I may be slacking, but the seedlings aren't

Exciting times here around the farm! Unfortunately, the Farm Dog is too exhausted from being tricked by squirrels to blog, and now we're behind over here. So without further ado, a brief update of how things are growing by area...


The back garden, called the triangle
Garlic is up and tall! So are the shallots, green onions, and garlic chives. Peas, chard, and spinach were experimentally direct seeded REALLY early because of the early spring, but they just came up and are looking great!
These photos were taken about a week apart. In the last one, from 4/22, you can see the cauliflower, broccoli, and beet seedlings in trays in the foreground. Radish, lettuce, and onions (below ground) planted out next to the garlic. Plus, the richer dirt where compost was added.

The seedlings! Of course, this has been the most exciting part. I was a little slow in getting heat to the summer seeds, so the sprouting was not ideal. As you can see early on, things progressed evenly. But very quickly, an overachiever emerged... Luckily, by the time that zucchini lost its mind, the cold weather seedlings were ready to check out life outside the house, so the zucchini has ventured out as well. Otherwise, the grow lights are just too far away from the tomatoes...

More room for the tomatoes now that the cold weather seedlings live outside 24/7...

Speaking of grow lights, WOW are they great! The last couple of years I have started my seeds in a sunny window, and the difference in growth is just amazing. Hopefully this will also avoid the two week halt in growth that has typically happened while the plants figure out what exactly they were thinking growing so tall once the wind arrives...

So that about sums it up.

More to come on a few riveting topics including:
1) How I listened to the wrong hay/straw guy and am now forced to hang all my hopes on a weird little bag of corn gluten meal.
2) Massive Flea Beetle Infestation, and how [I hope] the farm gets saved by insecticidal soap
3) The Very Exciting reused lumber effort to make the raised beds. And...the hilarity that ensued once we made what we drew up on the plans. [Teaser: Veggies do not require bathtub-sized raised beds to grow.]

Garlic and shallots and ramps, oh my!

Oh yeah, and a farm dog attempting to avoid dry land drowning in the lilies. Because this news is just too exciting to wait for me to get caught up on filling you people of the internets in on the nuts and bolts of the farm these days, I give you a quick view of the Excitement on the farm!



Farm Vitals
Yesterday's high: 51F
Yesterday's low: 34F
Warnings: None! We're solidly in spring mode, and on track to have the first snow-free March in 125 years1
Mood of the farm: Reaching high to find sunshine and warm air

The Blog Lives On

Okay, I'm officially excited about restarting the blog. Thanks for wanting to read it, you people of the internets!

Here's a quick update, with a photo-filled one promised soon. The last of the snow melted off the area that was last year's garden (not the woodchuck one), and the hay covering Way Too Many heads of garlic that are planted Way Too Close Together (that being the motto of this farm blog) is starting to warm up. The ground is still happily frozen. So all eyes here are on the seed starting operation, which will receive final set up...tonight! Photos soon.

In the meantime, I'm working on my Farming Face in preparation for the season.


Farm Vitals
Yesterday's high: 59F
Yesterday's low: 33F
Warnings: The Mississippi is thinking about flooding.
Days Until Last Frost (est 5/15): 58 days

So about this farm blog...

Farmer Gower here with a question for those of you who still check this thing. And much to my surprise, there are a number of you who still check this thing...

Now that I have new farm space that (cross your fingers) is woodchuck-free. I am considering restarting the blog. The farm this year will include some traditional beds and likely some raised beds as well. Hopefully with an even wider variety of veggies.

And now the question. Would you be interested in reading? A quick thumbs up or down in the comments would be much appreciated.

Seed planting begins in 2 or 3 weeks!

Farm Vitals
Yesterday's high: 31F
Yesterday's low: 6F
Snow pack: approximately 2' in the garden now

So Long, Farewell

Auf Wiedersehen, Goodbye...

After just over a year of farming and blogging, I'm hanging up my hat. Turns out that a small family of cocker spaniel-sized woodchucks got the best of my farm, and me. Thanks to all of you--friends, family members, and a surprising number of strangers--for reading about all my (mis)adventures along the way, and for offering up advice, encouragement, and good-natured heckling on a regular basis.

Instead of ending with a photo of the carnage, death, and destruction on the Farm (the family came back for seconds, and thirds, etc., until all that's left are stems), I'll end with what may be the last harvest--a very tiny portion of the strawberries, protected from the woodchuck feast by some especially prickly wire fencing, and picked fresh this morning.

