Posts Tagged ‘Rich Soil’
Remnants of Fall & the Promise of Spring
Our weather of late has been like a tumultuous roller coaster ride—rising and falling; twisting and turning with temperatures that ride high into the sky then plummeting down into the depths of a freeze. Winds that howl so strong the house seems to inhale and exhale, then so calm that the frost settles over everything it touches. In between there have been bouts of rain; gentle and soft so the ground can soak it up then torrential downpours that flood the streets.
For the last week or so I have only run out into the weather to quickly feed and water the chickens and goose, and make a cursory survey of the farm looking for damage or the potential for damage.
It wasn’t until tonight that I actually had a chance to really look the place over. Frost bitten leaves were evident everywhere, but thankfully the barn and the greenhouse (still unfinished) remained intact with no signs of wind damage. During my wandering I noticed what I thought was a large reddish golden leaf on the Fuji apple tree. I had seen it from my bedroom window several days before and thought how amazing that with all the wind we’ve had a leaf was still attached to the barren tree. But, when I looked closer I discovered it wasn’t a leaf at all, but a ripe apple, missed during our fall harvest; curious that I didn’t see something of that size earlier.
It made me reminisce of fall, and made me think of how good a small rustic apple pie would taste in the middle of winter so I plucked it from its stronghold and brought it inside.
Along my walk I also noticed bits of green in the long narrow vegetable planter I built for onions and garlic. The garlic I planted before the holidays is beginning to poke slender leaves through the dark rich soil. In contrast to the lone forgotten apple of a season gone these are the promise of spring, of readiness for planting early crops and the desire to eat fresh from the garden again. Bulbs of dried garlic will hang in the kitchen in a few weeks, seasoning everything from sauces to meats.
If the weather holds I may soon be outside plunging my hands deep into the soil, churning it and smoothing it, making it ready for greens and peas and broccoli and other early season cool weather seeds.
I ended my walk at the barn, filling up the water troughs and topping off the hanging chicken feeder. The hens have had a grand time scratching in the thick layer of straw laid to keep them cozy on cold winter nights. There are deep holes where they have fluffed and nestled themselves in their daily dust baths, and mounded up places where they scratched so fiercely that they’ve piled up the straw. One pile, though, looked particularly strange so I walked over to investigate. As I moved toward the mound Princess Sophia, our Sebastopol goose, became agitated. The closer I got the louder she protested. As I bent down to look at the straw more closely she was literally tugging at my pants in a frenzy. When I pulled a layer of straw aside I could see the reason for all her commotion. She must have begun laying in the last week or so because snug under that mound of straw was a small clutch of eggs. If we had a gander this would be the best ever promise of spring and the promise of a fluffy little brood of goslings. But, it isn’t to be. We have no gander.
Before I had finished my rounds the temperature fell and a frozen breeze was swirling around, the setting sun had painted the sky with streaks of pink and orange and yellow. Fall and spring were clashing in one afternoon; remnant memories of days gone and the promise those to come ran through my mind. As I walked back to the house, glowing with a roaring fire, I turned for one last glance at the tiny farm and thought life can’t get much better than this, especially for a Tuesday.
The Storm that Never Came
The storm that was supposed to arrive last night never materialized. It skirted us and headed south; a sad turn to be sure. Our rainfall this season has barely reached 6 inches and with our wet season almost over this can only mean one thing…we’ll be watering sooner and more often than usual this spring and summer.
Not music to my ears, I can tell you. Our water rates have already gone up 5 times in the last year and another rate hike is slated to begin next month. This coupled with an increase in property taxes, medical insurance premiums and of course gas prices have this farm girl looking down at a pretty thin pocket book. All will turn out well I know. It always does. Anytime I’ve needed answers, they come to me when and how they are suppose to.
But, I won’t just be sitting around waiting for Manna from Heaven though; we’ll hunker down, pair down and keep an eye on our spending until we weather the storm. But, I have to say, I’d rather be weathering a rain storm instead.
An early spring means getting seeds into the garden sooner which is happy news. Brianne and I are picking up a load of free composted manure on Friday. It will fill the new raised vegetable beds. Hard work shoveling and a morning in the sun is a small price to pay for rich soil and an early harvest of lettuce greens, beets, carrots, radishes and spinach. I’ll plant early maturing crops first, and if time permits, I’ll start cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower in 4 inch pots. The tomatoes I planted last month are almost 3 inches tall now. In another few weeks they’ll be transplanted into larger pots until they are big enough and strong enough to withstand being planted in the garden.
Our rainless day was cold and blustery with winds that howled and cold that seemed to blow right through you. We spent the day at home with a warm fire and a pot of soup bubbling on the stove. There’s no better smell to fill a warm house then that of a hearty soup simmering away; except maybe for bread baking. On days like these I feel like cooking more than usual. There’s just something about being in the kitchen, creating, cooking, feeding a family. I thumbed through my notebook of collected recipes, rumpled from use and splashed from exuberant cooking sessions, and found one I haven’t made in a long time. Read the rest of the story »
Making Your Own Worm Bin
Earth worms are an essential part of good gardening. At least in my mind they are. They are eating machines, transforming kitchen and garden scraps into nutrient rich soil and castings, while churning up the soil, aerating it and improving its tilth.
Raising your own earth worms is easy and inexpensive, if you use materials you already have on hand. Or, you can buy a worm bin system from a garden center or by mail. But, no matter how you come to raising earth worms you’ll never regret the initial work or cost and your garden will benefit greatly from the improved soil.
I was lucky – the previous owners of my farm left a multi-tiered worm bin when they moved out. It sits in the shade near the barn with easy access to the garden and rabbit hutches, and is used all year round. The soil produced is a great addition to our raised beds, as long as I can keep the chickens from eating the worms. But, that’s another story.
To build your own worm bin all you need is a container, either a wooden box, plastic storage bin or 5-gallon bucket. Any type of container should be about 18 to 20-inches deep, but no more than 24-inches deep.
Ventilation of the bin is very important, so which ever type of container you choose drill a few dozen ¼-inch holes in the top and 1/8-inch holes in the bottom and on the sides so the water can drain out. If you purchase a worm bin system they will have a mesh looking bottom for ventilation. Read the rest of the story »
Finding Organic Seeds
Thanksgiving may be over and Christmas just around the corner, but like any avid gardener my mind is focused on spring – spring harvest of early peas and salad greens, spring turning of soil laden with organic matter and left to rest, spring planting of seeds started in the kitchen over a cold winter. Yep – spring is a busy time for we gardeners. But, the work of a garden starts long before our first chance to poke seeds deep into warm compost rich soil. It starts with a plan, a drawn out plotted map of vegetable placements, and segways to the best job of all in my opinion – ordering seeds. I love pouring over websites and catalogs almost as much as I love being down on my hands and knees digging in the dirt.
Seeds companies have come a long way over the last 20 years or so. With the rise in organic farming and home gardening seed companies have stepped up to meet the demand. One major advantage in this increase is that we can use our purchasing power to move agriculture in a more organic direction. Another benefit is that we are supporting companies that use non-toxic, sustainable methods to produce seeds.
Certified organic growers are required to use certified organic seed if it’s available. By choosing organic seeds we help ensure the continued supply of seeds that have not been genetically modified or treated with synthetic chemicals, which benefits not only home gardeners, but also organic farms as well. Read the rest of the story »
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