Produce & Flowers

Sitka Local Foods Network/St. Peter's Fellowship Farm

Owner: Laura Schmidt

Address:
611 Lincoln Street
Sitka, AK 99835
Sitka County

Mailing Address:
408-D Marine Street
Sitka, AK 99835

daytime phone: (907) 623-7660
evening phone: (907) 623-7660
Web site: http://www.sitkalocalfoodsnetwork.org

Application Date: 2019-05-02

Applicant Details

Please briefly tell us why you are applying to be part of the Certified Naturally Grown program: *
The nonprofit group Sitka Local Foods Network has been growing produce at St. Peter's Fellowship Farm communal garden for 12 years, and we don't use chemical fertilizers or other harmful products. We sell the produce at our Sitka Farmers Markets, and hope the Certified Naturally Grown designation will help customers know more about how their food is grown. It's difficult for Alaska farms to become certified as organic since there aren't any inspectors in the state, and home this program will fill that gap.
Are you currently third party Certified for your produce operation by any other organization (Organic, Biodynamic, etc)? *
no
Have you ever been certified in the past? *
no
Have you ever been denied certification? *
no
How did you hear about Certified Naturally Grown? *
My name is Charles Bingham (board president of the Sitka Local Foods Network), and I learned about the CNG program at the Alaska Food Festival and Conference held in March in Homer, Alaska. A couple of other Alaska food growers mentioned the program, and I passed the info along to Laura Schmidt (lead gardener for St. Peter's Fellowship Farm) and she thought the program sounded like what we're doing already.
How did you learn to farm, and for how long have you been farming for market? What has prepared you to farm successfully according to CNG standards? *

General Farm Information

Farm Acreage you want listed as Certified Naturally GrownTM:
Total Farm Acreage you actually GROW on: *
0.5
Number of above acreage that you own: *
0
Number of above acreage that you lease: *
0.5
Do you have other acreage in "Conventional" Agricultural Systems? *
no
General Listed Acreage Breakdown
Veg Crops:
0.45
Fruit Crops:
0.05
Hay:
Grains/Beans:
Sugarbush:
Other Acreage:
Please check all items you grow and will market as Certified Naturally GrownTM *











Please Specify Any Other Items:
Please check all markets you grow for (this will be displayed on your farm profile to help potential buyers find you). *











