Conall, the all-new organic grower, starting from scratch as our first full-season, full-timer, waters in transplants. Today we set out three more beds of brassicas—so far, there’s cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, bok choi—prepared beds for a dozen more crops, set up the irrigation pump for the season, cleaned out the winter storage area of the barn, turned the composting windrow….and more. Still, it’s the rush-to-get-it-in-get-it-done time of the year, and the days never seem long enough (although, they’re getting longer!!).
Veggies
First field transplant of the year
This little Jade Cross Brussels sprouts seedling, only four weeks old, is first into the open field. The weather remains pretty well perfect, warm and sunny, and we’re steadily chipping away at the list of crops waiting to be started right away. Today, besides the Brussels sprouts, the first three beds of mesclun, and a whole lot of bed preparation!
Latest tomatoes
Some of the last-started tomatoes. This was a first-time experiment with starting toms in 200-cell plug trays, also, starting as close to last frost date as seemed reasonable. You can get a lot going in a little space, but they won’t fit in there for long. (Gotta admit, this photo’s a bit of a placeholder in my post-a-day plan. With the sudden fantastic weather, and my first full-time all-around helper in the garden just arrived—energetic, enthusiastic, no microfarming experience—I was totally immersed in fieldwork and FORGOT TO SNAP a slice of today’s main action. Tomorrow’s another day!)
Greenroom bubbling over…
Today the weather finally broke for the warm and sunny. Amazing what a difference a day can make! And not a moment too soon. The grow racks are full to overflowing. I’ve been holding the seedlings in their original positions for as long as possible, but at least half absolutely need to be potted up to larger quarters right away. With better weather, moving them to the greenhouse is finally a reasonable proposition. Time to head for the fields!
Flowers on my mind…
Most of the flower seed for the new cutting garden arrived today. Cool. This is going to be interesting! Apart from growing a couple of hundred glads in Year 1, flowers are new to me. The PLAN is to take it slow. I selected all annuals for direct seeding, and from what I can tell, this bunch will just grow themselves. Really! With all the veggie work to do, it’ll be basically put the seed in the ground and see what happens! (I have faith.)
Heading out…
The cold spell seems to be broken, the nights are going down to zero F instead of -10. Time to start moving the main act to the hoophouse. First out, some hardy brassicas: a tray each of broccoli and bok choi, and a mixed tray including some parsley that I set out a couple of days ago as an extreme cold test. This is my first year for early season brassicas, so I’m a little cautious, although I’m well familiar with their general hardiness in the fall. These probably could’ve been out earlier. In front of the table, the lettuce, with the carnage renewed. Overnight, the voles tore apart another 10 seedlings, and I noticed they’d eaten the growing points off another dozen of the red lettuce, taking the toll to 30-40, depending on whether a few recover. Measures, as in, more strategically positioned snap traps and filling in the perimeter, have been taken. In any case, no worries, there’s lots more on the grow! OK, sitting beside the trays on the table, there’s the Heater, intended for construction sites and the like, which hooks up to a regular BBQ propane tank and provides a good amount of heat for surprisingly little gas. It’s not needed yet, but when the tomatoes and other tender guys come out, it will likely be on at night.
Seedlings aplenty
It’s getting crowded on the grow racks and under the four-light fixture tucked away behind (busier than one month ago). Going now, there’s tomato, pepper, eggplant, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, bok choi, chives, parsley, plus more to be started in the next couple of days. Right now, around 2,500 seedlings in all. The plug trays on the top shelves are 200-cell. In a couple of weeks they’ll have to be potted up to larger quarters, and depending on what size I go to, will take up 5x to 10x more space. There are also a few 128s, and even in 72s, the earliest plantings need to be moved up. Already, the light is stretched. The shoplight fixtures are really only good for two trays apiece. I’d gambled on a much warmer April so I could use the unheated greenhouse. Now, I’ll have to spot heat with the propane construction heater, which is a bit of a pain since it has no thermostat—night work. To keep everything reasonably stocky, not stretched or stunted, there’s a lot of juggling coming up! It’s great!!