What a storm! Our house is surrounded by huge Siberian Elm's planted way to close to the house. All night long we heard the frozen branches dropping on the house. Our road is drifted over and no sign of a snow plow. It's hard to imagine in a few short weeks we will be getting ready to plant potatoes, cabbage and broccoli. However, the greenhouse was 100 degrees just a few days ago because it was so sunny out. We have 15 flats of onions started on the sun room - they are just popping out. Next we will start the broccoli and cabbage. I am skipping all cauliflower this year. I have tried to grow it for the past 7 years and I have had maybe 3 good heads, I'm throwing in the towel. We are going to try some celeriac root and celery, Dr. Gordon Tucker gave me a nice big packet of celery seed he brought back from his trip to China. I grew celery about 5 years ago and it grew nicely but not very big. Celeriac root is a really ugly root that grows on top of the soil and is supposed to be great to cook with. I think they will be best suited for the black soil of the kitchen garden.
Our big mama sheep is getting ready to lamb any day now, she is huge. It will be our first lambing, and the weather could not be worse! I hope she hangs on a little while longer.
CSA Memberships are rolling in as people look forward to spring. If we do the Charleston Farmers market this year, we will be there on Saturday. It's going to be an exciting busy season!
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Monday, January 3, 2011
Happy New Year!!!
The holidays are past and what glorious weather we had the last week of December. I was finally able to get outside and see how the veggies are doing under the battered low hoops. To my amazement, several of the crops are alive and healthy, especially the kale. The ground was thawed just enough to dig the leftover carrots, and the abandoned parsnips. The ground was rock hard until some mid-November rains came so they have been resting in the ground waiting.
Seeds were ordered last week, and the bulk of the seed order is coming from FEDCO seeds out of Waterville, ME. They offer a huge variety of certified organic and sustainable seed. I like the candid information in the extremely detailed black and white paper catalog.
The remaining order will come from High Mowing Seeds and Seed Savers Exchange.
We reduced our potato order to 150 pounds and will revisit some french fingerlings (which I hope have improved in the past few years) Adirondack Blue, rose gold and Yukon gold which are my favorite. Not only are the Yukon's reliable for nice babies and large bakers early on, but they are so buttery and delicious. There is nothing like new potatoes, so earthy and fresh.
We are trying something new on the farm this year, sweet potatoes. On a fall visit to a friends farm in southern Illinois, I helped them plant a little garlic and pulled a few lost orange tubers out of the ground. I have been hesitant to grow them mostly because you order the "slips" or little semi-bare rooted plants (or vine cuttings barely rooted in a tray) and it all seems like a risky hassle. I like to start everything myself, even the onions I start exceed the sets I was buying in size and quality. I went ahead and ordered 100 sweet potato plants, I hope that is plenty for our members and my family, and hope for some seed stock roots for the following year.
It is going to be a good year. Right now we are looking at doing a farm pick-up early in the week, then the Charleston Farmers Market and a pick-up there, then depending on how many need to pick-up in Mattoon, a pick-up there possibly Thursday evening. I am craving spring veggies, thinking about sugar snap peas is a good motivator! Hope to see everyone soon!
One month old onions from last year, time to start again!
Seeds were ordered last week, and the bulk of the seed order is coming from FEDCO seeds out of Waterville, ME. They offer a huge variety of certified organic and sustainable seed. I like the candid information in the extremely detailed black and white paper catalog.
The remaining order will come from High Mowing Seeds and Seed Savers Exchange.
We reduced our potato order to 150 pounds and will revisit some french fingerlings (which I hope have improved in the past few years) Adirondack Blue, rose gold and Yukon gold which are my favorite. Not only are the Yukon's reliable for nice babies and large bakers early on, but they are so buttery and delicious. There is nothing like new potatoes, so earthy and fresh.
