A four-season micro-farm 38 miles from the DC beltway

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Come join us and 25 other local farms

Saturday, February 18 from 2 to 6PM at the historic Bush Tabernacle at Fireman’s Field in Purcellville, Virginia. (This is a free event to attend)

Fresh - Local - Natural - Sustainable

Quarter Branch Farm grows salad greens and vegetables on a 2.5 acre micro-farm, in Lovettsville, Virginia, just 38 miles from the D.C. beltway. Using solar heated high tunnels for season extension and quick hoops for over-wintering, we can grow fresh greens and vegetables year round.

In modern agriculture, soil is basically a medium that holds plants upright. Plants are fed directly with water-soluble fertilizers and are sprayed with harsh chemicals. This is a process which we believe to be detrimental to the soil life and unsustainable. Here at Quarter Branch Farm, our focus is on supporting and building the soil biology. We believe that plants grown in fertile, living soil are able to acquire the minerals, phytonutrients, and trace elements they need. Grown in this way, plants have an inherent resistance to disease, pest, and drought; creating a farm that is truly sustainable.

While many farms use popular high-yielding "shipper" varieties, we prefer to carefully select seed varieties known for their outstanding flavor and unique character. We never use chemically treated or genetically modified (GMO) seeds.

We are careful to harvest at the peak of flavor and use proper handling techniques to insure our produce stays fresh. Hygiene and food safety are taken very seriously. We go the extra mile to make sure our produce is clean and attractive. Our aim is to provide exceptional service to each of our clients. We are happy to provide samples so you can assess the quality for yourself. If you are not satisfied with anything, we will gladly refund your money. Delighted clients are vital to our farm’s success! When you buy from Quarter Branch Farm, you can expect friendly service and fresh, clean, deliciously ripe produce every time! 

Scenes from the 2011 Season

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Farm-To-Fork Loudoun

Quarter Branch Farm is pleased to be a participant of Farm-to-Fork Loudoun, a collaborative effort between the agriculture, culinary and winery communities of Loudoun County, VA. From July 21-31, 2011 the following culinary participating culinary sites and restaurants will offer special menus, using the best from local farms, wineries & spirit distillers:

Ashburn
Clyde’s Willowcreek
571.209.1200

Leesburg
Aiyara Thai Restaurant
703.771.1131

Lightfoot Restaurant
703.771.2233

‘On the Potomac’
at Lansdowne Resort
703.729.4073

Palio Ristorante
703.779.0060

Shoes Cup & Cork Club
571.291.9535

Tenderjacks
703.669.4866

The Wine Kitchen
703.777.9463

Tuscarora Mill
703.771.9300

Vintage 50
703.777.2169

Lovettsville
Market Table Bistro
540.822.3008

The Restaurant at
Patowmack Farm
540.822.9017

Middleburg
The French Hound
540.687.3018

Goodstone Inn & Estate
877.219.4663

Market Salamander
540.687.8011

Red Fox Inn
540.687.6301

Neersville
Grandale Farm Restaurant
540.668.6000

Purcellville
Magnolia’s at the Mill
540.338.9800

South Riding
Catch 52
703.327.4774

Vintage 51
703.722.2844

Sterling
Cookology
703.433.1909

Call or check each restaurant’s website for operating hours and other information, because some are open for lunch and dinner seven days a week, some only dinner, some just a few days a week. Take note some unique participants which are not full service restaurants, such as Market Salamander and Loudoun’s unique Cookology! Be sure to contact them to see what special plans they have in store.

Participating Wineries & Spirits
8 Chains North Winery
Bluemont Vineyard
Catoctin Creek Distillery
Corcoran Vineyard
Doukenie Winery
Fabbioli Cellars
Loudoun Valley Vineyards
Northgate Vineyards
Notaviva Vineyards
Tarara Winery


Participating Farms
Allder School Berries
Ayrshire Farm
Checkmate Farm
Great Country Farms
Greenstone Fields
Mill Road Farm
Millcreek Farm
Oakland Farm
Patowmack Farm
Potomac Vegetable Farm
Quarter Branch Farm
Red Hill Farm
Wegmeyer Farms

Learn more about Farm-to-Fork Loudoun:

Address 525 K East Market Street - #245, Leesburg, VA 20176 · Get Directions

Email Miriam@TalkLoudoun.com

Website http://www.FarmtoForkLoudoun.com

Facebook http://www.facebook.com/farmtoforkloudoun

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Farmers Market Locations

During the summer we sell at the Rockville market on Saturday. During the winter we sell at the Leesburg Winter Farmers Market. During the summer and fall seasons, we also have a CSA, with pickups at several locations.

