R&M Bischoping Farms
Robin Bischoping
Williamson, NY 14589
www.facebook.com/RandMBischopingFarms
The Farm:
“We began farming in the spring of 2007. The farm was a perfect marriage of Mathias’s love of antique tractors and Robin’s love of cut flowers. We originally started with some raised plant beds in the lawn filled with a few annual flower plants that we used to cut and sell bouquets. Since then, we’ve expanded to have about 3 acres in production and our product selection now includes perennial cut flowers, berries and a range of vegetables in addition to the original annual cut flowers. We have a total of 17 acres and hope to expand our product selection into apple and cherry trees on some of the currently unused portion at a later date.”
Crops Grown:
no-spray crops: strawberries, lettuce/greens, swiss chard, pak choi, carrots, radishes, green onions, peas, green beans, zucchini, cucumbers, sunflowers, lilies, eggplant, herbs, winter squash, pumpkins, gooseberries, currants, rhubarb, dry beans, beets, collard greens, kale, kohlrabi, asparagus, sweet potatoes.
reduced/low spray crops: flowers, tomatoes, peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, tomatillos, broccoli raab, brussels sprouts, raspberries
Growing Practices:
According to Robin, “To maintain the health of our soil we rotate our crops annually, allowing 3-4 years to pass before growing a crop on the same plot of land. Each year space is allotted specifically for cover crop planting. Composted manure is applied to the fields pre-season to boost the nutrients available to the plants. We supplement this 1 to 2 times during the growing season with an organic fertilizer…Our goal is to produce all of our crops without the use of pesticides or fungicides. Pesticides and fungicides are used as a last resort when crops are threatened. Preference is given to OMRI approved sprays. When these are not appropriate or effective we follow IPM recommendations. Spray applications are stopped when plant production peaks.”
