Another week of really nice warm Spring weather – everything at the farm and the garden is exploding into growth and blossom – it is really really wonderful after the debacle of 2022, may it live in infamy.
Last year was a terrible year for tree fruit. As you can see from the above picture, the orchard is putting on a show with blossoms, and if you don’t have blossoms you don’t have fruit. Apples, Pears, Plums, Figs, Peaches – it is really looking great. Of course, that isn’t very helpful for week 4 of green season, but there are things to look forward to this year! Rhubarb comes to mind:
The Rhubarb patch last year was just ignored – it is getting cleaned out and the plants are getting fed – and so it comes. The other plant that is starting to show up well is asparagus – there was just barely enough for one lucky Saturday farm call person last week – obviously there is more coming on quickly. Probably the best strategy will be to give a few people more rather than everyone less; next week you all should get enough to cook or eat raw. Fresh picked is great!
(above):
This doesn’t look edible, but the potatoes live in here – as well as other adjacent beds. The Voles that live or try to live nearby are under attack with vole bait to ensure that half potatoes are what is harvested. As you can see, the hard edges on the beds are pretty essential to prevent the tillering of grass or miner’s lettuce into the beds. Fortunately the sawmill is please to generate slabs for those hard edges. Unfortunately the ornery beaver is trying to keep the woods access blocked with water. There is a fix for that – hauling a gator full of former beaver dam away every late afternoon.
Incidentally, it is possible to pull the hook off the handle, and then have to go digging around bare-handed in the breached dam to find it. It is possible to find it that way.
Meanwhile – this week adds in a bit more herbs – the cilantro isn’t ready, but there might be a sprig or so of Parsley in your box. Arugula and Chives are still roaring along, and Mint is a few leaves tall. Maybe wait another week before an herb baggie shows up. Lots of Cabbage that will be ready this week. The Personal Share box is nearly full with a head of cabbage, especially if most of the guard leaf is kept on. Dig around in there though, there are other items!
the list for this week:
| Lettuce | Cegolaine is primary, and odd scraps of Winter Density or Red Iceberg. Once again, there be aphids there, be warned. Only one head for personal share this week. |
| Brassicas | Cabbage is here – really need to start emptying the beds – one of those beds is supposed to have tomatoes, and the tomatoes are getting irritated about cabbage squatters. Young Kale. Some evil rodent attacked the broccoli… |
| Roots | Beet Watch is started. They will come. Be patient. |
| Greens | Arugula, Wasabi mustard, Spinach. |
| Herbs | Chives, Mint if you ask, Celery leaf, Parsley. Cilantro is growing. Thyme and Sage are up and will need to be transplanted into closed quarters to prevent invasion. |
| Misc | Asparagus for a few people this week. Green Rhubarb has stems about 8″ long… Advise you wait a bit. Note that the strawberries are just now showing leaf, so no, you can’t make strawberry rhubarb pie this week. Snap peas are blossoming… |
Things are growing fast!
(no farmcraft specials this week, although we still have towels and pots)
