Planting ... Oh, Yay! Finally!

Gosh, it's hard to believe that two weeks ago it was rainy and cold ... today was spent turning soaker hoses off and on, throughout the garden.

So, here we go, off to a rough start, but being an optimist, we will at least get something to grow!

The bottom picture is of one of the two hoop houses that Doug, with Bob, Angie and Kellie's help put up over the last two weekends. As soon as the hoop house was up, we planted three varieties of tomatoes in it.

In front of the hoop house (the bottom picture) are potatoes, and in front of the spuds are brussel sprouts, cabbage, broccoli and the little dead looking things way in the lower right corner are Chinese cabbage and baby Choy. (Alas, the tender little greens seem to be a favorite of the millions of flea beetles!) Hopefully, we can take care of their nesting grounds and larvae by putting the ground cover over the top of them.

The top picture is looking east and is of the second hoop house, which is full of peppers and eggplants. They were looking pretty droopy today ... I think they were shocked ... like the rest of us ... at the heat. Soaked them with water and they perked back up.

We're trying spring lock on the plastic this year, (from Steuber's out in Snohomish) also Doug put perlins between each plastic pipe so it should strengthen their ability to withstand the wind. Although, while we were installing the second hoop house the wind gods did pay us a visit. You would have laughed to see us running around trying to hold the plastic down before it shifted out of place! In all of the running around, we didn't panic ... it was a mission! (We did it ... remind me this fall to pick up the plastic and not let it sit on the ground all winter ... arrggghhhh ... what a mess ... my head band was covered in mud!)

These hoop houses do have a lovely creaking sound when the wind is moving around them. So, we will see how long it takes before we hear (or see) the plastic fluttering! Seriously, I had a nightmare about seeing half of the plastic blowing in the wind. With luck, (and Doug's ingenuity) they'll make it to November this year!

Make it a good one!

And the Good News Is ... !

And the good news is we have a second "cover crop" growing in our main garden ... and we didn't even need to plant it! (Uh, you guessed it, they're weeds, but don't they look awesome! LOL) The bad news is that main garden is slow to dry out, so other than a few spuds and a few brussel sprouts ... and LOTS of weeds, we're waaaaaaay behind in the "main garden" planting race! You know, the race against time! Can't go with just one day of warm dry weather, needs to be at least three and four would be better.

Other good news is that we have our raised beds planted with lettuce, carrots, beets, garlic, onions, radishes, peas, herbs, asparagus for next year and we slipped some canteloupe in one and have it under reemay for protection. We'll see how that does. AND, we've had two very small veggie deliveries ...

One thing about it, when we do get our seeds/starts in the ground, they'll hopefully make up for lost time and grow like gang busters ... right? Can't help but be optimistic! We'll get there! Looking forward to a great growing season! Have a wonderful day!

Got Rain?

This is a holding tray that over the past couple of days filled with rain water. We did have about an inch of water in the bottom of the tray prior to the rain. Getting ready to plant more lettuce. Here's where procrastination paid off ... didn't loose any seeds. The trays are now out of the weather, ... in the barn ... under lights. (This is such a waste ... we'll need the water in July/August. And thus are the laments of a gardener!)

You wouldn't believe how much standing water we have! These pictures don't let you appreciate the slogging around the back yard. Best stay off of it.

Just more water at the base of the main garden ... we're getting a much later start than we anticipated. Potatoes are under the burlap, pac choi is the little bit of green that can be seen in one of the rows.

Ah, spring, and to think the day before we mowed thru this spot! This is the pond that forms at the lower end of our main garden. When this is full, the garden doesn't drain as well. (See the above picture.) We think this is more water than we had in January and February! (These pictures were taken on May 28. The ducks are happy and ready to move in. LOL!)

Yes, I think his tractor's sexy!

What a beautiful day today! Looks like we will be ready to get our spuds in ... and a whole bunch else! Ground is cold, but dry!

Happy Mom's Day!

Researching ...... and Waiting!

Waiting for what? Waiting for the yard/garden to dry out, weather to warm up, wind to stop blowing for ... 5 minutes, please! Didn't I read somewhere where April's average temperature was lower than January's? HMMMMM.

