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Or more like Butterflies! The warmth from the sun is waking everything up! Spring bed prep is earnestly underway, and the urge/anxiety to get seeds and transplants into the ground is strong, but my bones tell me to wait and be more patient. My low temps are still low enough that it could mean disaster, even with frost fabric and low tunnels. It has been a 'mild' winter only in precipitation, not in temps and that only means that the soil surface still freezes every night and takes until noon every day to thaw. This means I get time in the mornings to keep sowing more seed flats for when I can plant, prep bags and labels for market season, and plan for all the fun extras I want to dive into this year (like Farm Tours!) before I get to go outside and enjoy the warmth of the sun myself while cleaning beds of the debris I left on them in the fall as an insulator from those very same cold (and snowless) winter nights.  Every warm day brings out the beautiful butterflies, the world feels so much more alive with their little wings fluttering about.  The first of the Daffodils have begun poking up through the frosty morning soil. The first spring prep task is to rake off the old debris from last year before everything gets too big, so it doesn't get damaged while I make way for the fresh growth!  The Tulips are greeting the sunshine and air as well! Last fall was the first year they got planted into their protective wire-lined trenches so fingers crossed they survive the next winter from the voles and gophers!  The perennial Lupines are also beginning to bud and grow out, so the debris removal was a chance to get excited for more and more blooms and seeds! These are the bushes I grew from seed and saved this years Lupine Seeds from and it's a great time to get them planted. They, obviously, don't mind the frost (it still is getting down to 20F here) and it gives them a head start on everything else. Since they are perennials, don't expect too many flowers the first year, but each year the bush comes in bigger and bigger with more and more blooms!  The Dome is almost ready for those special Tomatoes that have been pampered inside under their lights, but first I had to make room by returning some of the pots, stands, and worktables to the hardening off area so that there is more room inside.  One of the key steps, getting the propane heater online, is done! A few nights of testing out which setting is needed depending upon the outside temp so that I have a steady temp of at least 50F inside are paramount before I entrust the care of those growing 'mater plants to the Dragon Dome and the Fire Breather! That involves going out a few times every night to check how it is faring, and so far it's very good and is easily keeping it 55F inside on some of the lower settings even when it is 20F outside!  With a warm and fairly calm day, it was time to start hardening off those baby plants to the strong sun, dry breezes, and also the cooler temps they have been shielded from. Hella was the designated inspector and efficiency supervisor!  The hens also get to enjoy the sunshine as I whittle away at the different tasks that need to be done before mobilizing them on the pasture. Next steps are to remove the front 'safety/snow' panels and pull out those many t-posts that held their runs down through all the wind storms! In the meantime, they don't mind mingling!  And when you wanna get away from the crowds to find your own special treats, it's best to employ the buddy system!  Sometimes the lure of a freshly cleared patch of cool, damp soil amid the warm sunshine is just too good to pass up, even if it means risking getting raked up with all the debris! What's available this week?
Where to find it all?
I'll be at Libby this Friday from 12-1230pm! I'll be at Troy this Friday from 1-130pm!
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A great weekend hike , a bit of (maybe last?) snow, strong winds, and a deep freeze. It's spring in Montana as usual. The spring chores continue as the farm begins to shed the mantle of winter and look forward to spring and summer planting! The hens enjoy the warm days even is the nights are still a bit chill. And the seeds saved from last year are finally separated and packed up! Most are available in the online store with a few more to come next week  Special snack time means a feeding frenzy!  It's time to start the many-stepped process of 'unwinterizing' the hen huts and get them moving on that fast greening up pasture. The first big step is to remove the tie downs and the plastic covering their runs.  Another big step is to remove all of the electrics (extension cords, cord covers, heated water bowls, switches, and more). The bowls will get a good scrub down before being stowed away until next winter!  Who knew we had such close neighbors?!  The Guineas grew up with the 3 hens in the red hut and like to visit whenever they get a chance. They had to move out on their own 2 years ago when it got too cramped for their wildness, for they are tame but not domesticated.  Monday morning brought an inch of fresh snow for the hens and ducks to enjoy without their covered runs! The ducks definitely don't mind a little snow and even the hens tolerated it as long as I scraped enough aside so they could see that there was for sure ground not too far beneath it  On Saturday, I hosted an Outsiety (www.outsiety.com) event for women to hike along the Kootenai on Bighorn Sheep Trail. It was a wonderful day with a special side trip up to see a special waterfall. There are other Outsiety events all year long and I'll probably host a few more this summer and in winter! All events are free!  A deep freeze with a low of 14F hit Tuesday morning. All the seedlings in the greenhouse were double (and even tripled covered) in frost cloth, the emergency electric heater was on (it can't heat the whole thing, but can take the edge off). A pre-dawn check in let me know that all was ok and it got down to 28F in the greenhouse and 32F under the cloths. What's available this week?
