HUTCHINSON, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas couple who grew their first crop in their Hutchinson lot last year says they hope to grow more and branch out to restaurants in Wichita in the coming season.
Maggie and Adam Pounds began growing microgreens in their basement and front yard in 2015, The Hutchinson News reported. They expanded in 2016 to a half-acre lot in South Hutchinson.
The Pounds now have rows of kale, bok choy, arugula, baby radishes and turnips, collard greens and more at Simple Abundance Farms. The lot now includes a small greenhouse for starting plants during cold months, and a larger high tunnel that will be finished soon.
“It really was nothing. Our first year here was all prep,” Adam Pounds said. “We grew a cover crop in this area, and at the back, we grew a very tall crop of weeds.”
The urban farm’s crops are planted in soil mixed with compost that’s covered with a tarp to keep weed growth to a minimum.
To help boost the farm’s profitability, couple chooses crops that can be grown in quick succession. Each bed can produce up to four different crop harvests per growing season.
“We do a lot of greens. They are kind of our thing, and we got started growing microgreens,” Adam Pounds said. “But we also grow baby root vegetables.”
The couple currently sells their harvest at the Reno County Farmers Market, as well as working with area stores and restaurants.
“It’s very cool to see what chefs do with your produce,” Maggie Pounds said.
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Information from: The Hutchinson (Kan.) News, http://www.hutchnews.com
— The Hutchinson (Kan.) News via The Associated Press
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