

-Never using the organic purchased products that are allowed through certified organic regulations to keep pests away, weeds down, or any organic liquid fertilizers.  This decision is to allow the health of the soil and the stress of the season be an indicator of a crops health as oppose to trying to blindly prevent the problem.  

-Using no synthetic chemical fertilizers, pesticides, or herbicides

-Using only natural forming rock sources of minerals like limestone and granite dust

-Using Dried Kelp Meal as a soil amendment  

-Starting all produce and herbs from certified organic seed

-Irrigating with a clean source of spring water and creek water

-Companion and moon phase/sign planting

All of these growing methods ensure our soils will have.......

• beneficial microbial life,

• plenty of nutrients and minerals

• high amounts of soil colloids

• good tilth

• proper water holding capacity

• aeration

• great carbon sequestering capabilities 

When our soils are healthy, then this will transpire into the health, taste, brix, and nutritional content of our organic produce.