Rockville (Open until Saturday before Thanksgiving)

Rockville Town Center (in Jury Parking Lot)

(SE corner of Route 28 and Monroe Street, Rockville, MD)

Every Saturday, 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM, May 14 to November 19

http://www.rockvillemd.gov/events/farmers.htm

Leesburg Winter Farmers Market (year round market, but we’re only here in the winter)

Catoctin Circle, Leesburg, VA

In the shopping center parking lot, across the street from the Post Office.

Saturday, 9:00 am to 12:00 pm, November through April

Please check www.LoudounFarmersMarkets.net to see when we will be at this market

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Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)

Thank you for your interest in our 2012 Summer CSA! Please take the time to carefully read these pages so you’ll be more familiar with the realities of CSA membership before making a decision whether to apply.

To learn more about the history of Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) and find other CSA farms near you, please visit http://www.localharvest.org/csa/

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Information about our 2012 Summer CSA

How long is the CSA season?

§ The 2012 Summer CSA season at Rockville will be 25 weeks, while Lovettsville and Lansdowne seasons will be 27 weeks.

Where are the pickup locations and times?

§ Lovettsville: Monday, 4:00 pm to dark, 5/14 to 11/19, except on Memorial and Labor Day weeks pickup on Tuesday after.

§ Lansdowne: Monday, 4:00 pm to dark, 5/14 to 11/19, except on Memorial and Labor Day weeks pickup on Tuesday after.

§ Rockville Farmer’s Market: Saturday, 9:00 am to noon, 5/12 to 11/17. (Except not on 6/2, 10/20, and one other week (TBD).

What vegetables might be included in the share?

§ In the spring, your box might include some of the following items: radishes, kale, collards, spinach, chard, salad greens, lettuce, sweet turnips, carrots, arugula, Asian greens, bok choy, beets, or parsley.

§ In the summer, maybe some of these: tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, eggplant, beans, squash, beets, chard, onions, garlic, leeks, scallions, carrots, basil, or potatoes.

§ Late summer usually brings sweet turnips, carrots, arugula, Asian greens, pak choi, broccoli, cabbage, beet, peas, fennel, parsley, tomato, cucumber, pepper, eggplant, bean, squash, fennel, celery, celeriac, onions, garlic, scallions, and potatoes.

§ In fall we might have spinach, kale, collards, cabbage, broccoli, winter radishes, lettuce, salad greens, chard, radishes, sweet turnips, carrots, leeks, onions, and sweet potatoes.

§ While we grow many varieties of vegetables, it is important to note that they aren’t all ripe at exactly the same time, so only about 8 or 10 different items are included in each week’s share.

What size is the share?

§ Full Share – Recommended for 3-5 people.

§ Small Share – Recommended for 1-3 people.

What are your growing practices?

§ To describe our farm or growing practices as “organic”, we would need to be certified by the government. We had considering going that route, just so we could use the “organic” word. And it wouldn’t be too hard, since we already go above and beyond the organic practices. But we discovered that the certification fees would be about $1,700 each year and there would be lots of paperwork to fill out every day. To pay the expense of the fees and the time spent filling out all the paperwork, we would have to raise our prices, and that is something we didn’t want to do. Besides, there are flaws and loopholes in the government’s program that don’t really insure that the food is any better. So instead of organic, we call our produce “Naturally Grown”. It doesn’t have quite the ring of “organic”, but here on our farm, it means the same thing.

§ We do not use synthetic chemical insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, or fertilizers and we do not use GMO seeds. What we do here at Quarter Branch Farm is focus on building incredibly healthy, living soil. Healthy soil grows healthy plants that are resistant to pest and disease pressure. Healthy plants grow healthy food which of course makes people healthier. Here are some examples of the natural methods we use on the farm.

§ Increasing organic matter in the soil by adding lots of compost to the soil and growing cover crops. High organic matter allows the soil to retain moisture and oxygen, allowing the plant roots to breathe. It also helps keeps the soil from compacting and crusting over.

§ Using crop rotations to more effectively utilize nutrients and to break weed, pest and disease lifecycles.

§ Using pest exclusion covers on specific crops that tend to have more pest pressure rather than spraying (organic, of course). The covers are not a cheap solution, but they work (most of the time). On a couple occasions last year we used an organically-approved biological spray, but only as a last resort.

§ Conserving water resources by mulching, aerating the soil, using drip irrigation wherever possible.

§ Using well water for irrigation, which reduces the possibility of food contamination that can occur through use of surface water for irrigation.

What is unique about Quarter Branch Farm?

§ At just 2.5 acres of crops, Quarter Branch Farm is one of the smallest commercial vegetable farms in the Loudoun area. It is our only source of income, so we take farming seriously and are continuously striving to learn how to be better growers.

§ All of our produce is Naturally Grown. We do not use any chemical fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides, or fungicides and we never use chemically treated or GMO seed. We instead focus on building a healthy, living soil which in turn grows healthy, vibrant plants that resist pests and disease.

