Healthy Produce

Avid gardeners since childhood, Kathy Botten and Ruth Capp founded BC Gardens, an organic vegetable, herb, and flower garden in 1998. The “BC” in BC Gardens stands for “before chemicals” and “Botten, Capp”. Kathy and Ruth plant and work nearly 3+ acres at their home near Belgrade, Minnesota for commercial sale.

“Gardening organically is a chance to see the earth at its best…it’s just a gift of life from the earth,” says Ruth of their garden. BC Gardens is Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) meaning that members buy shares of produce from the garden. Every week, for 16 weeks, members of BC Gardens have fresh, organic produce delivered to their doorstep. “It’s environmentally friendly and it’s a way to bring people healthy produce,” Kathy says of the CSA.

Home Delivery

The BC Gardens signed contracts with 14 families, for $328.00 a share, when they began in 1998. By 1999, they planned to double their number of shares and charge $280.00 dollars a share, or $20.00 a week, in exchange for their produce. “It’s actually an excellent bargain,” says Ruth, noting that their home delivery contracts actually provide more food for less money than most conventionally grown produce at grocery stores.

Energy Wise

Kathy and Ruth both agree that as consumers become more concerned about their health the suspicion about the affects of chemicals used on food grows; therefore, organic produce is becoming more mainstream. “People want to keep their whole family healthy and not harm the earth as much,” says Kathy. In addition to family shares, BC Gardens also markets their organic produce to food co-ops in Willmar and St. Cloud, a grocery store in Paynesville, outdoor markets and an upscale restaurant in the Twin Cities in Minnesota.

BC Gardens is a member of the Organic Crop Improvement Association (OCIA), which monitors and certifies crops as organic. The process includes pages of guidelines and paperwork documenting that at least seven years have passed since chemicals were applied to the land. The Gardens are located on land that had been in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) and qualified as chemical free.

The OCIA also inspects the gardens to make sure the codes are met and practices followed, such as:

* proper mulching,
* crop rotation,
* incorporating cover crops and
* companion planting

in order to enhance and enrich the soil. BC Gardens has met every OCIA guideline.

The Organic Way

Mulching and companion planting are vital to organic gardening, say Kathy and Ruth. They plant flowers, such as marigolds, between rows of vegetables in order to attract beneficial predators that will eat damaging insects, eliminating the need for pesticides. Mulching, hand-weeding, and using cover crops between the vegetable rows eliminates the need for chemical herbicides.

“What you want is a whole little ecosystem in the garden,” says Ruth. That, indeed, is what BC Garden is accomplishing. As a way to enrich the soil without using fertilizer, they planted rye and hairy vetch in a 1-1/2-acres in the spring that was tilled into the soil for vegetable planting the next year.

Kathy and Ruth credit the soil for their quality organic produce and wide variety. “It doesn’t feel like I’ve done anything,” says Ruth. “The earth has done all the work.” BC Gardens advertises “Choice, Convenience, and Service” on their brochures, offering choices of produce when available. For example, Green, Dragon Tongue, or Royal Burgundy beans will be offered or Taxi Yellow, Early Girl, or Caro-Rich tomatoes. Costumers receive their product of choice.

BC Gardens also offers canning, freezing, or “putting food by” services with special orders as well as giving more food to those who may be having guests. Produce is kept on ice during delivery to keep the food cool and fresh. There is also a flexible growing season as well as flexible payment plan. BC Gardens offers two person as well as family shares.

Sweet Success

When answering the question: Why certified organic? BC Gardens answers:

* Tasty,
* Flavorful,
* Healthy,
* Chemical Free,
* Locally Grown,
* Fresh,
* Environmentally Friendly,
* Ecologically Enhancing.

BC Gardens chooses their produce varieties for their flavor as well as their nutritional values. The Garden strives to grow healthy food for healthy people and in doing so they are creating a healthy environment as well as making a living.

This is a sustainable, ecologically sound haven that demonstrates a successful alternative to conventional farming that is economically sound as well as ecologically sound. By providing healthy food, BC Gardens serves the local community as well as demonstrating a healthy ecosystem for farming. As for Kathy Botten and Ruth Capp, who read about the merits and strict guidelines of true organic farming before pursuing the venture, they feel very rewarded and simply admire the earth for responding to their care and “doing all the work.”