ARRGO is celebrating the close of another successful harvest and processing season for our Rhodiola rosea.  Now it’s time to clean up and get ready for the next season.

When the freshly dug Rhodiola is delivered to the ARRGO Processing Facility, some of the ‘field’ comes with it.  The dirt, weeds and rocks still cling to neighboring roots.  The crew at the Processing Facility are the experts at separating the good root from all the clingers that wrap around and sometimes pierce through the thick fleshy Rhodiola.

At the end of each day, the crew has a bin full of dirt and bits of rhodiola and weeds that must be disposed of.  It used to be that the dirt and weeds were hauled off to the nearest facility that handles toxic waste.  Yes, that’s right – agricultural soil is considered toxic waste.  But now there’s a much better solution.

ARRGO is fortunate to own the land adjacent to our Processing Facility.  Now all the bins of dirt are spread out on the land.  The dirt is tilled and worked in, and the weeds are killed after a few times of being turned under.

Last year ARRGO grew a test plot of Rhodiola rosea on top of the dirt.  We plan to do that again this year, too.  After that our plan is to turn the area into a Community Garden for the town.  Expensive problem solved and many people will benefit!