So much to do...

New Babies

So little time...

And it's so true! I have a grass weed that got away from me last year keeping me very busy. This is one I feel I can't really chop and drop. It's too tenacious! So it's war! We do have chickens now (just got the last 2 in above photo.) so maybe they'll be of service. Hardening off seedlings, starting more. Water features and more. What a year!

We had a ton of rain recently too, so I couldn't really work out there, but everything is nice and green. I can't believe it's almost June! I'm starting to really see that soil turning around- composting in place,  has worked quickly- no surprise there.

Here are the first set of chickens - one is a roo and I think I'm keeping him (he's in the middle.)

                                                 

The Group

Aren't they pretty! The rooster's name is Sherman (as in  tank.)  I have named 2 others so far - Pilot and Nova. I'm really loving having them and so far letting them roam the garden after dinner is working nicely.

The flock consists of: 2 banty Cochins (one a roo), 2 Blue Laced Red Wyandotte, 1 Black Copper Maran, 1 blue laced Red Wyandotte/Americauna mix. And one Lavender Orpington.

and...

Bush beans

Lots of seedlings hardening off getting ready for the outdoors. And I sowed a few beans tonight in my usual long paper pots. More will be sown tomorrow and I need to up pot some things.

Happy Growing! Tessa

To fish emulsion or not to fish emulsion

After the seed staring class I did recently, I got to thinking about one of the most asked questions I get- either at the class or just seed starting time in general. "When do I fertilize my seedlings? And do I use fish emulsion?"

I don't unless the need arises. The seedling has everything it needs until just after it develops its true leaves- not the first leaves you see (cotyledons), which look much different, but the true leaves. Now I do add some yummy stuff to my soil block mix- or seed starting mix. Things like rock phos, green sand, maybe some kelp meal, and alfalfa meal will take care of the nitrogen need- I also don't recommend fish emulsion automatically because it stinks- and starting seeds inside your house? Well, you can imagine...dilute it a lot if you do use it! So my seedlings usually have what they need for a bit since my mix has alfalfa, but what if I see this...

Borage in need of nitrogen

In the above image is borage. Some have very yellow leaves. It could be over wartering- another thing and common thing that can cause yellow leaves...but the three in the front have been treated with fish emulsion- which gives them a boost of nitrogen. This was taken a day after I gave the 3 in front a dose. Nitrogen is the one thing you'll read everywhere that everyone thinks seedlings need no matter what- really? Well, maybe not always. I've read on many blogs that everyone advises feeding seedlings fish emulsion automatically after the first true leaves emerge. I think this is incorrect, and I wait until I see something needs it. Right next to the borage is Hon Tsai Tsi and Kohl Rabi. It's hard to see in the pic but both are very green and don't need nitrogen. All these crops are made from the same batch of soil mix. The borage needs a little more nitro- the others don't. It's been my experience that plants that have too much nitrogen, given to green up their leaves, attract aphids- they love too much nitro- nurseries are guilty of this. So feeding nitrogen indiscriminately is a mistake, I think- and one I've paid for before, So to answer the question- no I don't automatically feed my seedlings fish emulsion unless I see a need for it and I've ruled out over watering- and then it's only plants that need it, not every the entire flat. Since I'm not a nursery, I have time to do this, thankfully. It is easy to correct though- since nitrogen washes through the soil, but a waste if it's not really needed.

Now one thing I do find that seedlings need, especially the first ones of spring, is rock phosphorus, which is why I add it to my seed starting mix. Cold soils of spring inhibit the plants ability to take up phosphorus- a nutrient needed for good root growth, something you want when you sink those new plants into the ground first thing in the growing season, but inside cold soil isn't an issue. So I get those roots strong.

Hope this clears that up! Happy growing!

Very Fun Update

So busy with the new addition to garden helpers I haven't had a moments rest- literally! Yep, the chicks are coming and although my flock will be small they'll be useful- poo, tilling, bug hunting, and cute babies to love and take care of. They are so adorable! I did have a loss of one tiny one- made me so sad, but I know that is all part of it. 

I have ideas for names- but I'll wait to decide on that until I see how they behave. 

