They Wash And Spin Greens Clean

They Wash And Spin Greens Clean CROPS Miscellaneous Prepping 50 lbs of salad greens is a big job if you don’t have the right tools Matthew Jose found a way to do it with a big washing tank and a spinner “Cooling down and washing greens is a market gardener’s bottleneck ” says Jose who runs a year-round organic production company in Indianapolis Ind with his business partner Amy Matthews They used to put greens in 2-lb mesh bags and move them through three rinse tanks After drip-drying for a time they’d be spun out in a hand spinner a pound of greens at a time “The system placed a surprising strain on our backs and the hand crank salad spinner wasn’t a sustainable tool for processing up to 200 lbs of salad greens per week ” recalls Jose They needed a low-cost efficient greens processing system Their new wash station is enclosed in double-walled greenhouse plastic with landscape fabric topped by gravel for a floor Hand-built worktables handle incoming and outgoing greens The heart of the washing system is a 100-gal stock tank with a bubbler system Greens are added to the stock tank for a quick cool down and rinse They’re then transferred in approximately 2 lb lots to plastic mesh baskets The baskets are sized to fit a converted washing machine After drip-drying for a few minutes in an empty stock tank they’re moved to the spinner After a 2-min spin they’re transferred to a clean tote “We purchased a greens bubbler tutorial from Dry Your Greens www dryyourgreens com and modified it ” says Jose “It included plans for how to build a bubbler and how to convert the washer to a spinner ” Jose’s bubbler uses a 1 hp blower he bought at a Jacuzzi supply store to blow air through a pvc tube system lined with holes An industrial sink drain and an attached flexible pipe drain away wash water Jose and Matthews used a Whirlpool Cabrio model washing machine that met the specifications in the tutorial At the time they also purchased a parts kit for the conversion from Dry Your Greens “Our system with one bubbler and the spinner works well for us ” says Jose “If we did more than we do now we might want a second bubbler tank However the one spinner would still be sufficient ” Jose likes the increased productivity of the wash station which cut greens washing/drying time in half He and Matthews also appreciate the opportunity to multi-task “We have the bubbler and the spinner set on timers ” he says “This allows the operator to start the process and do other tasks while the greens are bubbling or spinning ” Jose developed the system with the help of a $6 000 SARE grant Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Mad Farmers Collective 2052 S Meridian St Indianapolis Ind 46225 ph 317-446-9448; matthew@bigcityfarmsindy com; www madfarmerscollective com; www facebook com/madfarmerscollective

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