Fresh Green OG Garden

You know those lovely little edible flowers? Well next time you see them at the Co-op, think Fresh Green Organic Garden. FGOG’s greenhouses are located in southern Oregon's Klamath Basin, near Crater Lake National Park.

Edible FlowerRick Walsh, owner of FGOG, has been a farmer for a very long time. However in 2001 farmers in the Klamath Basin, including Rick, faced a water crisis. In an effort to protect coho salmon, a federal ruling barred the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation from delivering water to farmers in the Klamath Basin, leaving many local farmers, “high and dry.” Rick's response was to adapt. Making use of the abundant sunshine (300 plus days a year) and the geothermal heat available, Rick converted to greenhouses, requiring less water. Today, FGOG's eight greenhouses are all certified organic. Roughly six people work year-round to nurture the FGOG produce.

Instead of hydroponically grown tomatoes, FGOG is able to let their fruit vine ripen by using compost. Rick has found this gives the tomatoes better flavor. At FGOG they also use a compost tea to keep plants healthy. By getting the ratio of beneficial micro-organisms in the soil right, plants don’t succumb to diseases or soil borne bacteria as easily.