Happy Mother's Day - Spring may actually be here.

Took advantage of the break in the wet / cold weather to tackle the garden tasks at hand.  Primarily, we have been waiting on the soil to dry out in order to plant some of the cool season seeds (spinach, swiss chard, and beets).  Given that it stayed relatively dry over the past few days and the sun decided to shine, I was able to do a little work on Saturday to break open the soil.  On Sunday, I was able to get the Mantis tiller out and work 4 beds into somewhat reasonable shape for planting.

#8, #5, #9, and #13 all got worked.  #9 was planted with Sugar Snap peas, after I got up the trellis for the new plants to hang themselves on.  I also planted 3 blocks of spinach, beets, and swiss chard along with 3 blocks of Speedy green beans.  I know that it is probably a little bit early for the beans, but they do taste good.  I also stuck a number of radish rows into the planting.

I did finish weeding the asparagus beds (#1-#4).  It seems the work was just in time as I have a meal of asparagus almost ready for picking.

The raspberries are slow due to the wet and cold.  I am very concerned about the purple raspberries coming back after a very, very rough wet summer last year.  Some of the red raspberries have broken dormancy, but I have not been able to find any signs from the purple.  Time will tell.

The inside seedlings continue to make progress.  I probably will have a couple of potted candidates to take outside, sometime this week.  Kale, broccoli, and brussel sprouts make up the base of most of the plantings.

Hoping we don't get deluged this week.  It would be good to get at least another one or two beds ready to go.

Remember, the NAS Heirloom Plant Sale at UWGB is this Saturday at 9 am.  They start handing out numbers at 7am.

Have a good week.

Bill

Took the opportunity....

The weekend was very good.  A good break on Saturday afternoon and Sunday from the rain.  After another day of drying today, I planted both the yellow and red onion plants that I picked up from Garden Spot on Saturday.

The soil worked up very good and I was able to get the 3 rows of double plants into one of the 12' beds.  6 " spacings will allow for a generous taking of green onions throughout the summer and some really great onions later on into July/August.

Rain is predicted for the next few days so timing appears to be good.  Keeping fingers crossed.

Be good..

Bill

OK. It's late, but....

It's tax time and not time to be planting seeds.  I know that.  I articulate that.  I still don't follow my own advice.

Today, I planted the following:
Brussel Sprouts - Long Island Improved, Bubbles
Broccoli -  DiCicco, Calabrese
Kale
Cauliflower
Basil - Italian Large Leaf, Genovesse, Thai, Licorice, Sweet
Parsley - Moss Curled, Double Curled, Italian Dark Green
Cilantro
Rosemary
Lettuce / Romaine - Outback, Caeser Blend
Swiss Chard - Lucullus, Bright Lights

They are sitting on top of the boiler so a nice heat source that should help the seed explode.


This year I am going to do a lot more staggered planting of our plants.  Think about it.  You go to your local garden center and get some plants that most likely have been started at the same time.  They might have been slowed up to meet some predetermined delivery window.  The way I look at it, one should keep the plants growing very, very fast and not slow the process down.  From inside, to deck, to hardening off, to garden.

Time will tell.  Consider that the sleet on the windows last night put me to sleep and the flooded back yard welcomed me to light of day.  Remember, this is spring.

Be safe.

The garden season is almost done, but not quite yet!

Today, I picked a nice big handful of kale from the garden.  I know the temperature and the conditions (10 and blizzard), but we needed fresh kale for our non-pasta Wedding Soup.  It was frozen and I'm sure some of the snow made it into the soup pot, but I am certainly into season extenders.

We will most likely have another 2 or 3 meals and then, after the first of the year, it will be done.

Be safe and be warm.

Bill

Tilling and Planting continues....a full month early

Today is Sunday, April 18, 2010.  It was cool today, but definitely not the cold of a winter waiting to return.  The wind died down today, a calm amidst the last 4 days of a cold wind out of the NW.  It hasn't rained since we go and inch or about 8 days ago.  I also don't believe that it will snow again, but remember that we are in Wisconsin.

