Last month, we had our first ever harvest at Jester King! We harvested thirteen watermelon varieties, six muskmelon varieties, and a little squash and sorghum that we planted back in March.
This year’s harvest was largely experimental. We planted many different varieties to see what would grow well here and what would not. We’re trying to grow ingredients and make beer that’s tied to a place and time. That means we’re content to take what nature gives us and what thrives here, rather than trying to force nature to our will. Next year, we’ll take the seeds from the varieties that did well, plant them, and if all goes well, make beer with the fruit. We’ll pursue future experiments with grapes, hops, pumpkins, squash, pomegranates, jujubees, persimmons, goji berries, blueberries, elderberries, peaches, and plums.
Each crop row has a perforated tube running its length; water is efficiently dripped directly into the root zone. When the plants require nutrients beyond what our well water provides (mostly nitrogen but sometimes phosphorus or potassium), we run the fertigator. The fertigator is a water-driven pump, which injects small doses of nutrient-rich liquid into the drip lines. Here we’re dosing a fertilizer of fish emulsion, molasses, seaweed, and humic acid. What would happen if we used Jester King beer cultures as fertilizer? 
Full harvest details are here.
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