Flax blooms on a hot, July day near Carpio. North Dakota produces about 90 percent of the nation's flax supply.
Nature's Fertilizer
North Star Farms has been composting since we began in July 2004. We encourage others to compost lawn clippings, autumn leaves, cereal grain straw, kitchen scraps, coffee grinds, etc. It dramatically reduces refuse in a landfill and becomes beneficial to the farm.
Starter soil
All of our transplants in 2008 were started in the greenhouse using 2005 compost as the starter soil. Nothing was added except water and we had a tremendous tomato crop.
Manure
Livestock manure, mainly from cattle and hogs, is also used on fields to enhance crops, but in a sustainable and safe system, manure must be completely composted to be safe and effective.
Green Manure
This is another form of composting, which is often used as a fertilizer in certified organic crop rotations. Crops such as buckwheat, rye, clover, switch grass and others are grown during the off season and plowed under in the spring to help fragile seeds germinate and sprout.
Recycling
Each form of "recycling," including common trash, newspaper, beer cans, motor oil and other items, is effective and saves hundreds, if not thousands of dollars on an annual basis that can be used to enhance our farm and the environment.
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Recycling 