We continue to move forward with the garden.  Thanks to my friend from work, Brent Winebar who was good enough to share some All Blue and Carola potatoes from the ones he was planting in his own garden.  I was able to get 3 full hills planted when I supplemented them with some Rose Finn Apple potatoes that I purchase this week.  I utilized the plant in the fill technique and then encircled the hill with wire mesh and covered with 6" of leaf mulch.  All the potatoes had good swollen eyes and were showing the first signs of roots.  Potatoes were planted in #14, which is one of the new beds starting this year.

Earlier this week I planted #13 with onion plants that I started on 3/5.  Both red and yellow onions planted in multi-plant blocks, similar to the suggestions of Elliot Coleman.  We've had 2 frosts since then and they are doing just fine.

#11 was also planted today with transplants of spinach, swiss chard, and beets.  I also planted seed of leaf lettuce, spinach, more beets, and carrots.  The entire bed is covered in a plastic hoop house as I suspect we are going to have at least one more good hard frost.  Maybe not this week, but definitely the potential exists.

The last bed we planted was #15.  Super Sugar Snap peas went in.  I will put up the metal fence panels that I use for the trellis this week to make sure I don't kill too many plants by waiting.

I still owe people pictures.  It is on my list.

Happy Gardening, 2010 is here!
Bill

More seeds started, beds tilled and bushes trimmed

It turned out to be a very busy weekend.  While the weather was relatively cool and windy on both Saturday and Sunday, I did get the chance to trim out a lot of the woody growth from foundation plantings, trim the currants back (yes, I cut them back very hard), tip the red and purple raspberry plants, and trim off some ground hugging limbs on some blue spruce.

On Saturday morning I planted 3 varieties of broccoli, 2 varieties of brussel sprouts, 2 beets, 2 spinach, romaine lettuce, and kale.  In all, I got 108 multi-plant blocks started.  With onions, we are now creeping up to 200 multi-plant blocks started.  I won't be starting  tomato or pepper plants as the selection from the students up at UWGB is always good and offers a more robust selection then I care to.

On Saturday afternoon I also turned over my 2 early beds (potato and greens).  The leaf mulch from the fall has broken down substantially and the earthworm population had taken off.  A week of warm weather as its forecast should lead to optimal conditions to plant some spuds next weekend and get the A-frame set up on bed #11.

On Sunday I tackled the new area, freshly broken for beds 13-16.  I turned the sod over in the fall and it has mellowed nicely over the winter.  The Mantis tiller had its work cut out for it but was definitely up to the task.  I didn't try to tackle all of the tilling in one move but rather attempted to get the tops knocked off and ready for the next tilling.  If time permits, I will be assembling #13-16 beds next weekend and then tilling inside the beds.  First thing that will be planted will be onions.  In and out quick and allowing for some potential double digging.  We'll see how it goes.

As we ran out of time and energy this weekend, I promise to get some picture up and posted next week.  However, I wanted to give you a little taste of our recent trip to Kona, HI.

At 9,600 ft of elevation not much grows.

Monday 3/8 standing at 13,700' elevation on top of Muana Kei.  The hill in the distance is 70 miles away. And yes, the clouds are below us.

Be safe.
Bill

Welcome back from a somewhat long winter (which isn't over)

Just wanted to drop everyone a note that we are still alive here in De Pere, WI.  The snow has been reduced from last year and for the most part, the winter a little milder.

Thoughts are turning to gardening.  I had the fortune of attending the Garden Expo in Madison a couple of weeks ago.  Lots and lots of people, lots and lots of stuff.  Picked up some giant asiatic lilies for the NW bed in the yard, but more importantly, picked up my seeds.

Stopped at Jungs in Sun Prarie and in 45 minutes had all of my seed.  Great supply and great variety.  Now I am ready.

My plan is to plant our onion seeds in blocks of 6 this year to follow the Elliot Coleman approach.  We will be in HI during the week of 7-13 March and plan on seeing a lot of great agriculture.  We are staying on the big island so there is less commercialization.

After we get back, I will get some additional plantings started with brussel sprouts, broccoli, and kale.




Be good, be safe.  We'll talk soon.

Bill

The season is coming to an end...