Other thing going on- more salads! And I've thinned the first of the yummy radishes :)

The greens are crazy in the high tunnel despite the cold snap we've had the last week or so. Lots to eat- mibuna, a few different kale and lettuce, tatsoi, claytonia, spinach, mustard spinach, mustard and a few radish. Makes for a great salad- that's for sure!

  

                                                                                       

Emerald Oak- a hardy favorite lettuce.

As far as the mandala garden goes- a lot of the pea cover crop is up and growing. I have spinach, radish, hon tsai tai, and beets are up in mandala bed #1. I divided it up into pie sections and sowed. The mulch is sitting right there next to the crops when I need to cover it. Later when they're bigger, I'll move all the mulch to the plants and sow the area the mulch occupied. Nice when I don't have time to sow or plant a whole mandala bed!

In other news- things are growing well that I started from seed last year and planted- Good King Henry (no photo), Lovage, Alpine Strawberry. I have had to protect the Lovage because after that first night of the cold snap the outer leaves looked less than happy- I put some straw chucks around it for a few days.

Lovage

Alpine strawberry

I'll update with a photo in a day or so...

Also- I think not one, but both of the clematis I planted last year are coming back. I know for sure one is- even with this cold snap, I'm amazed! I'll be planting one every year!

And in the nursery I have some cooler weather crops, like broccoli and such, that are getting ready to go out in the mandala beds. The tomatoes I had to start at 8-10 wks before last frost did okay- but with the chickens in the same room I had to crank up the heat. I still managed to get a few Indigo series and German Johnson did very well sown in 1/4" soil blocks- which I just planted into 2" soil blocks today. 

 Chard, broccoli, spinach and more

 Borage and cool weather crops

Tomatoes in 3/4" soil blocks 

Tomatoes in 2" soil blocks- leggy, I'll have to bury them deep and fix that

So much more going on- a chicken dome is in the making to house the chickens while they work a mandala bed- more tomatoes in a week or so, stuff sown in the greenhouse with the incandescent rope lights. Too much to report!

I hope your growing adventures are starting up where you are! And happy Spring!

First Salad

A week or so ago I picked my first greens- so yummy! In this harvest is 3 different lettuce, mustard, claytonia. Everything is booming in the high tunnel and our lows have been quite nice.

Beds 1 and 2 are now filled and I'll be transplanting bed 3 this week at some point.

Mild winter it is

I felt it in the air a while ago, but I really didn't think my prediction of a mild winter would actually happen - especially after that awful freezing rain we had around the holidays. But I think it will and that's great! It means I can start tomatoes a little earlier - and I mean a little early, a week say, because I don't want to babysit  gargantuan tomato plants taking up all my room under the lights - and especially since I've never seen any advantage to it.

I have some nice greens going on in the high tunnel and it's been so warm I may have to put the shade cloth on early and maybe open the window. They are cool weather crops and just a little over a week ago I was worried if they'd handle the transplant! Now I'm concerned they'll be to hot! Gotta love it!

I'm planning on putting flats in the greenhouse too-may as well start things in there. Onions are going out, parsley too and if (or when probably) temps dip again, I'll mulch the hell out of things. It is a year for taking chances!

I planted a part of one mandala bed today - radish (cherry bell and French breakfast) spinach, and a test row of  market carrots. I pushed back the mulch in pie slices pulling any seeds left in the straw mulch that had germinated (tossed those on top, roots up). Made some rows and sowed, covering with sifted compost. In 2 weeks I'll sow the pie slices that have the mulch piled up with the extra from the seeded areas. Or I may start a bunch of lettuce and other greens inside in soil blocks and plant them out in a few weeks. The mulch will be put back on the seedlings once they're a decent size or if frost threatens... And it will.

I've clearly been having summer thoughts because I've been searching for a beautiful sunflower variety that I grew in Portland. I thought I'd purchased the seeds at Walmart - I was almost positive. Then on a Facebook gardening group for local gardeners someone posted about their sunflower garden and it got me thinking about that beautiful one I grew. Now I'm positive is Strawberry blonde from burpee- and I found out Walmart carries burpee so I'm convinced that is the one. I really had to dig through my old photos on G+ to find it (from '06, I think) -  but here it is.

Probably the prettiest one I've ever grown, but it's a hybrid which means I'll have to buy it yearly. Bummer. I will look at Walmart first but I'll get it.

