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Location:
Decker Road, Philomath
Providing
the Co-op since 1998 with: kiwis
Farming
practices: Certified Organic
Other
crops grown: Organic hay
Acreage
farmed: Four
Crew
size: Two-eight, depending on season
Farming
since: 1994
Products
used to control weeds, pests and pathogens: None
Nine
years ago the Christensens planted hardy kiwi on a corner
of their 10-acre farm off Decker Road, southwest of Philomath.
About 1/2 an acre was trellised kiwi by 2003. Between 1998
and 2003 they sold over 200 pounds a season to the Co-op from
late October to early November. The rest of their crop goes
to Organically-Grown Company in Eugene.
Ken
is a senior product engineer for HP's printer cartidges; Ilse
became a full-time farmer after retiring from U.S. Bank. The
kiwis, planted as a retirement project, are Certified Organic
because they see organic as the only sustainable way of growing.
Did
You Know?
The
history of the kiwifruit: It all began in the Chang Kiang
Valley of China. Called Yang Tao, it was considered a delicacy
by the great Khans who relished the fruit's brilliant flavor
and emerald-green color. Knowledge of the fruit expanded to
other countries in the mid 1800s to 1900s. A collector for
the Royal Horticultural Society of Britain sent samples home
in 1847, and another sent seeds to England in 1900.
Plants were first exported from China to the United States
in 1904, but it wasn't until 1935 that agricultural testing
of the berries began.
Kiwi
nutrition: According to recent studies, Kiwifruit is the
most nutrient dense of all the major fruits. Many people already
know that kiwifruit is packed with more vitamin C than an
orange. It is also the single richest source of lutein in
the vegetable world, and is high in soluble and insoluble
fiber, Copper, Potassium, Folate, Magnesium, and Vitamin E.
The
type of kiwi that the Christensen's grow is a hardy, miniature
variety with a smooth, edible skin-you can eat them whole!
Source:
http://www.kiwifruit.org/nutrition_menu.htm
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