I find it hard to believe but the 2009 garden season is almost done.  The last two days have been in the mid 60's with a nice shot of sunshine to make the days even better.  Just the fact that it is already 1/3 of the way into November and we are still able to have this kind of weather makes me smile.

The garden is slowly finishing up.  We harvested lettuce today and will most likely be able to continue to cut fresh lettuce until the next frost.  Seems we don't have a next frost scheduled for at least another 10 days.  We also took the advantage to digging the last of the beet greens.  I will wash them well and then saute them with a little garlic and oil on Tuesday night.

Have all the beds tilled (hand spaded) except for the brussel sprout (#7) and lettuce (#8) beds.  These will go sometime in the next couple of weeks.  Dug #9, #10, and #11 on Saturday and spread green sand and rock phosphate on Sunday. 

I also broke sod on #13, #14, and #15 which will be 30"x 16' beds in the Elliot Coleman style (30" bed with a 12" path.).  These will be pepper, brussel sprout, and onion beds for next year.  I'll take a hard look at adding two additional beds for 2011 depending on the success that 2010 brings.  The sod was pretty stout, but the tree roots were even more interesting.  I will definitely be challenged with tillage in the spring.  We won't rush, but we will do it right.

The weather was so good this weekend, I also got a chance to grind leaves that my neighbor Mike brought.  They were exactly the right moisture, dry, but not tinder try.  I ground 13 full bags of leaves.  For perspective, a full bag will cover a 32 sqft bed about 6 inches deep in ground leaves.  By covering the asparagus beds, it builds soil and keeps the weeds down.  Putting leaf mulch on the tilled bids creates an environment that the worms really like and adds substantially to the tilth of the soil.  I'll keep adding on an annual basis until somebody a lot smarter than me comes along and says stop.

The #1 leaf bin is full (~80 cuft) of leaf mulch/grass clippings (compost).  #2 leaf bin is about 2/3 full (~70cuft) of rougher leaves and other garden waste.  I also have one of the black compost bins filled with leaf mulch.

Also got a chance to put up the protective wire cages around the blackberries.  Last year I was too late and we suffered with substantial damage from the rabbits.  Not this year.

Over the next two weekends, I will get the rest of the leaves cleaned up from the yard, mow at least once more, and put my final winterizer fertilizer down.  Then we will be ready for Thanksgiving and putting the garden to bed for the year.

Be good, be safe and be organic.

Nov1 and the lettuce is still growing!!!

Having spent our anniversary in NC with friends and family I have been gone for almost a week.  We had a great time in Asheville, NC see how life happens in Western NC.  I find it hard to believe that GB can not even support a whole food / organic market.  Asheville is 80,000 people and they have 4 markets doing a booming business as well as 2 food co-ops.  FRUSTRATION....

We got home this past Thursday.  The rain was just starting on the drive home from the airport.  It continued to rain all day Friday and at least until mid Saturday morning.  Spent Saturday cleaning out the garage and made great headway to get both vehicles back inside.  Let the winter start.

Sunday was spent in the garden.  Lots was accomplished.
1. Picking of vegetables
Picked about a point of broccoli side shoots.  They are nearly done and will most likely get pulled and sent to the leaf bin next weekend.  Great results for late season.  Will definitely do this again next year.

Cut swiss chard (bright lights), beet greens, and a big dish of lettuce.  Yes,  I know it is hard to believe but the greens are still growing.  I am making every effort to not cover them but still feel that the fact that we even have greens is a win.  A really big win.  I will cover as long as we continue to stay above 25.  We will get a good killing frost soon, but probably not this week.

Cut a big bowl of collard greens to make dehydrated veggie chips with them.  Still have two plans left to trim.  The collards were mixed with swiss chard, olive oils, Braggs Amino, and nutritional yeast .  12 hours in the dehydrator and yummy, yummy, yummy.

I still have about 9 brussel sprout plants that are still holding onto their prizes for me.  Great place to store these little gems.  It will be  at least another week until we have to start thinking about what we are going to do with them, other than Thanksgiving.