§ We grow many heirloom and hard-to-find varieties of vegetables and greens.

§ Our produce is known to be uncommonly flavorful, clean, and attractive.

§ We have an extended season by growing under row covers, quick hoops, and passive solar-heated high tunnels.

§ Your input is very valuable to us. We encourage you to freely suggest ways we could do better. We really care about you and want you to be delighted with the CSA experience!

What is the cost?

§ Full shares are $29/week and small shares are $20/week. Virginia residents add 2.5% sales tax. The amount for all the weeks of the season is paid upfront. (See page 3 for total amounts.)

Do I get to choose what vegetables I get?

§ We have two types of shares, depending on the pickup location. A “Market Share” at the Farmer’s Market and a “Farm Share” at the other pickup locations.

§ With the “Market Share”, you get to choose what types of vegetables you get. You can go on vacation one week and stock up another week. We record the weekly transactions and keep a running balance of your account. This is a very popular share, since you have complete flexibility in your shopping. However, Market Shares are only available at our Farmers’ Market locations.

§ Our “Farm Shares” is what we offer at our Lovettsville and Lansdowne pickup locations. A Farm Share generally includes 8-10 different types of vegetables – whatever is in season that week. All of the Farm Shares are more or less the same – you don’t get to choose what vegetables you get. Not knowing ahead of time what will be in the share tends to encourage creativity and resourcefulness. You’ll be trying a lot of new recipes! Many people share their shares with a neighbor or co-worker. If you don’t care for radishes, chances are someone in their family will.

Am I required to work on the farm?

§ No, we don’t currently have a work requirement. But we hope you will want to come meet your farmers and see how your food is grown. And it’s fun for us to meet all the folks who eat our vegetables! We can always use more hands on Friday, our big harvest day. The work generally involves being in the sun and heat, bending over for long periods of time, kneeling in the dirt, walking in muddy conditions, and carrying up to 40 lbs – so dress appropriately. Come with your most cheerful attitude, be prepared to follow instructions and work hard and get sweaty and dirty!

What if I can’t make a pickup date?

§ The shares must be picked up by the end of the pickup day or they will be given away to some else who could use them. They will not be available to pickup the following day. If you know you can’t come, arrange to have someone else come for you. If you can’t do that, let us know and we’ll give it to someone who could use it. Please don’t just leave the share unclaimed because the it will spoil quickly without refrigeration and the food will go to waste. So please remember to pickup each week and make arrangements if you can’t come!

Can I cancel my membership in the CSA?

§ By signing up early in the year, you are committing yourself to be a member of our CSA for the entire season, thus providing us with a secure market – a very welcome thing in the uncertain world of farming! We, in turn, dedicate ourselves to being your farmers, providing you with nutritious, naturally grown, high quality produce. You are free to transfer ownership of your share at any time, but there are no refunds.

What happens if there is a crop failure?

§ One of the fundamental principles of Community Supported Agriculture is that the shareholder shares both the bounty and the risk of the farm. In farming, there are many things that can go wrong; there are definitely no guarantees that a crop will succeed. We try to do everything within our means to try to make each crop a success, but it doesn’t always work. In 2011, we didn’t get any melons, shallots, or potatoes. But we had an abundance of tomatoes, lettuce, peppers and sweet potatoes. Growing many different crops helps insure that, even if some crops fail, there should be enough of other crops to fill the gaps.

If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact Kevin Grove at 540-822-0123 or kevin@quarterbranchfarm.com.

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On-Farm Sales

Each week we email a list of all the produce we will be harvesting. Customers reply to the email, indicating how many of each item they want to order. We pack the orders and put them in a cooler for pickup on Friday afternoons. If you would like to receive our weekly harvest list, just send us an email.

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Restaurants

Bringing Loudoun’s farms, wineries, distilleries, and restaurants together. July 19-29, 2012.

www.farmtoforkloudoun.com

www.facebook.com/farmtoforkloudoun

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Our Growing Practices

To describe our farm or growing practices as “organic”, we would need to be certified by the government. We had considering going that route, just so we could use the “organic” word. And it wouldn’t be too hard, since we already go above and beyond the organic practices. But we discovered that, for our farm, the certification fees would be about $1,700 each year and there would be lots of paperwork to fill out every day. To pay the expense of the fees and the time spent filling out all the paperwork, we would have to raise our prices, and that is something we didn’t want to do. Besides, there are flaws and loopholes in the government’s program that don’t really insure that the food is any better. So instead of organic, we call our produce “Naturally Grown”. Here, at Quarter Branch Farm, it means the same thing.