Speechless

So much for the farm. And probably the blog.

WOOHOO!

Hey It's Wednesday

How 'bout a MiniChuck's Eye View of the Farm that you haven't heard anything about in weeks? Sorry to be such an irresponsible blogger...

I'm currently wondering just what the chances are of the broccoli or cauliflower actually growing heads as opposed to awesome leaves... Time will tell. In the meantime, it's fresh salad all around!

Wando Peas!

Look how cool the first pea flowers look!

Farm Vitals
Yesterday's high: 71F
Yesterday's low: 50F
Mood of the farm: The cool weather crops are pleased as punch. Warm weather crops are just trudging along.

Updates from (and about) the Farm

Well folks, there's been some news. Aside from the fact that the farm is growing (like) weeds faster than anyone can imagine, it turns out the Farm is actually for sale. More specifically, the consumers' house is for sale, and along with it, the farmland. The blog may focus more on my plans to release small rodents into the consumers' house and undo the work of Jim the Critter-Gitter, just at the moment they try to show the house... Okay, seriously. I'll still update the blog until the farm is sold, and I'm still going to do some planting. But the big stuff (tomatoes especially) will find other homes. As you can imagine, I have many Feelings about this situation, but mostly I'm excited for the consumers to get central heat so I can visit them in the winter.

And without further ado, because I have got to get some work done today, here's a whole host of updated photos, including (!!) the salad stuff for my dinner tonight. Last year at this time, we hadn't even had the idea for the Farm yet, and this year dinner is already grown. Amazing.

Peas

Dinner

Broccoli

Chard

The Oak Leaf Head Lettuce, and a few carrots I thought hadn't germinated. Really? I couldn't get those things to grow last year no matter what I tried, and now, NOW, they want to grow in the lettuce. Nice.

Spinach

Strawberry with first blush

More berries

Green beans in one row and a row of surprise seeds for H.


And now for the awesome green onion flowers...

So about that farm...

I am so far behind on farm updates, that these pictures are probably a week old. One day, I will catch up, but in the meantime, rest assured... Stuff is growing. Harvesting will be happening this weekend (lettuce!). And life on the Farm chugs along, especially the weeds I spread in not-fully-heated compost from the neighbor, whether I am there to watch every development or not. Phew!

A Gourmet Farm

So, you know those "wild garlic onions" I've mentioned here and there... Yeah. At the shwank Mill City farmers' market yesterday, someone was selling them (for a hefty price, I might add). Turns out, they're ramps. One of the first harvest-able things on any farm (or forest). A really fancy food. Used as a key ingredient in more than one episode of Top Chef. The object of desire for chefs that write for Gourmet magazine. Yep, those ramps. Luckily, I found out just in time for a harvest. Cooking them tonight with the freshly picked Minnesota asparagus available at the St. Paul farmers' market from today (yes, I go to multiple farmers' markets...).

And so as not to be misleading... Here are pictures from the first official spring harvest: a green onion. First, still a little dirty, with the farm dog moving at what appears to be her Standard Spring Speed.

Second, all cleaned up, with the farm dog in a rare pause...

Green Thumb Sunday | Houston, We Have a Problem Edition

Green Thumb Sunday | Houston, We Have a Problem Edition

(and by "we" I mean Suburban Gardener)

The St. Paul Farmers' Market, amazing though it may be, is completely enabling my Farming habit. I had grand plans for 8 tomato plants, four conventional kinds started from seed, and four heirloom types I was going to try based on what looked good at the farmers' market. Um, yeah. Look what happened. In my defense, most of these belong to Suburban Gardener. But without further ado... Here's the list of tomato plants currently in my window:

Lemon Boy (from seed)
Early Girl (from seed)
Super Sweet 100s (from seed)
Aunt Ruby's Green (from seed)
Yellow Pear (from seed)
Russian Big Roma (from seed)
Black Cherry (from seed)
Gold Medal Yellow (from seed)
Amish Paste
Brandywine
Grandma Oliver's Green
Carolina Gold
Old German
Grape
Garden Peach
Yellow Brandywine
Black Prince
Big Rainbow
Bonny Best
Green Zebra
Roma
Tomatillos

Farm Vitals
Yesterday's high: 57F
Yesterday's low: 41F
Mood of the farm: Settling in amidst a lot of upheaval (details to come...)