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It's been a scorcher, and will be warm for awhile. The crisp sweet greens don't like it very much, but the flowers do! I try to find ways to keep everyone, including me, hydrated and cool. This mainly means some shade, some water, and maybe a few tasty treats. It is a big harvest of spinach, salad mix, and head lettuce this week (with the usual microgreens), so make a quick stop into the market to grab them up before retreating to your own shady hideaway! The eggs are a little minimal as the hens focus on keeping their bodies cool instead of making their daily golden yolked goodness. If you missed the first farm dinner, don't despair as there are two more this season, each with their own special menu and scenery as we move from summer through fall.  The very hot weather has meant early mornings and inside afternoons, which isn't much different than usual except that keeping to that schedule is extra important  As long as I can keep them hydrated, the flowers love the heat! This might be a good Zinnia year for me. A crop I have almost given up on since it is usually just to dang chilly in my little valley. The Lupines have gone to seed (which I am saving of course!) but that means it's time for the Foxglove to shine!  All this heat means a bumper crop of Spinach, Lettuce, and Salad Mix as they all get pushed to harvest time by the heat. It also means the last Spinach for a while until it cools down so it won't bolt before growing enough!  Trying to keep the younger lettuces cool so they don't loose their head and bolt! So I built them a little cabana from their frost cloth and the awesome rectangular Hoop Loops. Finish with a light sprinkle of cool well water and they get their own shady cool spot to ride out the heat so they don't get bitter at the world  The precious Ranunculus also got their own shade treatment tall enough to not squash their growing blooms! So far so good as an ever-present min/max thermometer in there with them shows it staying below 90F in that deep dark shade bounded by tall AF weeds on their south flank, behind from this angle (yep, even the weeds are good sometimes!)  The 1st Farm to Table Dinner was a great time as we all sought out the shade, kept the cool water flowing, and enjoyed the delicious food prepared by Mandy and her awesome crew at the Gracious Table! There are two more this season so you still have a chance to experience a wonderful seasonal meal, meet the happy Hens and Hella cat, and see where all those beautiful blooms and veggies are grown!!!  The Hens stayed healthy, happy, and hydrated with some cool, crisp, juicy, and sweet watermelon treats every afternoon! If you happened to see a person pushing a Costco shopping cart full of them this last weekend, that was me! It's the best way I've found over the 13 years I've had chicken friends to keep them more comfortable when the heat gets turned up!!  The pergola is taking shape! and is starting to frame the landscape. It will be a great place for daily lunches, special farm dinners, and maybe some late night fire pit and star gazing!  Sweet William is such a favorite of mine! It's the perfect unassuming flower that delights every time I get to behold them. The fragrance, the colors, the dome of petals, and a rigid stem that doesn't bend or snap easily which makes bouquets a cinch with it! It may be the perfect bloom!  You gotta be careful when pulling the weed-killing tarps around here as they may have some special slinky farm friends taking shelter under them. This was one of 5 under just one tarp!  You can'y fence this crazy cat in! Even though she can crawl underneath many spots, she waits by the 'door' and meows to be let out  As the relief of evening comes, I find myself wandering through the rows, field, and forest seeking out those little moments of surprise, like a beautiful grass with it's gloriously golden 'flowers', a special moth, or a tiny wildflower hugging the shady ground. What are the special little moments of surprise you look forward too? What's available this week?
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AuthorI'm Farmer Megan with a life full of cackles, clucks, quacks, weeds, crazy kitten, and one tiny, senior, blind dog. Archives
April 2023
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