2.  Asparagus cleanup.
Cut the fronds down for all 4 beds.  Also took the opportunity to weed and clean up the beds.  Actually in pretty good shape.  Spread 13 oz of GreenSand and 12 oz of Rock Phosphate in each bed.  Had a garbage can of potting soil that I needed to find a home for.  Fit nicely as a top dressing for the beds.  Will spread some leaf mold after the ground freezes.

3.  Storing of the leaves
Mike, my great neighbor is really enjoying that fact that he has a place to empty leaves without making his front yard a mess.  He collects the leaves with his JD riding lawn mower and dumps them out of the 3 pt carrying bin right next to my leaf bins. While we were away last week he brought over 3 dumps worth.  They had some rain and actually stating fermenting. I cleaned them up and finished filling leaf bin #1.

By the time I had everything cleaned up,  he had already dumped another load of fresh leaves.  Time from bin #2.  This bin is 4w x 6d x 4 h.  #1 is 4w x 4d x 5h.  Between cutting grass/catching leaves from my lawn and what Mike brought over, #2 is now full.  It will settle and will take at least another 2 good fills.  Who knows, we might even need to put up #3.

All in all, a really good weekend.  Seems that winter is getting closer.

Have a great week
Bill

It may be October but we are still gardening

First off, I need to apologize.  It has been toooooooo long since I have sat down and took the time to let people know what was going on in the garden.  No explanation, just I'm sorry.

The growing season was less than stellar.  Cold early, dry in the middle, and then we got rain and warmth.  Alas, it was basically too late to salvage a great year.  However, the fall broccoli, brussel sprouts, and all the greens did good.  The beans were good enough to freeze some.

Today, I planted 70 white garlic, and 35 purple stripe in bed #5.  It was double dug, tilled with the mantis, fertilized with rock phosphate and green sand, and then planted.  Note:  the garlic follows the tomato/pepper beds.

I also double dug bed #12 to get it ready for winter.  We had peas in it as a green manure crop.  It didn't start out that way but it certainly turned out that way.

We're getting ready to head to North Carolina next week for our anniversary.  Will try and see some organic farms / gardens while we are in the Asheville area.

Until later..
Bill

The weather has finally turned hot!

It has been an interesting week. The weather has been all over the map, but in the end turned warmer. We are now into the hot and humid. This afternoon we got a shot of humidity related rain with more reported to be in store for tonight. It's not that we need it, but we'll not turn it away.

This week marked the first pulling of old, spent plants. The early planted spinach and lettuce gave way to the planting of bush beans: green and yellow. Right now, we have 30 seeds in and will start to think about succession planting. Harvesting lots of lettuce, spinach, beet greens from #2, as #3 planting is coming right along. Nothing better than a fresh green salad.

Peas #1 are in full bloom. Seems the heat and humidity have just pushed them to the next stage. #2 and #3 are coming right along. Expect a good harvest as they will come in waves. Expect that they will be done just about the time it is ready for the next planting of greens.

We continue to harvest the asparagus. Taking about 3-6#'s per week. Some in the freezer, some on the BBQ. Great year for the green stalk. Will look for the weekend of the 4th to be the end of the harvest. At that time, will weed and compost heavy. Time to get ready for next year.

The cole crops are coming right along. All of the early planted broccoli are in head and will probably cut next week for raw eating. This will set us up for great shoots later in the year. The cauliflower is coming right along as is the brussel sprouts.

Tomato and pepper plants are a little behind. The cooler wet weather in early June certainly put them behind. Looks like they are starting to catch up.

Snapped all of the garlic scapes last night. Should be a great year for garlic. All of the cloves that were put in the ground last year have materialized into plants.

Took the opportunity to take some of the compost liquor (some would say tea, but I would put it more as the seepage from a strong batch) and use it as a side dress around the cole crops, peppers, and tomato plants. Didn't look like we killed anything but, you never know.

The late plants of broccoli are coming along just fine. Transplanted them into individual pots and they are liking being in the hot sun. Needing to keep them watered, sometimes twice per day.

Tonight's dinner was grilled chicken, lettuce salad, grilled onions and mushrooms. MMMMmmm good.