It's coconut oil season! Today was the one day in the past 3 days I didn't have it on and I did get a little pink! I'm really excited about the growing season I don't know about you!



Happy Growing! Tessa

P. S. In case you didn't notice my comments aren't showing up. I probably tweaked the code somewhere and caused it, but know I'm trying to get it figured out.

High tunnel extension plan

It's time. The experimental high tunnel has been a success. Yes, there needs to be some tweaks made so I don't have to take the plastic of the sides and buy a zip door every year, but it's time to expand - especially because I'm getting chickens! That, and I want to add 10 feet to it.

Here is a rough draft, but unless I plan on changing the orientation of the ribs, and add center cross pieces to support these, which probably won't happen, the door has to go on the short end - west, and that means it has to be well built because of wind. Although, it will be a lot closer to the Apple tree which will give it some protection. It won't flow with the green house however so I may have to give this some extra thought.

I wanted the door to go right where the arbor is - so as you come down the path you can go into the greenhouse - left, or go into the high tunnel - straight ahead. But again that is on the curved side unless I change the orientation of the ribs - which I considered doing because the wind would go up and over much more easily if it had a curve to travel on instead of hitting a plastic wall (side wall) as it does now. This would be so much easier on the tunnel as far as wear and tear.


Still in the planning stages

...

Happy Growing! Tessa

The jury is in

Well, some experiments are a success and some are not. Some are planned, and some are not. But regardless of whether the weather decides to cooperate or not, I still start sowing things directly and inside and they have to go out or be eaten approximately 2 weeks later. If the timing is off when they need to go out- the timing is off and I have a decision to make.

I've never transplanted during a cold snap. I've always started things around the end of Jan. (cold weather crops only), but I've been lucky to hit a transplant date at a time when the night temps have been close to freezing- which means inside the tunnel (under a row cover) it's not and the plants have a few days to get established before we hit cold again. Well, not this time. Last year, according to my records, I started plants on the exact same day inside - Jan. 27th. I planted them out in the tunnel on Feb. 18th. But last year the night lows were around 33 or so going in each direction, for a few days at least. This year we experienced our fake spring really early, but the timing didn't happen. The starts weren't big enough to go outside during that time. I could have eaten that flat- but instead I decided to try and see just how far I could push these varieties. I started 4 kinds of kale, one lettuce, Komatsuna, Tat soi, Ruby Streaks mustard, beets, mibuna. The night temps were supposed to dip into the teens- yikes! So what was the outcome?

A surprise. First I'll talk about the successes- the lettuce (Garnet Oak Leaf) didn't mind. I was surprised since it's an oak leaf. So this variety will go on my very hardy list! And the mustard shined- it's fine.

 The kales- not so happy. Some worse than others but I ended up pulling a lot of them and kept a few that the younger leaves looked okay- we'll see what happens. Surprising since kale is know to be a winter lover- and that is true, but you have to transplant above freezing and give it a week or so.

All the others- Komatsuna, Tatsoi, beets, mibuna, all didn't fare well and were pulled. The mibuna and beets I thought would be okay, but they just didn't look good so I pulled them eventually.

Now I want to be clear about this- these crops have all done well growing them through the worst of winter as long as they're given time to establish first before cold temps move in (with the exception of Komatsuna- I've only grown it once before and didn't keep records.)  Starting crops from about mid-Aug to mid-Nov and continually planting out until the temps and light hours are too low is the key. And don't forget the direct sowing too- I do that between what I transplant. If you look at last year's post on March 14th I was picking my first salad of the year - and it had kale, tatsoi and more in it! http://dirtcandy.blogspot.com/2014/03/so-much-to-do.html

Since I had some others to go out and I've got a couple days only of some lows around freezing (outside- which means warmer inside), I'll try again. They are all lettuce- different varieties, and I'm mulching. In the mean time, the spinach and radishes are up that I DS a couple weeks back, the claytonia is up and growing everywhere (a great self sower) and even some lettuces, and I've planted more radishes. We're past the second week of Feb. when the light returns to above 10 hrs a day- so let the growing begin.

This experiment isn't a total loss- I never look at it that way when I walk away with some tid bit that will help next year...as long as I'm keeping notes! And there is always the next batch!

Happy growing,

Tessa