We do not use synthetic chemical insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, or fertilizers and we do not use GMO seeds. What we do here is focus on building incredibly healthy, living soil. Healthy soil grows healthy plants that are resistant to pest and disease pressure. Healthy plants grow healthy food which of course makes people healthier. Here are some examples of the natural methods we use on the farm.

1. Routinely testing our soil for a broad spectrum of macro and micro nutrients. We do this to be sure that the nutrient levels available to the plants are in balance. Too much of any one nutrient is just as bad as a nutrient deficiency because it can tie up other nutrients and keep them from being available for the plants to use.

2. Adding compost and naturally mined minerals (such as calcium carbonate, rock phosphate, sulphate of potash, humates, zinc, or boron) per the soil test, to insure adequate and balanced levels of nutrients available for the plants.

3. Increasing organic matter in the soil by adding lots of compost to the soil and growing cover crops. High organic matter allows the soil to retain moisture and oxygen, allowing the plant roots to breathe. It also helps keeps the soil from compacting and crusting over.

4. Using crop rotations to more effectively utilize nutrients and to break weed, pest and disease lifecycles.

5. Using fertilizers that are OMRI approved for use on Certified Organic farms. Examples include alfalfa meal, crab meal, and fertilizers made from fish and seaweed.

6. Using pest exclusion covers on specific crops that tend to have very high pest pressure. Although the covers are expensive and cumbersome to use, we’d rather do this than rely on spraying (even organic sprays).

7. Tolerating a lot of pest damage. Just because we see a few bugs doesn’t mean we need to kill them. Most of the time, the beneficial insects (predators and parasites) will keep the unwanted insect population in check. We really don’t want all the bad bugs to die, because then the good bugs would get hungry and leave. It’s all about balance.

8. But if all else fails, and pests do out of hand, we will occasionally resort to using biological sprays to control pests. These sprays are always OMRI-approved for Certified Organic farms. Some examples of biological sprays are Neem Oil (derived from the neem plant), Pyganic (from chrysanthemum flowers), Bt (a strain of bacteria which affects only caterpillars), homemade garlic spray, or milk.

9. Strictly avoiding the use of synthetic chemical insecticides, herbicides (like RoundUp), fungicides, or fertilizers or GMO seeds (like Bt corn or RoundUp Ready). GMO crops are known to cause reproductive damage in animals and nobody knows yet what the effect will be on humans – since GMO food products have not been tested thoroughly. We think farming with synthetic chemicals is harmful to beneficial insects, bees, soil life, the farmers, the people who live near the farm, and, of course, the people who eat the produce.

10. Conserving water resources by mulching, aerating the soil, using drip irrigation wherever possible. By using well water for irrigation, we reduce the possibility of food contamination that can occur through use of surface water for irrigation.

11. Using well water for irrigation, which reduces the possibility of food contamination that can occur by using surface water for irrigation.

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Links

Farmers Markets

www.LoudounFlavor.com

www.RockvilleMD.gov/events/farmers.htm

www.FreshFarmMarkets.org

www.LoudounFarmersMarkets.org

www.PurcellvilleCommunityMarket.com

Associations

www.NaturallyGrown.org

www.LocalHarvest.org

www.BuyLocalVA.org

www.VirginiaGrown.org

www.FutureHarvestcasa.org

www.FarmBureau.com

www.LoudounFlavor.com

www.LoudounFarms.com

www.PasaFarming.org

Farming Publications

www.GrowingForMarket.com

www.AcresUSA.org

www.Permaculture.com

www.MotherEarthNews.com

Tools, Supplies

www.FourSeasonTools.com

www.JohnnySeeds.com

www.ValleyOakTools.com

www.BerryHillDrip.com

www.DripWorks.com

www.SouthernExposure.com

www.SeedsOfChange.com

www.SeedSavers.org

www.BountifulGardens.org

www.NaturalGardening.com

Naturally Grown Vegetable Farms

www.TreeAndLeafFarm.com

www.FrogBottomFarm.com

www.RiverRootFarm.com

www.WheatlandVegetableFarms.com

www.SnowBearFarm.com

www.PotomacVegetableFarms.com

www.SingingFrogFarm.com

www.SecondSpringFarm.com

www.GreenstoneFields.com

www.Evensong-Farm.com

www.HouseInTheWoods.com

www.MouxtouxOrchard.com

Mountain View Farm

www.StoneybrookFarm.org

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Contact

Owner: Kevin Grove

Voice: 540-822-0123

Email: Kevin@QuarterBranchFarm.com

Web: www.QuarterBranchFarm.com

Facebook: www.Facebook.com/QuarterBranchFarm

Mail: 40327 Quarter Branch Road, Lovettsville, VA 20180

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Our logo was designed by Jeff Newkirk, of Flying Colors Banners & Signs, Manakin, Virginia.

Thanks for visiting!