Stay safe, more pics soon.
Bill

My weekly update.... Late.... Sorry

Ok, I have no been considerate of those that might want to see some pictures. Actually, it has been very busy lately and given the fact that we have had some continuing weird weather, I have actually done some other things that needed to get done. The other excuse that I can use is that we had to get a new charger for the digital camera battery. Seems someone (me) decided that it was not all that necessary (probably left it in IL at the hotel). None the less, here we are.

Have been having a grand old time making compost. As can be seen in the picture, we use the Compost Tumbler to mix kitchen scraps, weeds, grass clippings and two really large piles of chopped leaves from last year. Right now, we have two of the black bins full of rough compost and the compost tumbler is filled with its third batch this year. Checked the temperature early today and glad to report it was cooking right along at 155. Added some extra leaves to it as the mix was a little too wet. In another 2 weeks, we will have another batch to discharge. Don't need the compost right now but there will be need in the next 6 weeks either in the asparagus or brassica beds.

This picture shows the progress of our brassica. A lot of these were stagger planted through April. In general, the broccoli and brussel sprouts are in the 12-14" height area. I would expect to see some heads forming quickly. The weather has been just perfect for the cool season crops. At the far end of the bed are 3 cauliflower. I have never had a whole bunch of success with this crop, but am willing to give a the college try. We'll see. If you look real close at the bottom of the picture you will see another cage. Inside are my fall broccoli. They will go into the garlic beds for a later crop, up until the frost hits.

They may look small but there is a secret lurking. These plants are in the ground about three weeks. There is as much or more buried in the ground as you see above the ground. My success with tomato plants has been to bury them deep and let them fend for themselves. The root mass they form will keep them going through the heat of summer. These guys are really coming along. The fruit will not be early, but it will be good.


Peas and lettuce.
You are looking at our first planting (around 4.11) We have already eaten through this lettuce, spinach and beets. The lettuce will give up another crops and we will get some great leaves from the spinach before it goes to the compost pile. Have to tell you that one is not able to buy this in the store. A little balsamic and EVOO is all it takes to make a great meal. Last night we had a piece of grilled salmon on it.


Cucumbers and Garlic

Interplanted the cucumbers into the greens bed (see above pics). Really taking hold, it will soon be time for the trellis to go up. Looking forward to the fresh cucumbers. The garlic is, well garlic. We go through a lot of it, it does a great job of coming up every spring and it opens beds up for a late planting of beans, peas, and greens. Have not spotted the scapes yet, but they aren't that far away.

Hope this gets you caught up a little. We have also been weeding and keeping the perennials going after splitting. Could use a little heat and rain. Should see the rain over the weekend. We're off to visit the relatives again this weekend. Need to slow down a little bit.

Be good, be safe.
Bill

Getting ready for Memorial Day

Quick note tonight. We are getting ready to head south for my nephew's wedding on Sunday in Edwardsville, IL. Should be a good time to see family and friends. We got a nice shower about 5 pm that will go a long way to avoid having to put any water down until we get home on Monday. The asparagus keeps coming as we were able to pick another 3 #'s to take an grill on Saturday.

The garden looks great. Pulled a few weeds in the garlic and asparagus. The second batch of compost in the tumbler should be finished by the time we are back. Looks like we will also be able to get in the last planting of peas on Tuesday. Also will take the opportunity to get in the first planting of beans next week.

Mary picked up some flowers today at a new greenhouse. She took a trip with friends out to see Thistledown Greenhouse in Bonduel. Sounds like we will be going back. Planted some Eryngium 'Blue Hobbit' (Sea Holly) and Euphorbia 'First Blush' (Cushion Spurge). Should do nice out front in the front flower beds.

Gotta run. Things to do and pack before we leave for tomorrow. We'll talk next week.

Over the holiday take a moment to be thankful for the country we live in. It may not be perfect but it is still the best thing going. Be thankful for the sacrifice that all those have given to make it what it is today. Have a safe Memorial Day.

Bill

Catching up - Tueday 5.19.09

Ok, it has been busy. A lot to do and the weather has been less than cooperative.

Saturday was spent staying warm. This was the UWGB plant sale. Picked up 8 tomato plants, 13 pepper plants, and 2 nice cucumber plants. #19 in line is the best I have ever been. It was just plain rotten the rest of the day.

