Hello there everyone. As you’ve surely noticed, as compared to last May’s scorchingly hot and dry weather, 2017 spring has been much moister. The average rainfall for Canton in the month of May is 3.2 inches- in Canton this year, we had 7.7 inches. While it is early in the year, we hope some sunshine counterbalances all this soppiness. Here’s the scoop on the action these days at littleGrasse.
companion planted brussels sprouts and lettuce. The lettuce will be harvested sooner allowing the Brussels more space to mature and take over the planting bed.
While we are predominantly on schedule with planting, the lack of sun and general chilliness has slowed some of the crops growth. For example, we transplanted lots of greens for the Lucky 13 share at the beginning of the month. All the plants look healthy, yet they are only half the size we would expect at this point. Though delayed, in time we expect they will thrive.
the reseeded vine crops after the chipmunk ravaging fiasco
One unexpected setback happened with the winter/summer squash, pie pumpkins and cucumbers. In the greenhouse, we started 30 flats, tucking the seeds into the potting soil. When checking in on them later in the week, all the seeds were sitting on top of the soil. Turns out, an industrious chipmunk (or two), dug up every seed, opened, it, ate out the center endosperm/food storage and left the seed coat behind! With all the life nibbled from those seeds, we moved the flats outside and replanted them. The plants have begun to germinate, but we lost some time due to the replanting and the new site not being as warm as the greenhouse.
The perennial herbs and flowers are thriving, as is the fall planted garlic and shallot crop.
This new wash space will be a simple, yet exciting addition to farm infrastructure
We are currently building a small addition to the share barn. This space is three sided, to be used as a wash room area for part of the year and off-season storage in the cold months. This re-organization will make for a more reliable and spacious area for post-harvest handling of the crops.
We are finally at the last frost date for our area. As such, last weekend, we transplanted most of the “hot crops,” which includes tomatoes, eggplant, peppers and basil. Soon we will seed green beans and edamame. After planting, we covered most of them with row cover.
row cover shielding newly planted tomatoes. On the right, a cover crop of oats and field peas where fall roots will be planted.
This white stuff, also called remay, is used for many reasons and you’ll see it often in our fields. While somewhat cumbersome to take on and off the plantings, the benefits outweigh the additional labor needs. Some great things it does to protect tender young plants include: keeping pests off, reducing wind damage/stress, slightly warming the soil and air within the cover, helping retain moisture. In summary, plants grow more quickly under row cover than left exposed after planting. Most commonly, we use it for the 2-3 weeks just after planting a crop.
Another success story of the season would be our green manures and cover crops. We’ve added organic matter to many parts if our fields growing some combination of oats, field peas, rye and clover. These crops are doing well and will continue to enrich our soil. In some places, the area will be out of food production all season – as with the clover – and in other places, a later food crop will be planted – as with the area planted to oats and field peas. Soil is important stuff and we wanna take care of it.
The share board for You Pick Greens will be updated regularly
The Lucky 13, You Pick Greens Share has begun. This share runs June through August. There is a board just inside the door of the barn, listing the available crops. This list will be updated regularly. There are plastic bags and harvest tools available there as well. Households who have signed up for that share may come any daylight hours. Please check the board before harvesting. Right now there is spinach available in the greenhouse, plus many herbs. In time there will be a broader variety of greens available.
We still have space for additional Fresh, Fall shareholders. Let your friends and neighbors know that we are happy to show them around the farm to see if it’s a good fit for their household.