Enough with the whining! (Sorry, can't help myself, gotta lot a garden' to do and I'm ready! YAY!)

On with the reason for my blog ... for those of you who are a part of our CSA. This year Seeds of Change offered 'stevia' seeds. Some thing new ... I'll try it!

Quickly ... Stevia is a plant native to South America. It's MUCH sweeter than sugar. True! I pinched a small piece of a leaf from one of the starts in the greenhouse, and as Cisco Morris would say OOOOOOO LA LAAAAA. Wow! It was really sweet. According to this article, it's been around for a long time! (Author's note: I don't know if Cisco has ever tasted stevia ... I just like the way he says OOOOOOOO LA LAAAAA when he's all excited!)

Anyway, at one point there was some controversy over Stevia's use in the U.S. The controversy seems to be subsiding a bit. If you would like to read an FDA comment, go to the FDA site and search 'stevia.' A couple of short blurbs will come up. Apologies, couldn't get the direct link to the comment(s) work.

Looking forward to a great weekend! Make it a great day!

Ready Set Grow! .... Hopefully!

Don't know about you and yours, but the spring storm that hit a couple of weeks ago, knocked our socks off, not to mention knocked over the fountain. If you look at the Dec blog, you will see the fountain standing!

We not only got hit hard by the wind, but it's been so cold that the veggies are having a hard time getting started. Even the cool crops that like the cold weather. AARRGGGHHHH!

Just because we're getting off to a slow start, isn't slowing down the planting! We've got onions, lettuce, beets, garlic, garlic chives, carrots and peas planted. We'll be working on spinach and radishes this next week.



Oh, and my WSDA organic inspector will be meeting with me in the a.m. Looking forward to a good report card! (As a side note: Our vegetable growing operation is listed on the state's website. Every business that is certified organic by WSDA is listed by county on the State's website. We're proud to be a part the program and our customers can be confident that we are growing the best veggies that Mother Nature will allow!)



So, since we are getting started on our planting, I will be more diligent about keeping our blog updated. We have a lot of new projects happening. Feel free to e-mail me at bydenmythyme@hotmail.com if you have questions about what we are doing.

December .... already? What Happened????

Wow! Seems that after this busy summer, winter hybernation hit me hard and fast! (Like in early fall.) Unlike the fruits and veggies, we haven't completely shutdown, just slowed down ... a lot! Which is nice. We are enjoying the swans and eagles that have migrated to our area.

Doug is working on an "alpaca tractor" a larger version of a chicken tractor, building more raised beds, and getting bids for the repair of the foundation of our barn. (Plus, he has a full-time away from home job!)

Bob (winter intern/farm hand/) is coming over a couple of times a month, weather permitting. He's helped clean out the raised beds, plant elephant garlic (a variety of leeks), carrots, hyacinth bulbs and last week we pruned a few fruit trees.

We will be getting the green house prepped, whipping up some seed starting mix, and planting flower and celery seeds shortly. (YAY ... I'm excited!)

Met with Timi and Donna on Friday, 12/4. Timi is putting together a bus tour, Come Junk With Us for the Farm Chicks Antique Show in June. She put together a tour bus to go to the Funky Junk Sisters in Puyallup. Holy Cow, that was fun! She had Jay (her husband) follow the bus with his pickup so if anyone bought something that wouldn't fit on/in/or under the bus, it could put in the pick-up. And, yes, I did buy something ... a Speed Queen Deluxe wringer washer! I love it! Many thanks to Jay for helping get it home. And to Timi, thank you for all of your hard work in putting the tour together. It was great fun! (Don't know what I'll do with the washer ... but I won't be changing it in any way ... it may become a salad spinner ... or set it up and actually use it. It's in that great of shape.)

Girlfriend Kathy and I went to an open house at Dusty Cellars Winery on Camano Island on Saturday, 12/5. It was their first weekend of the month open house. My first wine tasting, thank you, Kathy! Fun! It was interesting to talk to someone else who is transitioning a well-loved hobby to a great business!

Make it a great day and Merry Christmas to you and yours!