Sunday I planted the tomato plants and put up the Wall O'Water around all of them. The green meanies look weird but they really do soak up the BTU's. By the end of the day, the water was quite warm and the plants were safely nestled in the ground. I know, harden off, get them ready. Past experience shows that the best thing is to get the plants in the ground (bury them deep) give a good feed of kelp meal and bone meal and let them adjust. Have not lost a plant in 10 years doing it this way. The best part is that the roots are really down deep.

We also spent a lot of time dividing plants. Liatris and ornamental grasses seemed to be the candidate. Got all the division spread around the beds and properly disseminated into the neighborhood.

Monday was school board that lasted until after dark.

Tuesday was a busy day in the garden again. Planted the peppers and cucumbers. Forecast calls for warm and a touch of rain. Should be perfect for the plants. No WOW for the peppers, they should be OK. Also cut more asparagus (~3#'s). The beds are coming pretty fast right now. The neighbors are happy, the inlaws happy, and the wife is happy. Fresh aspargaus is a great thing.

Need to do a call out for my father-in-law. Jim did a great job in helping make some new rabbit stopping devices for the raised beds. The design was flawless and as usual, over engineered. Pictures after we get back from St Louis this weekend.

Eric, my nephew gets married on Sunday. Will get a chance to catch up with the family once again. It should be fun.

We'll talk on ..... well, next week.

It might be May, but it is not summer!

Fresh asparagus never tasted so good. We have now been cutting for about 12 days. It is really starting to come now. The garlic is also looking very good. We have side dressed it with our homemade fertilizer blend and it really seems to have taken.



The cole crops are all planted as of the writing of this update. The peas are a little behind, but are now starting to take off with the advent of warmer weather.



This is the third planting of beets. A little sparse in the germination, but I can attribute that to the age of the seed (1-2 years).

I have been less than prompt on keeping up with the garden updates. For that I am sorry, but things do get prioritized. Last Friday I took the time and helped put in our new dock at the lake about 90 miles north of us. It turned out to be the best day of the weekend as we enjoyed temps in the 60's and nice sunshine. Saturday and Sunday greeted us with bouts of rain and temps in the 40's and 50's. Not the best to be trying to do something in the garden.

On Monday, I was able to get a few of the beds tilled and finished planting the last of the brussel sprouts (Jade E Cross), a row of beets, spinach and lettuce, along with 2 more double rows of peas. This makes 3rd and 4th plantings. We should get the 4th/5th in before we leave for StLouis and Memorial Day.

The berry plants look very good. Purples and reds are all doing great. The currants are heavy with flowers and should yield another great crop this year.

More pictures soon.

Rain is predicted for Wednesday and Friday PM. Figures, its May in Wisconsin. Going to the NAS Plant Sale at UWGB on Saturday morning. Would like to come home with 23 plants. Planning on getting there early (~630).

Gotta run, busy day at work tomorrow.
Keep your hands dirty.
Bill

Another sneak attack at summer

Greetings from what was a warm Friday at the end of April in Wisconsin.

Yesterday we got to the high 70's after a rough start to the day which brought out some gloomy skies, gusty winds, and a blustery cold shower. As the day progressed the yellow orb continued to share with us poor earthlings. I could feel the itch all day that it was time to plant some more.

Finished my work day and the call of the local garden center was loud and clear. The truck didn't want to go home, rather to see what new specimens were there waiting to go into the vegetable garden. Picked up 3 3-packs (Premium Crop broccoli, Early Snowball cauliflower, and Georgia collards. Had to hunt around a little bit to find just the ones I was looking for, you know the ones, good growth but not the older plants. The garden center guy reminded me that it really was too early to be planting as we might have snow yet. I just didn't have the heart to tell him that I was already ahead of him by almost a week.

The soil was cool, slightly damp but still very friable. Got all of the plants in, taking the time to make sure they sat a little deeper into the planting holes. This will allow for a more focused water effect and based on past results, a stronger plant as the roots go deeper. Moved the covered fencing on to the new plants. This should protect them from any hard rains that we would get.

