Sweet Success

Several artichoke plants managed to make it through the winter, and they are now producing.  They love the warm protection and morning sunlight they get at the east-facing brick wall of our house.

Happy Gardening!

April Greenhouse Tour

The greenhouse is quite possibly the most dynamic place on the farm.  Not only does it nurture hundreds of plants that are constantly growing, dying, or sleeping, but I'm also rearranging it on a near-daily basis.  (See sidebar for a complete list of what's growing on in the greenhouse.)

View from the North side.  Far right: hops.  Center: tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, and lots of other stuff.  Far left:artichokes and lettuce.

Ben's mother gave us this old bathtub  last summer.  It has been very useful.  It's currently home to about one-hundred rooting blueberry whips.

 A view from the South side.

One the far right, beside the hops, there are two more beds of rooting blueberry whips.

This stand came with the greenhouse when Ben purchased it.  I love it.

 Another odd artichoke.  Its first set of true leaves just can't bear to separate from one another.

 The most handsome tomatoes I've ever started.

In the foreground we have eggplants (to the left) and peppers and poppies (to the right).  In the middle are my tomatoes, and the orange tree is poking up way in the back.

I mowed the lawn yesterday, and I'm paying for it today.  My allergies are killing me.  My whole head just hurts.  I am a prisoner of my sinuses.  Why do I continue to pay $30 for a bottle of Claritin for minimal results at best?  If I can gather up enough strength and fight through the fog, I hope to continue painting the hen house today.  If not, I'll spend the whole day worried about all the things that aren't getting accomplished.

Gorgeous, But Not What I'm Looking For

Ben started a few artichokes in the greenhouse last summer.  I think they were Imperial Star.  He had a lot on his plate at the time and had to bear the full responsibility of all farm projects until I arrived in June.  Needless to say, he didn't have quite enough time to nurture and coddle these finicky creatures just so.  Although we never got any chokes out of the process, beautiful blooms developed.  I would definitely grow these plants just for their blooms and foliage (and I've started so many that I'll probably plant some in the front yard for that very reason), but I do hope we get some eating out of them this year.

Artichoke bloom, 2010

We've started Imperial Star, Green Globe, and Purple of Romanga this year.  I hope that out of these three, I can find a variety that suites this region.  We have a nice-sized hoop house that we will put over them (and the eggplants) to keep the insects down (that was a major issue last year) and protect them during the winter.  I will also dig some up and store them in the basement over winter to see if that method works any better.  I have a lot of seedlings to work with, so this is a great opportunity for experimentation.  I found this article helpful, although I did not consult it before embarking on this season's artichoke attempt. 

Artichoke babies, 2011

It's raining today, tomorrow, and the next day.  I'll be limited to indoor and greenhouse activities.  Bummer.  I'd like to start some melons and winter squash in the greenhouse soon (very controversial, I know), but I don't know if I should wait until this gray weather passes.  I want to start them indoors instead of direct-seeding because I think I can make better use of garden space this way.  Also, I think they'll do just fine if I use the Pot Maker.  With the Pot Maker, I can either just put the whole thing in the ground (like a Jiffy Pot), or gently peel away the newspaper without disturbing the roots.  Cabin fever will probably push me to go ahead with it.  I can always plant more if they don't do so well.

By the way, EVERYTHING survived the snow!  I knew there was no reason for a full-on freak-out.

I Think We're Ready

Our babies will be here tomorrow or the next day.  I hope they come tomorrow.  I have their room all set up.  We used a raised bed that we hadn't ever quite filled with soil, and it happens to be just the right size.  I stapled cardboard all around the inside because it's made of treated wood, and we don't want the chicks to peck on that.  I guess it's really just a giant reinforced cardboard box.  I also put a layer of cardboard on the bottom, and it all sits atop a very thick tarp that's folded in half.  I think the wood floor will survive.  

We bought a fifty-pound bag of starter feed at Performance Livestock & Feed, which is right down the road from our house.  It's a locally owned, family-run operation. They sell high quality feed at really great prices.  The fifty pounds we bought from them was the same price as a five-pound bag from the Tractor Supply.  Lucky us.