Where to find it all?
I'll be at Libby this Friday from 12-1230pm! I'll be at Troy this Friday from 1-130pm! The snowpack is gone while the chill isn't but the grass begins to grow as the deer return to the field. The germination are in the cabin attic is always full, while more and more flats move out to the greenhouse to spend warm days in the sun and cool nights under frost fabric inside the dome. And now the prep work for spring really begins. The winter electrification of the hen huts will be removed. The old plant material from last years' crops will be cleared from the rows. All while tending to the tender and changing needs of the baby plants that fill the many seed flats. This is the season of anxiety and excitement when the crush of the season hasn't hit full speed so the mind can still dwell on the possibilities and potentials. My own mind and heart hears the call of spring as my hopes and fears for the coming season begin their own germination, for the land is calling and it awaits my reply.  Freedom!!! Let's boogie! The old tomato vines are starting to get cleared! It's a fresh start for the Dragon Dome, with more to go!  It was just in the knick of time too, as more seedlings had to graduate to the dome to make space for many more flats to germinate in the warm, cozy cabin attic. The pipes exist to help get water to the bottom of the raised beds but also help to hover the frost cloth above the tender baby plants!  Rub a dub dub, two hens in a tub!  The more the hens are outside, the more comfortable they are exploring all the little places, like under the Hawthorne/Chokecherry bramble behind the barn. When the sun is shining but the air is still crisp, Hella's favorite space is in the greenhouse where it's toasty and warm!  The snowpack is gone and the land is calling! Time to start cleaning the beds, moving tarps, and getting ready to say hello to all the friends we've missed during the winter, like the earthworms, tiny grubs, ants, ladybugs, and all their soil-dwelling relatives! What's available this week?
Where to find it all?
I'll be at Libby this Friday from 12-1230pm! I'll be at Troy this Friday from 1-130pm! My days are pretty predictable right now. Fill seed flats, seed seed flats, water seed flats, place seed flats under lights on the side of the warm attic. As seeds germinate, remove the humidity dome, place seed flats under lights on shelves (so a certain curious cat doesn't get too curious). When all that space is full (at about 40 flats) move enough seed flats into the greenhouse to make room under those lights for more seed flats. Every morning I wake up the chickens and uncover the plants in the greenhouse. Every night I put the chickens to sleep and tuck in the plants. Seed flats. Seed flats. Seed flats. Just as the sowing begins to wane, the planting will begin. Then I will have another, empty pile of seed flats that get cleaned, dried, and stored until the next round. Even though I keep sowing through most of the year to keep a steady supply of veg and blooms, the bulk of the seed flats still happen in the spring. A rush and collision of time, temperature, and sunlight to grow before the cool of winter comes again.  Even the Guineas got out to enjoy the sun, find some bugs, and generally harass the rest of the birds  Seeding more flats each week means that the farthest along ones get the boot to the greenhouse (except the tomatoes, they get pampered for a few more weeks before I feel good moving them out only to be pampered in the greenhouse too!) I better work on clearing those old tomato vines before it's too hard to move around all the seed flats!  Luckily, I had built special window shelves for the orchids in the winter so that I could free up their wooden shelves to use as temporary flat holders in the greenhouse and all around the farm. You wouldn't believe the time I spend moving shelves around depending upon the needs of the season!  It's fluff butt time! Those bugs better watch out! The warmth of the sun and some rare dry dirt in spring means it's bath time for everyone!  Doing chores while the hens are out means I am never left alone as the groupies hope for some treats to fall from my arms  The Golden Beets are looking golden and are getting a head start in some seed flats.  Hella still likes to pop up like a little spring vole to remind me to get the computer work done so I can come outside! What's available this week?