A light cultivation for the plants we put in last week. More so to keep the crusty soil in check but also to smooth the planting bed a little.

Took a hard look at the greens and pea planting from 2 weeks ago. We have had some rather cool and damp weather in that time, even some measurable snow. Yes, we have lettuce, spinach and beets breaking the surface. I was a little concerned about the peas, but a little digging quickly sent me to covering the sprouted seeds back up. Trust, good soil not overworked, amended with the right amount of organic matter will deliver. Trust.

The planting continued. Given that we were at the two week planting window, it was time to put more greens and peas into the bed. So...... another row of spinach, beets, and lettuce and 2 double rows of peas. I did take the time to make sure I finger-poked the peas in rather than digging out a trench.

Curious was the nature of my mind. Was the asparagus growing? The answer was yes and no. Yes, I did find some of the nice white shoots started. However, they were buried under the leaf mulch and still very cool. Need to leave the mulch on for at least another 2 weeks. Then we'll make a decision to take off or just let asparagus push its way through.

My wonderful wife reminded me that it was Friday, it was the end of the work week and it was starting to get dark. Given that appropriate prodding, I grilled up some thick cut pork loin chops, fresh asparagus (from the store), and a sweet onion. I am so glad that spring/summer/not winter is here. The time spent outside makes the food that much better.

It's now Saturday morning and it is raining. You know, cold to the bone rain. It is supposed to last until Sunday night. No snow, but a good rain. We do need it, but it could be a little warmer.

Next weekend is set for a quick dash to Minnesota to deliver some furniture and household stuff for our college kids. Its also an off week on the planting schedule. Weather for the next week is predicted to be in the mid-50's for the highs with lows in high 30's. Hopefully we will be able to start drying out.

Sorry there weren't any pictures. Time got short.

Stay dry.
Bill

Is spring really here?

Today marks what might be considered the first day of spring. I know, spring started a number of days ago. I lost that count somewhere in the middle of the last snow storm we had. The winter has been long and hard and one really needs to understand that we here in northeast Wisconsin have gone back to back with 100" snowfall winters. Too long.

Today was nice, mid 40's and lots of sunshine. I can't hold out the hope for tomorrow being the same. I just check the weather at Intellicast and already see that the rain has crossed through Madison and is coming towards us. Temperature is predicted to be 34 and a call for 1-3" of snow. Remember, spring is here.

Hidden in those 12 raised beds is garlic (2) and asparagus (4). All organic and all waiting for a little more warmth. I did take the time to fluff the leaf mulch on top that we put on last fall. The Simplicity lawn vac did a great job of shredding the leaves and speeding the decomposition. I got all beds turned over last fall with the exception of one, but the hard winter does a great job of mellowing the soil.

One if the great things about organic gardening is the desire to want to stick your hand into the soil, cold though it may be just to feel the connection once again. Seeing that the worms are already active is a reminder that something is going right.

When we started with this soil almost 12 years ago, it was clay. Good Wisconsin red clay. Now you don't have to break your back to double dig the beds (always try to get 2 per year. Probably are at a place where we can start slowing down on the organic matter, but will stay very heavy on the compost.

A quick peak at the chives. If you look close, you will see that the new green is already starting to poke their heads through. I was tempted to take some of the old growth off, but I got burned a couple of years ago with a late freeze. I know we will get a few more shots at the cold, so I will hold off.

It will be time to start making up seed tapes. The link gives a great formula for the glue and pictures of the final outcome. I have used a process like this in the past, but the flour/water glue will help a bunch.

I did not start any plants inside this year. Work plans had called for some travel that would have prevented the attention required. Mary's schedule is heavy with work, class, and teaching Nia making a better choice the commercial purchase of plants. I would heartily recommend the plant sale at UWGB on 16May 2008, a Saturday. Great tomatoes and peppers (and more). The heirlooms are well worth the time and effort. Funds go to support the Cofrin Center for Biodiversity. A good community effort and good people at the sale.

Remember, the good word is spring is here, well kind of.

Be good. We're making a committment to be a lot more active here with gardening updates and random musings.

Bill