Exie The Dog sanding guard over the early Spring planting
It is the last week on the farm without the buzz of the crew! Everyone is starting next Wednesday and I find myself making preemptive lists and trying to think through all that we will accomplish this year. I make lists of what we need to do first, timelines of what will happen, and lists of the various things I will need to be able to teach. While carrying out regular tasks on the farm, I focus on all the steps that have become invisible to me over the years so I can relay them to the incoming and enthusiastic. It is hard to imagine what the task timetables will look like with all this human attention but I have a good feeling about it.
Even on our own, and with the pre-season help from Tony, we have managed to get some things done! We did end up getting our first big seeding in the field on Monday. All those greens that I am madly in love with are growing their way back onto our plates.
We also direct seeded our spring peas. In the past we have grown them in the greenhouse where we can control the soil temperature while the seeds are germinating. Soil temperatures make a drastic difference for days to germination for most (all?) seeds. Peas can take up to thirty days when soil temperatures are 40 and below. At 50 degrees, they could germinate within a week. With this in mind, we seeded our peas outside at the onset of the four day-night cycles above freezing and covered them with a frost blanket. Hopefully that was enough love and attention to them get off to a good start. I just love crunching down peas, pod and all, and am really hoping that a massive abundance of that joy is in my near future.
In another impressive leap forward, we finally parked our tractors in the barn! They are now out of the weather, no sun beating down wearing out their rubber, no rain rusting up their metal parts. It also means that we have a nice place to work on them when it is raining out.
This week is the last of the Chelsea winter markets so head out to visit Jim and get some greens. The Hoop house kale decided to join us and it is delicious for all of its holding out.
Vegetables!
Kale (limited)
Kohlrabi: Beastly beauties. I have been cubing and roasting them and can't get enough
Micro Greens: a mix of Arugula, Red Russian Kale, Mustard, Mizuna and Beets
Potatoes: White, red skinned, and fingerlings!
Radishes: Green Daikon!
Rutabaga- limited
Spinach!!
Turnips- Sweet
Even on our own, and with the pre-season help from Tony, we have managed to get some things done! We did end up getting our first big seeding in the field on Monday. All those greens that I am madly in love with are growing their way back onto our plates.
We also direct seeded our spring peas. In the past we have grown them in the greenhouse where we can control the soil temperature while the seeds are germinating. Soil temperatures make a drastic difference for days to germination for most (all?) seeds. Peas can take up to thirty days when soil temperatures are 40 and below. At 50 degrees, they could germinate within a week. With this in mind, we seeded our peas outside at the onset of the four day-night cycles above freezing and covered them with a frost blanket. Hopefully that was enough love and attention to them get off to a good start. I just love crunching down peas, pod and all, and am really hoping that a massive abundance of that joy is in my near future.
In another impressive leap forward, we finally parked our tractors in the barn! They are now out of the weather, no sun beating down wearing out their rubber, no rain rusting up their metal parts. It also means that we have a nice place to work on them when it is raining out.
This week is the last of the Chelsea winter markets so head out to visit Jim and get some greens. The Hoop house kale decided to join us and it is delicious for all of its holding out.
Vegetables!
Kale (limited)
Kohlrabi: Beastly beauties. I have been cubing and roasting them and can't get enough
Micro Greens: a mix of Arugula, Red Russian Kale, Mustard, Mizuna and Beets
Potatoes: White, red skinned, and fingerlings!
Radishes: Green Daikon!
Rutabaga- limited
Spinach!!
Turnips- Sweet
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