Hi Gardeners
 |
| Regal geranium |
A roller coaster of weather, that’s what we are riding. I was sitting outside on the deck and doing
some yard work in fifty-degree weather this weekend. Monday the temperature plummeted, and we got
about 3 inches of snow. I guess mother
nature knew the plants needed a blanket for the next cold spell.
It’s hard to think about- that we have at least a month and most
likely 2 more months or more of cold weather.
Those January thaws are such a tease.
I’m glad my house is full of plants, my hibiscus are blooming
nicely. The pink double flowered Kona
has developed some huge blooms, so heavy that the slightest touch will knock
them off.
My Christmas cacti are still blooming. The streptocarpus and fuchsia are blooming. My oldest amaryllis has a bud stalk
beginning. I have a small variegated
ginger that has put on a growth spurt. It
would sure be nice if it decided to bloom.
Out on my cold porch, the geraniums are still blooming and a chrysanthemum
I brought in has put out a flush of new growth.
 |
| Hibiscus Kona bloom |
That blue blood super moon or super
blue blood moon or blue super blood moon
There’s lots of hype on the news about what’s happening with the
moon tomorrow. It is the first time in 150 years that 3 moon phenomena have
aligned but for most people it is not going to be the spectacular view that bored
newscasters would like you to think. (The
January 31st full moon is called the “old” moon.)
For those in the eastern part of the country the moon won’t look
red (the blood part) because we will have only a partial eclipse. For those on the west side of the Mississippi
the moon may look slightly reddish. The
red color is because some of the suns light will still reach the moon, primarily
the red spectrum of light, because the earth’s shadow isn’t big enough to completely
block the light.
Because the moon is in perigee, the closest point to earth, the
full moon will look slightly larger, maybe 14% larger. That’s the super part of
the name. But unless you had another moon
next to it for comparison most won’t notice that. We had a full moon on January
1 and the moon was close to perigee then too.
So we have 2 super moons this month.
Super moons aren’t that unusual, they occur in sets about every 14
months.
The blue moon moniker is attached to a moon when it’s the second
full moon in a month. (In some references a blue moon is also the 4th
full moon occurring in 1 season.) In February we won’t have a full moon and in
March we will once again have 2 full moons, one on the 1 and one on the 31st. Having 2 blue moons in a year is a little
less common. But the phrase once in a
blue moon really doesn’t mean much as blue moons occur every couple of years. By the way the moon really doesn’t look blue
colored on a blue moon.
If you want to see the super blue blood moon tomorrow get up before
dawn, (5:51 am EST), that’s when the eclipse will occur. But if you aren’t in an area where the total eclipse
will cause any red color you can gaze at the moon any time after dark. You don’t need special glasses to look at a
moon eclipse. In my case the weather
forecast makes it a pretty good bet that I won’t see the moon at all, so I will
stay in my warm bed.
Skunk cabbage Symplocarpus
foetidus
I met the skunk cabbage on one of the first
“botanical excursions” I took with someone who had some botanical
expertise. It was in my 10th
grade biology class that the teacher decided that we would take a field
trip. On a sunny March day we walked to
a remnant of swampy woods near the school.
The teacher said we would be looking for wild flowers. I smiled to myself as I was not unfamiliar
with the woods and swamps of our area as my brother and I frequently explored
them. I thought the teacher would be
sorely disappointed when we found no wildflowers, since it was cold and there
was still snow on the ground, but hey, this was fun.
Imagine my surprise when we came to an area
covered with strange reddish hoods peaking out of holes in the icy swamp. Around each hood the snow and ice had melted
and the faint smell of skunk floated in the air. These were wildflowers, the teacher
explained. The flowers of the skunk
cabbage, one of the first plants to bloom in the spring, and they had the
ability to create their own heat. I was one of the few kids who listened raptly
to the story of the skunk cabbage and tried to inch closer through the ice and
muck to get a better look.
The Eastern skunk cabbage grows in shady wet
areas throughout the eastern half of North America from Canada to the southern
border of Tennesee, all the way to the east coast and west to Wisconsin and
Minnesota. (There is a similar plant
called skunk cabbage on the west coast- Lysichitum americanum). The plant is harder to find these days
and is considered to be endangered in Tennessee.
But its well worth searching out some skunk cabbage at least once in
your life so you can see this marvel of plant life.
Skunk cabbage prefers wooded, wet areas
with shallow or no open water, it does not like to be submerged for any length
of time. It needs shade or partial
shade. In earlier times people looked
for skunk cabbage growing along the sides of slopes or ravines to find water
seeps or natural springs.
The bloom
 |
| Skunk cabbage bloom. William C. Taylor USDA NRCS |
In the very early spring the skunk
cabbage sends up its odd bloom. Skunk
cabbage is thermophilic, thermogenesis,it has the ability to raise its
temperature, through a chemical reaction, up to 30 degrees above the air
temperature, melting a hole through the ice and frozen swamp muck around
it. The flower consists of a reddish,
purplish hood, sometimes mottled or streaked with yellow. This hood is about 6 inches high, pointed
near the top with a slight curve. This
is called a spathe. Its similar to the flower of the calla lily, although the
spathe of the skunk cabbage only has a small open area on one side.
Inside the spathe is a spadix, a knob
like protrusion varying from yellow to purple in color, covered with tiny true
flowers. Each ¼ inch flower has no
petals but has 4 yellowish sepals. The
female stigma pops up first and after and below it, a cluster of male
stamens. Because the stigma and stamens
are ready for pollination at different times the plant cannot pollinate
itself. This is one of the reasons the
skunk cabbage evolved it’s unique heating and odor traits.
In the cold days of early spring a
heated protected space draws many insects from tiny flies and beetles to
spiders who build their webs inside the spathe to catch the flies. The flowers also emit that skunky, or rotting
meat smell, falsely promising insects a meal.
The color of the spathe also mimics a piece of rotting meat. Once inside a heated spathe, protected from
the elements, insects tend to linger, picking up pollen. When they do move on to explore other spathes
nearby they move pollen from plant to plant.
Some insects even use that little
heated room to spend a cold spring night inside. The skunk cabbage will keep that flower
spathe heated for about 2 weeks, ensuring the survival of it’s pollinators and
the survival of its own species. In clusters
of skunk flower spathes the warm air flowing through them will melt the ice and
snow around them, beginning the wakening of the wetland around them.
Eventually the spathe will wither away
and the spadix will become an oval cluster of tiny individual fruits, each with
a single pea sized black seed inside.
The spadix is dark brown or black when ripe in late summer and the
fruits will split and let the seeds fall to the wet ground or the water
surface.
The leaves
As soon as the spathe begins to wilt
the leaf bud which has been just below the surface of the muck on a short stem
begins to expand. It starts up much like
the shoots of hosta, a furled spear of leaves, each slowly unfurling. The leaves also look somewhat like hosta
leaves, they are large, oval shaped leaves smooth, with no waxy coating, wavy
edges and prominent veins. Color ranges
from medium to dark green and the leaves can grow to 3 feet long and a foot
wide.
As the leaves mature the leaf stem
lengthens. Each leaf stem has a concave
groove running down the upper side. A
mature plant will have many leaves, but skunk cabbage does not multiply by
offshoots or spreading rhizomes and cannot be successfully divided for new
plants. Reproduction is by seed.
The leaves work furiously to lay in a
supply of sugars and starches which are stored in the roots, before the leaf
canopy above them fills in and the days get too hot. If crushed the leaves will produce that
skunky smell and the leaves are filled with oxalate crystals which keeps most
animals from eating them because they produce a burning, numbing sensation in
the mouth. Still in early spring some
hungry animals like turtles, bears and wild turkeys have been seen eating the
plants.
By midsummer the leaves of skunk
cabbage begin dissolving, they don’t dry up like other leaves because of their
high water content. Instead they blacken
and melt away. By late summer no plants
are visible, but if you search you can find the dark spadix’s maturing at the
soil surface.
 |
| Skunk cabbage plants- Justin Meissen, wikimeda commons |
The roots
Skunk cabbage also has unusual
roots. There is no taproot but a very
dense and deep structure of fibrous roots develops. Each root has ring like wrinkles which help
pull the plant roots deeper into the ground.
The plant begins as a seedling at the surface of the muck, but each year
the roots contract and pull the stem deeper into the soil, spreading out as
they go.
An old plant, and skunk cabbage can get
very old, has roots that extend deep into the ground, 3 feet deep or more. The roots also extend outward several feet
and can intermingle with the roots of other skunk cabbage growing nearby. They
are almost impossible to dig out of the ground.
Lifespan and
cultivation
Skunk cabbage is a perennial plant. Research
has found that skunk cabbage can live to be very old, as old as the trees
around them if left undisturbed.
Wetlands around natural springs which have never been developed could
have skunk cabbage plants that are hundreds of years old. However, it’s unlikely
very many of those spots still exist.
While skunk cabbage is attractive in some
parts of its life cycle and unusual, it’s not an easy plant to cultivate in a
home garden. Skunk cabbage will probably grow in planting zones 3-7. You’ll need a shaded area that stays
consistently moist, but without standing water on top for very long, like a bog
garden. The plant will not be visible
from mid-summer to early spring and will go through a rather ugly stage as it
prepares to go dormant. You won’t be able to disturb the area while the plant
is dormant.
Skunk cabbage flowers will smell up the air nearby,
but the foliage will not have a noticeable smell unless cut or bruised.
I have never seen plants of eastern skunk
cabbage offered for sale. The plant cannot be divided and rarely survives being
dug up from the wild. Its possible
plants exist for sale somewhere but most gardeners who want the plant will need
to start from seed. The seed must be
gathered as soon as its ripe, late summer, and then either quickly planted or
stored in a cool moist place until spring.
The seeds must never dry out. If
you gather the whole spadix, remove the seeds before storing.
Seeds can be planted in fall or spring (if
they have been properly stored). It
would be best to plant the seeds where they are to grow. The gelatin like
substance covering the seed should not be removed and must be kept moist until
the seed is planted. Plant the seeds
shallowly, in wet soil that must be kept constantly wet. Plant seeds about 6 inches apart. Germination
can be slow. If you want to move
seedlings do so when they are very young and plant them immediately after
digging them, making sure to keep the roots moist at all times.
Medicinal uses
Skunk cabbage is considered to be toxic and
is not generally eaten, although I suppose someone will have an anecdote about
eating it. I saw one reference that said roots could be eaten after 3 days of
boiling. That’s rather useless I would
say. Some people say leaves can be boiled and the water changed several times
to make it safe. And the leaves or roots
will still smell awful. Why would you do
this? I say you have to be desperate for
food if you do this.
Native Americans were said to dry the leaves
and use small amounts as a seasoning.
They also used it in various magic and religious ceremonies. Some old legends say the seeds are laid on or
passed over a woman giving birth to aide birthing. Other accounts say the seeds were used to
cause abortions.
At one time skunk cabbage was listed in the U.S. Pharmacopoeia as the medicine "dracontium".
It was
prescribed for rheumatism, dropsy, nervous conditions, epilepsy, and some
respiratory diseases. It was also used to expel worms. However current medical literature can
provide no evidence to support its effectiveness in treating any conditions. There were some claims that the plant might
have narcotic properties, but that seems to have been cleared up as a mistaken
identity thing with plants that were similar looking or had similar names
because current assessments of the plant don’t support this.
Medicinal uses of the plant and consumption
of the plant can cause kidney stones and digestive issues. Too much of the plant could cause death. Handling the plants sometimes causes blisters
or rash. Pregnant and nursing women should avoid using the plant or medical
potions made with it.
In fact, since this interesting plant is
becoming scarce I recommend you do not harvest any of it for experimental food
or medicinal uses, leave it to age gracefully and become a thing of wonder for
future generations.
Explaining scientific
names
When I taught Master Gardener classes I
always played a certain game on the first day of classes, as an ice
breaker. I gave each student a file card
with either a plants scientific name or its common name on it and asked them to
find their match. They could use their
new MG manual if they liked. Many people
are afraid of using scientific names when they speak about plants and while
letting new students meet each other, it got them learning some scientific
names.
You may not think you need to know scientific
names of plants and some gardeners will never take the time to learn them. Common names vary from area to area and
country to country and often two entirely different species of plants will share
the same common name. If you want to make sure you and another plant lover are
talking about the same plant, you need to know scientific names. You don’t need to know how to pronounce the
scientific name, you just need to recognize it and know what plant it refers to.
If you want to buy plants from a catalog or
on line knowing the scientific name is valuable. The best catalogs and on-line sites include
this information on all but the very commonest plants. And if you are searching
for information on growing or propagating a plant knowing the scientific name
will make sure you are getting the correct information.
You learn the scientific names of plants by
reading about them, in references, on line and in plant catalogs and
associating a good picture or the actual plant with them. In most cases you don’t need to sit down and
memorize a list of names, over time with use of the names you’ll remember them
and pick up more. Make it a point to
look up the scientific name of any plant you buy or are given and of any plant you
want to obtain.
Here’s some information
on learning and using scientific names, a free Master Gardener class.
 |
| Ipomoea purpurea Morning Gloey |
First,
all plants have a scientific name. Many scientific names are in Latin or based
on Latin words. They consist of 2 parts,
the genus first and then the species and together the 2 names are called the
specific epithet. It’s written like this Ipomoea
purpurea. Both names should be in italics and the first letter is
capitalized in the first name and not capitalized in the second.
A
plant is given its scientific name by the person who discovers it but first it
must be classified. Classification consists
of sorting the plant into different categories, from the broadest to the most
specific. The scientific name is the most specific or last category. Animals are classified the same way.
A
person classifying the plant would examine it carefully, especially the
reproductive parts, and compare it to already classified plants. Once this was
mostly done visually, now genetic analysis is done, and it makes classification
much easier. (This has also caused some
previously classified plants to be reassigned to other categories.)
Here’s
the classification system order- Kingdom- (a plant is in the plant kingdom)- Phylum,
(division), class, order, family, genus, species. For the average gardener
knowing the specific epithet, (the scientific name) and sometimes the family to
which a plant belongs are the most important parts of the classification
system.
When
the first 5 categories a plant belongs to have been decided then the discoverer
gets to choose the scientific name of the plant. Scientific names often come
from descriptive terms for the plant, rubra for red for example, where the
plant was found, (japonica, Japan) or the discoverers name. This name is in Latin and uses Latin grammar rules.
You
may know more scientific names for plants than you think because many garden
plants are known by their genus name; Hosta, Aster, Eucalyptus, Lobelia and so
on. Other common names are very close to
the scientific name such rose (Rosa).
Using
scientific names
When a
plant comes from a murky background of several intermingled species and has
been cultivated a long time just the genus name may be mentioned (the first
part of the name) in a description. A
common example would be Rosa referring
to cultivated roses which are comprised of many rose species that have been
interbred. The Rosa will be followed by a cultivar name, which I will get to in a
minute.
When a
plant has developed a natural variation without human interference, maybe a
pink flower instead of white, it’s called a variety. When the variation becomes
very stable it’s sometimes called a subspecies.
Don’t ask me how a variety differs from a subspecies but here’s how that
distinction in a plant name may be written.
Salvia sclarea var. turkestanica. Var is the abbreviation for variety and
notice the variety name is not capitalized.
(This is the clary sage used for herbal remedies.) If the plant is a sub-species it will be
written like this Matthiola longipetala
subsp. Bicornus. (evening scented stock).
 |
| Pelargonium x hortorum, common name Geranium |
 |
| Geranium maculatum, common name wild geranium |
When a
new variety of plant comes from human intervention in plant sex it’s called a cultivar, short for cultivated
variety. A cultivar has to be able to be
reliably reproduced so that it has the same attributes as the parent, whether
that is how it looks, how it grows, or what disease resistance it has. It doesn’t have to be from crossing two identical
species of plant, it can be from crossing two different species, (a hybrid) or
existing cultivars consistently.
A
cultivar name is written following the scientific name if that is given and is
enclosed in single quote marks. It is
not supposed to be in italics but often is.
I forget this sometimes myself.
Example Primula polyanthus
‘Desert Sunrise’.
A note
here. When people are writing about
cultivars they often substitute the word variety for cultivar. That’s because some readers won’t know what a
cultivar is. While the term variety isn’t
correctly used botanically in a sentence like: ‘Bodacious’ is a new variety of
sweet corn you’ll really like, most people understand what it means.
A new
cultivar is supposed to have some identifiable difference from the specie, or
species it was developed from and other cultivars of the same plant. However, here’s the odd part- there is no
organization or “plant police” to check to see whether that is really true.
Cultivars
are named by the developer. A cultivar
name can be anything and it may use the plants common name or not. Ideally it should not contain any words that
might lead to confusion over the plants identity. For example the cultivar name shouldn’t use
words such as rose or lavender if the plant isn’t a rose plant or lavender plant. And the cultivar name cannot be Latin. In earlier times cultivar names were
something like Bob’s Big tomato. Now
they are more likely to be a series of numbers and letters, or nonsense words.
I’ll get to why in a minute.
The
plant name game
Once you have a new plant variety developed you may want
to make some money selling it. To do so
you will need to first register the cultivar name and/or then patent that
name. To register a cultivar name it
must be a unique name for the species.
You can have a rose named ‘Beautiful Baby’ and a cabbage named
‘Beautiful Baby’ but not two cabbage cultivars named ‘Beautiful Baby’. Various organizations have registration lists
that developers consult or they devise one of those nonsense words or series of
letters and numbers to make it unlikely the same cultivar name would exist. Today cultivar names often contain the
developers name and a number, such as ‘Smithab123’.
You can
start selling your plant under your cultivar name if you want to right
away. But here’s the thing. If someone
else buys your cultivar, reproduces it and starts selling it you aren’t
entitled to a dime, even if it’s registered.
What you must do to protect your investment is to patent the plant
cultivar. You must have a lot more proof
that your cultivar is unique to the species, and that it can be reproduced
faithfully to be granted a plant patent.
Once you have a patent on that plant anyone who sells that cultivar will
owe you a royalty fee. Plant patents can
be expensive to obtain.
In
plant catalogs you will often see the words plant patent (PP) and a number or
the words “plant patent applied for”.
This is abbreviated PPAF. Example:
Cercis canadensis ‘NCCC1’
PPAF. Here’s a tip to gardeners out there. When a plant cultivar has a patent you are
not supposed to reproduce it, either from seed or cuttings. If you want a new plant of that cultivar you
are legally required to go out and buy one from someone authorized to sell
it. (Unless you become a commercial
seller you probably won’t be prosecuted for propagating it, but you should
remember this.) And most plants you buy
anymore have a plant patent.
A
plant might be offered for sale by its cultivar name, the name it was patented
under. But more likely it will not
be. Here’s why. A plant patent expires in 20 years from the
day it was filed. After it expires anyone can sell the plant cultivar without
paying a royalty fee to the developer. That’s why a developer doesn’t want the
cultivar name to be something that draws attention or is easy to remember
because patents expire.
So what
plant developers do is either develop and trademark a commercial name for that
cultivar or sell it to someone else to do the same. A trademark name can be renewed indefinitely
and every time a trademarked plant is sold the holder of the trademark can
collect a royalty fee from someone selling it.
A trademarked
name is followed by ™ or ®. There can be up to 3 words in the name. Each first letter of a word in the name is
capitalized. It is not set in italics.
Nurseries also trademark “ series” or collection names, a collection of plants good for containers
might be trademarked as the Bushel and
Berry ™ collection. So then you would
see Bushel and Berry ™ Baby Cakes ™ Blackberry listed in a catalog. Confused yet?
While a
trademarked name collects royalty fees indefinitely after a plant patent
expires someone can take that cultivar and give it another trademarked name and
start selling the plant under that name, collecting royalties on that
name. And this does happen. In one catalog you could see the name ‘Blaze’
rose and in another ‘Crimson Glory’ and technically they are the same plant.
We’ve
strayed a bit from scientific names for plants but I would like to encourage
you to become familiar with scientific
names of plants and with the commercial name games plant sellers play so that
you are an educated gardener who always knows the right name for the plant they
are talking about and can communicate that to other gardeners anywhere.
Herbs and flu
With the flu galloping across the country and killing people everywhere,
people are scared. They are willing to
try almost anything to prevent or cure the flu.
I’ve had friends and relatives telling me they are going to the
drugstore to get blackberry elixir or elderberry syrup or echinacea tablets or
whatever magic concoction they’ve just read about on line or been told about by
a friend. I’ll tell you what I have told them- THERE IS NO HERBAL OR “NATURAL” REMEDY THAT WILL PREVENT OR CURE THE
FLU. None. No matter what you read on
line or in a magazine.
The flu is a virus- well really several viruses. Viruses are notoriously difficult to
“cure”. Viruses mutate constantly, some
faster than others, like the flu strains, which makes a medicine to control
them hard to find. A medicine that would
work one time might not work the second.
Some viruses are stable enough that effective vaccines can be made that
prevent the majority of infections.
Others, like the various flu viruses, are hard to develop vaccines for
because they are constantly evolving.
There are only a few medicines that have been proven to work to
control viruses and none of them are sold without prescription. The most available of these is Tamiflu. Antibiotics
do not work on the flu virus. While
several herbal concoctions may kill viruses on the surface of things none of
them work when the flu virus has invaded your body. Research saying this or that herb has
anti-viral properties does not mean it will cure you of viruses that have
invaded your body nor will it prevent you from getting a virus. And cleaning
surfaces people frequently touch with anything, even soap and water, may lessen
your chances of getting a virus.