We are trying something new on the farm this year, sweet potatoes. On a fall visit to a friends farm in southern Illinois, I helped them plant a little garlic and pulled a few lost orange tubers out of the ground. I have been hesitant to grow them mostly because you order the "slips" or little semi-bare rooted plants (or vine cuttings barely rooted in a tray) and it all seems like a risky hassle. I like to start everything myself, even the onions I start exceed the sets I was buying in size and quality. I went ahead and ordered 100 sweet potato plants, I hope that is plenty for our members and my family, and hope for some seed stock roots for the following year.
It is going to be a good year. Right now we are looking at doing a farm pick-up early in the week, then the Charleston Farmers Market and a pick-up there, then depending on how many need to pick-up in Mattoon, a pick-up there possibly Thursday evening. I am craving spring veggies, thinking about sugar snap peas is a good motivator! Hope to see everyone soon!
One month old onions from last year, time to start again!
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Winter 2010
It looks and feels as winter is here. Everything is harder in the winter - frozen water, frozen doors and frozen faces and fingers. The rewards of winter are worth it - relaxing by the toasty wood stove, baking lots of stews, soups and fresh bread.
A few weeks ago, we processed our meat birds, all 15 of them. What a chore that was, but now our freezer is filled with happy, healthy, free-range organic birds. Lettuce, cabbage, napa cabbage, kale, mustard greens, endive and broccoli are growing happy under the low tunnels. I hope they survive the low 20 degree weather on it's way. The goats and sheep have been venturing up to the house when I let them free range, and have finished off the lettuce and Chinese cabbage in the kitchen garden. They enjoyed my winter cover crops of oats and winter peas in the main garden. If I could keep them out of the road I would let them out everyday.
Several of the spring seed catalogs came in the mail last week - soon it will be time to start the onions!
I am late to go and do the chores this morning as everything is covered in a blanket of frosty snow and the wind is blowing fiercely. The eggs might just freeze today if I don't go get them!
A few weeks ago, we processed our meat birds, all 15 of them. What a chore that was, but now our freezer is filled with happy, healthy, free-range organic birds. Lettuce, cabbage, napa cabbage, kale, mustard greens, endive and broccoli are growing happy under the low tunnels. I hope they survive the low 20 degree weather on it's way. The goats and sheep have been venturing up to the house when I let them free range, and have finished off the lettuce and Chinese cabbage in the kitchen garden. They enjoyed my winter cover crops of oats and winter peas in the main garden. If I could keep them out of the road I would let them out everyday.
Several of the spring seed catalogs came in the mail last week - soon it will be time to start the onions!
I am late to go and do the chores this morning as everything is covered in a blanket of frosty snow and the wind is blowing fiercely. The eggs might just freeze today if I don't go get them!
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Looking Forward
Our CSA season has ended and we are looking toward the start of a new season. There is much work to be done- cleaning up beds, fertilizing, tilling, cover crops and getting ready for an early start in 2011. We have evaded the first couple of freezes of the season with Agribon covers, and cold temperatures are in store for us again this week- it is time to harvest those green tomatoes, unripe peppers, eggplant and late zucchini. Soon the plastic covers will go on the low hoops protecting the greens, cabbage and broccoli. Our largest, oldest garden has been torn up by the "ripper" digging down deep and turning soil over to loosen the soil that compacted by flooding. I am looking forward to getting drainage and lots of humus and compost on it.
Christmas comes early for me in December when the new seed catalogs arrive and provides winter reading. Onions will start in January, the beginning of my growing season. I am going to experiment with overwintering carrots and maybe spinach under the low tunnels so there will hopefully be some ready by May.
We processed 15 of our meat birds last Sunday and the freezer is stocked with some nice broilers. We now have the barn free for the piggies we are getting soon! Today, I think I will go check on the persimmons I have been waiting on to ripen as soon as the wind dies down.
Christmas comes early for me in December when the new seed catalogs arrive and provides winter reading. Onions will start in January, the beginning of my growing season. I am going to experiment with overwintering carrots and maybe spinach under the low tunnels so there will hopefully be some ready by May.
We processed 15 of our meat birds last Sunday and the freezer is stocked with some nice broilers. We now have the barn free for the piggies we are getting soon! Today, I think I will go check on the persimmons I have been waiting on to ripen as soon as the wind dies down.
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