Please Specify Other Markets:
School kitchens

Farmland Management and Practices

Primary Tillage System: *
little to no tillage broadfork by hand
Do you use Cover Crops? *
no
Do you use Compost? *
yes
If yes, please note general sources (on farm, purchased complete, local grass clippings, local dairy, etc.): *
goat and horse manure, on farm, food scraps,
Please list application rates. Give a specific amount or range (for example: one to two tons per acre, ten wheelbarrow loads per 1,000 square feet, or 1-2 inches deep). Do not answer "varies". *
1-2 inches deep
Do you use Manure? *
yes
If yes, please note general sources (local dairy, horse farm, etc.): *
rabbit, composted goat and horse manure - various animal owners
Please list application rates. Give a specific amount or range (for example: one to two tons per acre, ten wheelbarrow loads per 1,000 square feet, or 1-2 inches deep). Do not answer "varies". *
1 inch deep
What time of year do you apply the manure? *
fall
Do you apply any non-composted Manure within 120 days of veg-crop harvesting? *
no
Please list any other brought in fertility sources that you use (specific rock powders, lime, soybean / alfalfa meal, specific purchased pre-mixes, etc)and how often it's used. If you indicate a name brand product, please also specify the ingredient/s. *
rock phosphate, alfalfa meal, fish fertilizer, crab meal phosphate is used when planting potatoes in spring, alfalfa meal and liquid fish fertilizer are used every 2 weeks on crops needing boost, crab meal is use on rhubarb every 3 weeks.
Have any chemical fertilizers been applied to the fields you are seeking Certification for in the last three years (36 months)? *
no
Have any non-acceptable pesticides and/or herbicides been applied to these fields in the last 3 years? *
no
Do you use Professional Soil Testing services? *
no
Describe your primary weed problems AND methods of control. Do not answer "none". You MUST indicate either actual weed challenges and/or LIKELY challenges, and you must ALSO indicate how you manage (or would manage) them. If you indicate a product, also specify how often it's used. *
numerous weeds - I flame weed, use black plastic covers and manually hoe or hand weed. Flame weeding occurs every 1-2 weeks on little weed sprouts, black plastic is used continuously in areas surrounding gardens with rotation, and I hoe and hand weed weekly.
Describe your primary insect challenges AND methods of control. Do not answer "none". You MUST indicate either actual pest challenges and/or LIKELY challenges, and you must ALSO indicate how you manage (or would manage) them. If you indicate a product, also specify how often it's used. *
slugs are biggest challenge. I pick them, use diatomaceous earth buffer strips, and use Sluggo. I use Sluggo in spring with transplants and then 1-2 times per month in trouble areas.
Describe your primary disease challenges AND methods of control. Do not answer "none". You MUST indicate either actual disease challenges and/or LIKELY challenges, and you must ALSO indicate how you manage (or would manage) them. If you indicate a product, also specify how often it's used. *
currently have club root disease so have excluded brassicas from 1 section of garden. also have scab in ground- I use coffee grounds and try to limit moisture of maturing potatoes.
Please list the water source you use for crop irrigation. If source is public river, pond or lake, please note the name: *
city water
Are there any known contaminants in the irrigation water? *
no
Are you a maple producer who seeks to certify your sugarbush? *
no

Seeds, Transplants and Buffers

How do you select your seeds? CNG standards call for growers to make a good faith effort to locate organically grown seeds by contacting at least 3 major suppliers. *
Do you purchase or grow using any Genetically Modified seeds? *
no
Do you use any chemically treated seeds in your operation? *
no
Do you grow your own transplants? *
yes
Do you purchase potting soil, or do you mix your own on the farm? *
What ingredients does your potting mix contain? If you purchase a mix, please also indicate which product. *
Are all of your transplants grown according to CNG standards, without synthetic fertilizers or wetting agents? *
yes
If any transplants are not grown according to CNG standards, please list them here. (If they all are, put "N/A".) This produce may not be marketed as Certified Naturally Grown. *
Do you purchase any transplants from outside sources? *
no
Chemical/Spray Drift and Buffers:
Is there any likelihood of Chemical/Spray drift contamination of your fields? *
no
Do you have an adequate buffer to protect yourself from potential contamination? *
yes
Please describe your buffer. Be as specific as possible. On all sides, how far is it from your crops to the next closest use (road, conventional crop, residential yard)? Be sure to specify what is grown on neighboring land that is in agricultural use. For example: To the north and east, a wooded area of at least 100 yards separates us from the neighbor's corn fields, to the south is a fallow field at least 100 yards deep separating us from the road, and to the west about 60 feet separates our crops from a field where conventional corn and soybeans are grown. *
one plot is located in central downtown area surrounded by streets and buildings. neighbors are church/parking lot and residential yards. tall fences seperating garden from yards. Other plot is abutting mountainside, 2 residential yards, and 60 feet from city street and ocean on other side of road. No agriculture use or spraying occurs near any boundary of either garden

Agreements

Please indicate your agreement with the following statements by checking the boxes.
I will not label, or in any way lead consumers to believe that produce not raised in accord with CNG standards is Certified Naturally GrownTM. *
I understand that I have to complete at least one (and hopefully more) Certification Inspection(s) of another farm in my area each year, and that the inspection will NOT be of the same farmer that inspected me. *
I have reviewed the Certified Naturally Grown certification standards, I understand them, and I will abide by them. I understand that if I have any questions I may contact CNG for clarification. *
You may use this space to tell us anything else you think we should know about your farm: