Ed. Note - I am at the moment getting ready to plant the garlic at Cruiskeen Lawn Farm

When most of Wisconsin's farmers are focused on harvesting the season's corn, potatoes and cranberries, some of them — along with a good many home gardeners — are already preparing to plant one crop that won't be ready to pick until the following summer: garlic.

For the second year, Menomonie Market Food Co-op has awarded grants to local farmers to promote the growth of regional farming, food processing, and product development in the Chippewa Valley.

90% of the farms in the US are classified as small according to the USDA. Although an increasing amount of our food comes from large agricultural concerns, small farms help to maintain our rural economies, steward our resources and are incubators for new agricultural opportunities.

STORM LAKE, Iowa – “When family farms prosper, everyone prospers.” Scribed on the back of their shirts, that was the message that Wisconsin Farmers Union (WFU) members carried to the inaugural Heartland Forum in Iowa on March 30.

I was privileged to be able to travel with the Wisconsin Farmers Union to the Farmers Bill of Rights rally in Storm Lake, Iowa on March 30. Members from around the state traveled together on a bus, with most of the members being from the Chippewa Valley area.