Where to find it all? I'll be at Libby this Friday from 12-1230pm! I'll be at Troy this Friday from 1-130pm! Recipes for Food Eaters
Seeding many flats, prepping the greenhouse, filling the greenhouse, and more outside work (even if it's not soil work, that's still well frozen) are some of the spring tasks that are keeping me busy! With the warming temps and the melting ice pack the hens got to play in the mud, even as I try to avoid it! There'll be the usual microgreens and eggs available this week! It'll be the last of the pea shoots for a week or two as I await my seed order to arrive (it's gotta come from Canada!) Yard sale items are still available too! Enjoy the warm sunny weather while it's here and remember that winter may still have a last reminder to send us, so don't start putting those plants out yet!  With the snow clearing into mud, I caved into their cute little pleading faces and let the horde of hens free into that muddy, wet world.  The plants also got to get 'out' into the greenhouse. The cabin space is full with newly planted seed flats so the biggest and most cold-hardy seedlings graduate to the, for now, unheated greenhouse.  They get to enjoy the warm spring sunshine, and a greenhouse that can get 40F degrees warmer than outside when that full sun shines down on it. BUT, at night the well below freezing temps creep in so that crumpled bundle of frost fabric is tripled covered over the entire shelf unit to keep them cozy until that sun shines again the next morning!  It is a thing so ordinary and commonplace in the world, but watching those seeds that I hug into the ground germinate always makes me let out a little child-like squeal of joy and feel a rush of excitement, this may be what other people feel when they see human babies, but not me, I feel it when I see plant babies!!! □□  This is what a duck nest looks like when you didn't realize she was laying for awhile. LOL there was a full baker's dozen, but since they were sitting there for quite a while they went into the compost and I added her space to my regular egg check! More deliveries arrived with CFAC Grant-funded goodies! This time a pile of landscape fabric rolls and a huge heap of stuff from Johnny's including fancy insect netting, a floral stem cutter, and a stack of special wire hoops to hold up that insect netting and my own frost fabric! A few more deliveries are on the way and they keep getting bigger!!!  When the sun came out, the hens definitely took the opportunity to enjoy the radiant heat from the gravel and the direct heat from that beautiful sunshine! My first day in the field was spent organizing the new shed since I just tossed most things in last fall. The first step was to toss it all outside again! It felt so good to get that precious (and so very very delicate) frost fabric daisy-chained and stored up where the rodents can't get to it!  While tidying the shed, I had a few helpers come in to see what might have spent the winter hiding under the pile of stuff! The shed looks so much bigger when you toss most of it's content out into the field and pretty soon it will be much emptier since most of those tools and equipment will be put to work reducing weeds, protecting from frost, and generally making it possible for me to farm in this cold, windy valley! It's not just stuff, it's important stuff!!!  If I fits, I sits. Just don't lock me in!  This farmer predicts that frost fabric will be a huge fashion trend this spring, and next spring, and the spring after that, and, well, every spring, summer, and fall! It's a classic that never goes out of style! What's available this week?
Where to find it all? I'll be at Libby this Friday from 12-1230pm! I'll be at Troy this Friday from 1-130pm! Recipes for Food Eaters
Spring comes when it will, like it does every year. No amount of time I spent wishing it was now will work, besides there is so much more to get done! Even if it arrived tomorrow, I wouldn't be ready. So I wait, knowing that I planned for it to arrive per it's usual plans. Seed sowing calendars were poured over in January so I wouldn't have to fret now. But I still have to fight the urge to plant all the seeds! Luckily, I can fend off a little of that anxious excitement with sowing and enjoying the greenness of the microgreens. I am out of the sunflower shoots for awhile, and soon the peas, but seeds are on order and will hopefully be here soon! Sometimes the anticipation for spring can almost be better than the actual season since spring for me means go, go, go!!!!  Hella and I head to the barn, then back to the house, then back to the barn! It's time to get some work done while the sun shines  Fresh snow makes for quiet mornings...until the guineas get up!  A north-facing porch under a sun-warmed metal roof and cold nights makes for some of the most interesting icicles. These speak to the constancy of the force of gravity but the variability in our relation to it. Poetry becomes science becomes poetry.  The farm and I were awarded a Field Tested Grant From CFAC in Missoula for a host of farm tools to help make me a lean, mean plant growing machine! And the first purchase has arrived! A floral tool belt to hold snip, pruners, scissors, phone, pens, notepad, and whatever else I need while I plant, tend, or harvest. It's handmade by a small leather-working company in the US and I hope it will help stop me dropping my snips in the field all day!  Since it seems to be slush season for awhile (a season Hella hates!) The magical delivery people dropped off a bevy of new cat toys (like these swimming fishes!!!), so I can get some work done without a tiny paw tapping my leg to go out, or come back in, or go out, or... What's available this week?
Where to find it all?
I'll be at Libby this Friday from 12-1230pm! I'll be at Troy this Friday from 1-130pm! |
AuthorI'm Farmer Megan with a life full of cackles, clucks, quacks, weeds, crazy kitten, and one tiny, senior, blind dog. Archives
March 2021
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