February 18, 2013

What does a groundhog know? Obviously not much about the weather. The recent cold and blustery conditions will be good for our future crops as it will kill off many overwintering garden pests. But looking at historical weather data we cannot help being nostalgic for February 2012, when it was 60⁰ F on this date. But then again last summer we saw a bug explosion. Gardening physics, for every action there is an equal but opposite reaction.
 

Still, there is plenty to do as we wait for the ground to be dry enough to plant and the wind to stop blowing enough so that our homemade seed tapes won’t blow out of our hands. (Yes, that is our winter entertainment. Sitting around with seeds and a glue pot!).

 

All of our allium crops, 4 different types of onions and 2 types of leek have now sprouted inside under grow lights.  

Onions sprouting

 

We’ve put the plastic on the outside hoop houses and the fasteners have had a good workout in the windy conditions. All has held firm. We’ll leave the plastic on to warm up the soil and keep it dry enough to plant. By next week all should be ready to begin.

Warming up in the sun

 

We’ve started “chitting” our seed potatoes. Potatoes want to sprout, as anyone who has had an old potato sitting around the kitchen knows. But while many store bought potatoes have been treated with sprout inhibitors (another reason to get them fresh!) seed potatoes are meant to readily grow. They will sprout within days of exposure to light. So to give them a head start while waiting for the ground to dry enough so they won’t rot when planted, we lay them out on trays in the light and let nature have her way. Studies have shown this can decrease the time to harvest by 10-14 days. We have over 100 pounds of seed potatoes. That’s a lot of potatoes lounging around the house!

Grow, baby, grow!

 Although we are impatient to get outside and get our hands in the dirt again, we know that the foundation that we are laying now will contribute to the strength of the garden in the future. By practicing restraint, and not working the soil while it is too wet, we will prevent soil compaction and unworkable clods later in the season. We use the old farmer’s test: grab a handful of soil and squeeze it into a ball. Then drop it. If the ball shatters, the soil is dry enough to work. If it keeps together, it is too wet. Right now when we squeeze the ball water oozes out between our fingers. No need to even try the drop step! But all is not lost. As we listen to the wind whipping through the trees, we are snug inside, warm from the woodstove, and starting eggplants today!

 Until next time,

 Jeff and Sandra