Did you know that we have a third St. Bernard?

Today I said good bye to the stunted albino artichoke.  It was moving day for some of the artichoke seedlings.  I took all of the ones that had germinated out of the greenhouse and put them in basement under grow lights.  Space is very limited down there, and the little guy just didn't make the cut.

 I'm not really growing "Fantasy Mix" petunias.  I reuse old labels.

It's a good idea to keep them at about fifty degrees after germination for ten days.  This is supposed to encourage earlier budding, which is important if you want them to bear fruit the first year.  It's even more important to do this if you are growing them as annuals instead of perennials.  I'm hoping that we can figure out a way to overwinter our artichokes, but if it doesn't work out maybe we'll get some artichokes this season anyway. The basement stays between fifty and sixty degrees,  so that's where they'll live for a week and a half.

Ben's parents came over last weekend, and we celebrated their birthdays (they are one week apart).  They brought us these beautiful jonquils.  The smell is incredible.  Only one of ours has bloomed so far.  Flower envy.

 

Greenhouse Update (Oh, Joy!)

I have very exciting news!  The blueberry whips that I stuck in peat moss last week are alive and kicking! The leaf buds on almost every single little stick are swelling nicely after just six days, but they have a very long way to go.  Even after they leaf-out, the roots won't start to develop for another several weeks or a few months.  But I am very optimistic.  They seem to like it in the greenhouse, and the peat moss/sand mixture holds moisture well without getting too soggy.  I'll be pleased if we get just 50 successful plants out of the of 260 we started.

The hops are growing quickly.  The Nugget hops are huge compared to the others.  At this stage of growth, I can see differences between all the varieties that are not apparent during later parts of the season.  Right now, the Nuggets are the most beautiful shade of  purpley-beet red.

Nugget Hops

Willamette Hops

Cascade Hops

Lettuce:

Happy and smiling.  Just a few more weeks until the salad days begin.

Tomatoes:

Still small, but thriving.

Artichokes:

Low germination rate?  Whatchu talkin'bout?

Miles Giles guards the orange tree against peasant intruders.

Can you beat that view?

There are a ton of other things going on in the greenhouse.  See the side bar for a complete list.

Happy growing!

The Stunted Albino and Wild Boar

When growing artichokes from seed, a good amount of culling is involved.  Some seeds will produce stunted plants, while others produce albino plants.  Also, you'll want to transplant only the most vigorous of whatever remains.  The germination rate of artichoke seeds can be relatively low to begin with, so I planted about 40 in the greenhouse.  I started the first set on February 14 (gives a whole new meaning to heart day), and another set two weeks later.  The Valentine's Day artichokes have been popping up like crazy for the past few days.  They are looking healthy and happy, but the little guy on the left will have to go.

He is a stunted albino artichoke.  I'll keep him around for a bit out of pure curiousity, but he's gone as soon as room starts to run out.  So far, the rest of the plants look like the lady on the right.

In other news, we finally caught a glimpse of the elusive wild boar.  Mr. (or Ms.) Pig has been wallowing around the farm since winter began.  We had seen his tracks, his scats, and bits of hair, but we hadn't seen him in the flesh until two nights ago when we were on our way to the greenhouse to turn the heater on.  We're going to put up a wildlife camera this weekend to get a better idea of his habits.  Piggy, your days are numbered!

Work in Progress: New Kitchen Garden

I've been working on the backyard veggie garden since last autumn.  Now that all the beds are beautifully dug, I'm mulching between the rows with newspaper and straw to keep the weeds down, the moisture up, and the worms happy.  We did something similar in the asparagus field, but used cardboard instead of newspaper.  Newspaper is tricky.  It flies away with the slightest breeze.  So when working with newspaper as mulch, remember that water is your friend.  I spray the newspaper with a hose after laying every few sheets, and it does the trick until I can get the straw down.

 I love using this method.  I would normally till up the earth before putting down the mulch, but I think it's okay that I skipped this step because the grass hasn't started growing yet.

I was thrilled to see this morning that the Columbine I transplanted during the driest days of last summer has come back!  Also, the artichokes and basil in the greenhouse have germinated.  It has been a pretty good day.