Actual Hail

Freak Hail Storm on Farm!


Stay tuned for updates on microseedlings...

What's with the Radio Silence?

There have been requests (no, really. there have been. more than one, even...) for a blog update on what's going on in the Farm. I've been trying to spare you the fuzzy pictures of dirt with a tiny speck of green that is so small my camera can't focus on it. One day I'll get a fancy camera that can capture the the first sprouts, but in the meantime... Rest assured, lettuce and a little spinach, and possibly even the first chard seed are all starting to sprout. Also, it's possible (likely) that the peas are growing below ground... That's all I'm saying about that. SO! A little patience, farm followers, and I'll get pictures up soon. Tomorrow is supposed to be sunny, so hopefully there will be plenty of growth after these two days of rain.

In other news, the highs on Thursday and Friday are in the 80s. What.

Also, the very first indoor tomato seedling sprouted. And the tiny tomato is about to get flowers. It's growth left and right around here.


Farm Vitals
Yesterday's high: 51F
Yesterday's low: 38F
Warnings: The seeds couldn't have asked for a better kind of rain... Slow, steady drizzle. Perfect.

Hey Look At These!

These little things are quickly becoming my favorite thing that's growing on the farm. Suburban Gardener gave them to me last year, and I was sure I killed them in the transplanting process, but apparently not. If memory serves (and I'm almost sure that it doesn't), Suburban Gardener's sister dug these up in the woods somewhere, and they're some kind of forrest elf delicacy... Um, yeah. Turns out I don't really remember what they are. I want to say garlic onions, but that seems weird (obviously). SG--a little help?

Farm Vitals
Yesterday's high: 67F
Yesterday's low: 32F
Warnings: Everyone's on pea shoot alert.
Mood of the farm: Growing under ground, I hope!

Weekend Update

Here are some classic "before" photos of the farm before this weekend's work-a-thon.
Clearly, the place was a pit. I thought the worst part of all was going to be the thick layer of sludge below those piles of leaves, but once I got all the sludge out, I discovered (Trial of the Farmer #1) the real worst part. Ice! The quarter of the farm beneath 18" or so of grass and leaves was still frozen solid!

(See the ice crystals in the middle???)

Luckily, the rest of the farm was more than ready to be worked, so I prepped all the rest of it except that one area. Based on some very scientific (read fourth-grade-chemistry-set) experimentation, it looks like the pH of the farm is great--right around 6.5. The macronutrients, on the other hand, are practically nonexistant. The consumers and I knew this, of course, and had planned on adding plenty more compost this time around...

So after about 100 pounds of manure and compost,* plus two wheelbarrows full of fresh compost from the neighbor, Chris, the soil was considerably richer in all of the important ways.


(*Note: this makes it seem like Farming in April in Minnesota is No Big Deal. Wrong. Really, we're talking about Trial #2 of the weekend. The longer version of this story is that I pried the compost Saturday off the shelf at the Garden Center, leaving chunks of ice behind, was excited to get started, then opened the bags to realize it was all kind of frozen. So I opened the bags, left them in the sun, and came back to work on this project Sunday. Very frustrating for a farmer who is not as patient as she should be).


Also, in the middle of all of this, the Farm Dog, who looks deceivingly cute in this picture:

managed to sniff out the MiniChuck, which, after a winter of hibernating, is much less Mini and much closer to the size of a cocker spaniel. Fast forward through a flying leap into the farm, tie out ripped from the ground, and a good chase through a couple of backyards, and Maisy eventually gave up on the Chuck. But at one point, she was about six inches away from a mouthful, and then probably an ugly fight. In case you were wondering what a Farm Dog does after such an exciting chase... The answer is sit at attention like this for about 8 hours over two days, staring in the direction of the Chuck sighting. That dog has a one track mind...

And last, but certainly not least... The "after" pictures. Here's the little bit of side farm all cleaned up:
And here's the first 2009 installment of (Mini)Chuck's eye view* from the MiniChuck highway. As usual, you'll have to click on the picture to have a chance at reading the words... You can see in the top left corner of the picture the still-frozen area. That will be prepped later...

*No idea what I'm talking about? Here's the first. (Sidenote: Wow! I forgot what Farming actually looks like when it's underway. Even more excited now!)




Farm Vitals
Yesterday's high: 58F
Yesterday's low: 39F

A Preview

Farm Vitals
Yesterday's high: 53F
Yesterday's low: 28F
Warnings: The quarter of the Farm that's frozen better thaw stat or the farmer is going to lose it.

2009 Farm Plans

So I made what may be the worst design specimen in the whole world. However, I think it's a great plan for a Farm! Work starts tomorrow. And better still, PEAS WILL BE PLANTED! This weekend. For real!


Hopefully I'm learning something this year. See how there's a clear path into the Farm? Progress. Also, I've abandoned the rows in favor of beds. We'll see how that turns out...

And finally, in that little stretch of farm that's not actually on the farm... Basil, cilantro, all the onion-ish things that are already coming back up(!), and of course, more beans.

Farm Vitals
Yesterday's high: 52F
Yesterday's low: 28F
Reason to consider a new career: I'm keeping BOTH of my careers at the moment...

Timing

I should have posted this months ago, but better late than never, right...

INDOORS
Planted March 15th:
Cauliflower

Planted April 5th:
Rainbow chard
Oakleaf lettuce heads
Romain lettuce heads
Cilantro

Planted April 15th:
Tomatoes
Basil

Planted April 21st:
Cucumbers


OUTDOORS
April 12th:
Peas
Leaf lettuce
Spinach
Chard (Rainbow and Rhubarb, from seed)

To plant when big enough...
Lettuce heads (seedlings)
Cauliflower (seedlings)
Rainbow Chard (seedlings)

May 1st:
A second round of spinach and leaf lettuce

May 15th:
Beans
Cucumbers

May 21st-June 1st, depending on temperature
Tomatoes (seedlings)
Zucchini (if N will eat it, and only one plant)