In the past I have gone the the Mosca Pit Stop to pick up our potato seed order. White Mountain Farm runs part of the building as a packing and distribution center for their potatoes. It is an intriguing little establishment in the middle of the San Luis Valley. You can stock up on the regular quicky mart fair like chips and dip or purchase a hunting license, all alongside a selection of organic vegetables. Or you might need a new heating stove that burns whole corn grain. But, I generally just pick up a couple hundred pounds of potato seed. This year we ordered from Rockey Farm, White Mountain’s neighbor and business associate. When I arrived they were in the middle of cutting seed for a 3,000 lb order. Rockey is a “small farm for the area”. They have 5 circles, 250 acres. They said an average big farm around there is 20-30 circles. Rockey focuses on specialty potatoes, like fingerlings. They sell potatoes for seed and for the fresh market. Their fresh market accounts include high end restaurants in New York and LA.
Farm size is such an interesting subject. I can’t imagine ever selling produce to New York City. Yet, in talking about crop rotation, covercrops and their effect on soil biology I find our philosophies very simular. At first glance Rockey Farm may be labled a big farm, in the negative sense, because they have big machines. I wonder what people think of me as a farmer when I take videos of these “big machines” with my new Palm. Check out the mail order part of Rockey’s business at www.potatogarden.com.
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