Farm Credit Illinois

The Decatur Regional Office hosted a ladies' paint event at The Perfect Pair in Warrensburg, put on by 'The Painted Tin Bin' in Springfield. We appreciated today opportunity to engage with our members today! It was a lot of fun! Thanks to everyone who helped with set up/clean up, and to Mike Klein and Brian Shain for helping their wives with the charcuterie cups! Also, a thanks goes out to loan officer Tim Davis for stopping by the event today! Here are a few photos of the event and our wall hangings!

Four raised beds, 128 square feet total. Every plant has a job — nitrogen-fixing, pest-deterring, soil-breaking, or pollinator-attracting.

Bed 1 — tomato system. Four staked tomatoes down the center. Basil within twelve inches of every stem. French marigolds at every corner. Lettuce as living mulch underneath. No peppers in this bed — same family, shared diseases.

Bed 2 — pepper system. Sweet peppers in the center with bush beans flanking them. Beans fix nitrogen in the soil, feeding heavy-feeding peppers all season. Onions along both edges. One rule: sweet or hot in this bed, not both. Cross-pollination won't change this year's fruit, but saved seeds grow hot next year.

Bed 3 — cool season. Broccoli and cabbage grouped together so one row cover protects them all. Beets along one edge. Kale at the corners. Dill at both ends — let it flower to attract beneficial wasps. Spring crops come out by June, replant the same bed with fall brassicas in July.

Bed 4 — vine and vertical. Trellis along the back. Cucumbers and pole beans climb it, tripling the growing surface. Summer squash spreads forward. Nasturtium trails along the front edge as a trap crop — aphids choose nasturtium over vegetables.

Strawberries get their own dedicated bed or containers. Runners invade shared beds within one season.

Four beds. Every plant earning its space 🌱

The Decatur office was hard at work yesterday decorating our tree for 'Trees on the Tees' at Hickory Point Golf Course in Forsyth! Come out and see (and vote for) our display! 🌲