», Grower & Marketer g3£3L w/V Promoting The Eastern Vegetable, Fruit, Nursery, And SHtaßlllElw K f. Market Manager: ‘My Neighbors Are My Customers’ MICHELLE RANCK Lancaster Farming Staff NEFFSVILLE (Lancaster Co.) “Directing traffic” has multiple meanings at the Erb family’s “Brooklawn Farm” roadside stand. Now in the midst of plant ing season, owner Jim Erb is planting sweet corn, field corn, Indian, popcorn, and ornamental corn in the warming earth. In addition, “we still farm 100 acres of field corn and soybeans,” said Erb, who is joined by his wife Romaine, daughter Diana, a horticul ture student at Penn State, and son Jeffrey. “We’re serving the imme diate community. We don’t do a lot of advertising. We see our customers over and over again during the season, and see them season after season. We view what we’re doing as being their gardeners. It feels like, in a sense, we’re an ex Full Summer LITITZ (Lancaster Co.) Raspberries are flowering on the vines as summer weather shows up early in Lancaster County orchards. Raspberries, either summer-bearing or ever-bearing, do well when planted on an open site with at least 6-8 hours of sunlight, according to Ohio State University Extension Fact Sheet HYG -1421-98, “Raspberries For the Backyard Fruit Planting.” Page 12 includes recommended raspberries and cultural characteristics, including a chart for training systems and plant spacing, from the university. Learn more about bramble plants by checking the Web site for the North American Bramble Growers Association, www.hort.cornell.edu/grower/nabga/ or the contacting the asso- tension of the community. My customers are my neigh bors. “The essence of what we’re doing here is our own home grown produce. That’s still the key,” he said. Strawber ries, varieties of corn, sugar, snap, and hull peas, peaches, plums, nectarines, pears, and apples are some of the home grown produce that Brook lawn customers enjoy. A Seasonal Business In April, bedding plants and mulch products open the season, which closes with Christmas trees the end of the year. During the off season, the Erbs and employ ees service and maintain their equipment, take a vacation, houseclean, and attend con ferences and trade shows. “I love to go to meetings and get ideas. I have more ideas than what I can get done,” he said. One of these (Turn to Page 3) Sun Critical As Growers Prepare For Raspberry Season Diana, Romaine, and Jim along . son Jeffrey v