You may be thinking about the often-touted claim that certain
herbal preparations will boost your immune system, helping your body fight off
the virus. It could be true- claims about boosting immunity are rather
difficult to prove or disprove when we are talking about serious illness. No
one wants to give people a deadly disease to see if they are able to fight it
off. But an immune boost wouldn’t happen
immediately after taking any product.
You can’t go to the drugstore and buy elderberry syrup when your kid
gets the flu and expect it to keep you safe while you care for him. It would take weeks, if not months of taking
a product to get any immune system boost. And sometimes people with the
strongest of immune systems still succumb to a virus.
Herbal remedies can be great for relieving symptoms, for helping
soothe sore throats, ease coughing or calm nausea but they aren’t curing
anything. There’s no harm in using them
for helping to make you more comfortable but if you get a serious virus like
the flu you may need medical help and more potent medications such as Tamiflu. If
you have a high fever, chest pain, difficulty breathing, seizures, or someone
becomes very weak and confused acting see a doctor, don’t head for the herbal
medication counter.
Tamiflu and certain other anti-virals are best given when you have
been exposed to the flu but before you have symptoms, but doctors are now
saying that you will get a benefit from it even if it’s been more than 48 hours
since symptoms developed. (Tamiflu is the subject of some controversy
and it does have its own side effects, so trust your doctor’s recommendation on
whether it is right for you. It should
only be given after the flu is confirmed by a “rapid test” either for yourself
or someone you are exposed to. It will
not help with a cold or bacterial infections.)
Some of the best things you can do to boost your immune system are
to eat a good diet and get enough sleep. Get the flu shot if you haven’t had
it. While it’s not totally effective
this year, it is something that will boost your immune system and in most
people the virus won’t be as hard on you if you get it but have had the
shot. It takes about 2 weeks before it’s
fully effective, but this flu season could go on for a couple more months.
Wash your hands often and clean things like shared computer
keyboards, TV remotes, cell phones, door knobs and counters frequently. When the flu is hitting your community hard
don’t go to the doctor’s office or hospital unless you are sick. Reschedule
tests and routine check- ups. Avoid
pharmacies too. Stay out of crowded
places. Insist sick co-workers stay
home. Don’t hug, kiss or shake hands with acquaintances.
Herbal remedies have their place but despite the hype many herbal
products get they can’t prevent or cure the flu. The flu is a serious disease and should be
taken seriously.
More information- references
Your plant based business- adding value
to products
Last week we talked about creating a niche business. One of the
most important ways to make money from your niche product is to add value to
it. It’s the way your product becomes
something different from a conventionally farmed product and becomes a real
money maker for you
Most successful niche farmers/growers have found a way to add
value to the products they are producing, and that adds dollars to their
pockets. You may want to take this step
at the beginning of your niche business or phase it in, but it is strongly
recommended you consider it.
What added value means
Added value is a way of taking a simple product that you produce
and doing something to it so that you realize more profit than you could if the
product remained in its raw state. Let’s
use a cucumber as an example. You have done your homework and found out that
there are dozens of varieties of cucumbers.
Some are heirlooms and come in unusual colors and sizes. Some are better for pickles and some are
better for fresh eating. You plant an acre of organic cucumbers, in various
sizes, colors and types. You take
excellent care of them and produce a quality product.
Your marketing plan says you will take those cucumbers to a wholesaler. You won’t need to travel very far and you
won’t need to spend time dealing with people. The average price a wholesaler
will pay for a cuke is 10 cents. Your unusual, organic, high quality cucumbers
earn you 15 cents per cucumber. Your
growing methods and selection of varieties have earned you some added
value.
But wait, you could do much, much better adding value to your
product. Let’s talk some numbers. (Important-These figures are all an example and don’t necessarily reflect the
actual cost of raising or adding value to a cucumber.) Let’s say that your acre produced 1,000
cucumbers. Because your cucumbers are
organic and you don’t protect them with pesticides, and you have some varieties
that aren’t bred for high production, your field produced slightly fewer
cucumbers than a conventionally treated field with production varieties of
cucumbers.
Let’s also say that your organic methods cost you a penny more per
cuke to produce than the factory farmer down the road. Your field took more hand labor and the seed
cost more, as well as the organic fertilizers.
