The second week of my internship was full of lots of exciting things. To start off the week, Zach and I went to DROPP on Wednesday. DROPP (Distributors of Regional Organic Produce and Products) is the area’s first food hub and was started by the local co-op just a few years ago. After visiting a large food hub in the Skagit Valley, it was very interesting to see a much smaller one that is still in its early years. Zach and I met with several people who run DROPP and talked about what Prema would be selling next year to DROPP and the co-op.

When we got to the farm that day, we prepped a bed for turnips. Prema uses no-till practices, so their bed prep is a little different from what I was used to at Evergreen. First, we used a broadfork to aerate the soil (we did not turn the soil over onto itself), then amended with one bucket of compost and one large scoop of pelleted chicken manure. We used a tilther on the soil which incorporates the amendments into the very top layer of the soil. We then planted the turnip seeds in four rows using a four-row seeder and evened out the bed one more time.

On Saturday, I had the opportunity to be a part of the market. Prema sells produce at the Riverside Farmers Market every Saturday during the winter. I really enjoyed being able to interact with so many people that are passionate about the growing local food movement in Reno.