Field type amount price received - cost =total
conventional
|
1,200
|
.10 [$120.00]
|
.02 [$24.00]
|
$96.00
|
yours
|
1,000
|
.15 [$150.00]
|
.03 [$30.00]
|
$120.00
|
Even with less cucumbers per acre and more costs you still did a
bit better than the regular farmer. But
let’s go on and talk about making an even better profit.
Captured value
Captured value is the extra profit you will get if you do
something to a product that would normally be done to it before a sale by
another entity, such as a wholesaler. In
this example, if the wholesaler washes and transports your cucumbers to a retail
outlet and sells them for 50 cents each he would get $500.00. Of course there will be expenses incurred
with this, he bought the product, he has to have a place to wash the cukes,
transportation to the market, fuel for the transportation and he will spend time
selling the cukes to consumers or retail stores.
If you decide to take the cucumbers to the farmers market yourself
and sell them you will make $500.00 per acre minus your additional
expenses. In the case of vegetables and
fruits this is probably the easiest way to increase profits, by direct
marketing them. Usually each time you
eliminate a step between you the producer, and the buyer, you will increase the
profit for yourself.
You won’t make more however, unless you charge more for the
product than you would get from a wholesaler.
You will have the increased costs of time, labor and possibly
transportation so price your product accordingly.
There are some cases where a niche grower will have a hard time
increasing profits just by directly selling to the consumer. This may be the
case when the buyers for the product are far away, and/or scattered. There may
be high costs associated with transporting and storing the product while it is
on sale and there may be costly requirements for licensing and permits.
Created value
Let’s go back to the cucumber field. When you made a business decision to plant
special varieties of cucumbers not ordinarily seen on the market and raise them
organically you created some extra value.
The product is worth more to a buyer because it is unique, and perceived
to be healthier and of a higher quality because it’s organic.
But there are many other ways to create value. Let’s start with some very simple ways to
create value for those cucumbers. You
can package the cukes in twos, add a label with your farm name, the name of the
cucumber variety, include the words organic on it boldly, and create an eye
catching display for it at the farmers market. At your display you can provide
samples if it’s allowed at your venue, and put out recipes or directions for
making pickles.
Even if these cucumbers go out to wholesalers this method of
packaging should add value to the product. If conventionally grown and
displayed cucumbers are selling for 35 cents each, organic heirlooms at 50
cents, your two pack of special cucumbers should bring you at least $1.25
[retail]. You must of course factor in
any additional costs before pricing a product.
Let’s take created value even further. You decide to wash and slice, (process), the
cucumbers, package them with that special label and add a cup of your super
tasty dipping spread. You chill the
packages and sell them at an upscale farmers market, where you also sell other
ready to eat vegetables. You sell that
product for $2.00.
Or you can process the cucumbers into pickles. You research recipes and package them in
attractive jars with your wonderful labels.
There are cheap pickles on the market but yours are made from organic
cucumbers and a secret recipe right here close to home, so price them at
quality prices.Even if you want to remain on the wholesale side of things there are ways to create added value. Perhaps you could make your pickles in old style large crocks, with that secret recipe from granny of course, and sell them to stores and deli’s, crock and all.
Remember that each method of adding value has costs associated
with it. While some methods might be
expected to provide more profit, they may not if they don’t sell in your
market. If no one will buy sliced
cucumbers with dip for example, then plain labeled cucumbers or pickles may be
a better marketing choice.
Next week we will talk about packaging and presentation and how it
can increase the profits for a plant-based business.
Pineapple-Coconut pie
Need something sweet and tropical to take your mind off
winter? Try this luscious pie that’s so
easy to make. This recipe will make 2
pies, you can freeze one for later.
Ingredients
4 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
2 cups sugar
4 tablespoons butter, softened
1 tablespoon flour
2 cups crushed pineapple, drained
1 cup flaked coconut
2 unbaked pie shells
Directions
Cream the butter and sugar.
Blend the eggs into the sugar mix.
Beat in the flour and vanilla, coconut and pineapple. Blend thoroughly.
Pour the mixture into the pie shells, divided evenly
Bake at 350 degrees until set in the middle and lightly browned,
about 45 minutes
Forty-nine days until spring - sigh
Kim Willis
“He who has a garden and
a library wants for nothing” ― Cicero
© Kim Willis - no parts of this
newsletter may be used without permission.
And So On….
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