NEWS FROM THE FARM |
June 18, 2009
June is hit or miss from year to year. The last couple of years it seems that the spring rains arrived in June. This year is no exception. Some moisture loving veggies such as the brassicas (broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower) are thriving with this moisture tucked in between intermittent sunny warm days. Others, such as the basil, eggplant and tomatoes have yet to really get going with a flourish. The weeds, such as gallansoga and lamb's quarter, are loving this weather - it's a challenge to keep up.
I've been harvesting cutting greens, arugula and mustard mix this last week, and coming soon will be baby fennel, baby carrots, scallions, garlic scapes and head lettuce.
The only pests that have arrived thus far are the flea beetle and the rose chafer. Flea beetle is a ground hopper, small as a poppyseed and very destructive. They love the early mustard greens and are keen on spinach, too. My first planting of spinach, that went in the ground in April, didn't fare so well: primarily it was the cool wet weather but the flea beetle certainly didn't help. The mustard mix I've been harvesting has been attacked, too. I covered both the arugula and mustard with row cover, but it wasn't a tight seal as the flea beetle got underneath and nibbled away at the greens. I was still able to market the mustard to a chef planning on braising the greens, but I wasn't 100% thrilled with the product.
All first round crops are in: onions, carrots, beets, peppers, eggplant, beans, turnips, lettuces, winter and summer squash, favas, fennel, spinach, brassicas, etc. Now the succession planting is in full swing: lettuces sown every two weeks, brassicas every three, more beets going in, time to plant storage carrots and fall potatoes, and on and on.
I have a neighbor who is giving me the opportunity to come to his house and dig some blackberries next week. I'm thrilled to have found a source of field grown plants that are thriving in this area. Oftentimes blackberries don't do well in Maine, so I'm holding out hope that I'll have a healthy patch in a few short years. The rasperries are currently blooming, much to the delight of the pollinators, and should be setting fruit very soon.
The bees are very busy on sunny days, I've even seen them out in the rain - very unusual for the honey bee. I have white clover planted in paths in the garden - it's a delight to be surrounded by the buzzing of honey bees while I work. Kevin and I opened the hives last weekend to see if they were ready for a honey super. Neither hive had quite drawn out the comb in the upper deep (brood chamber) so we closed them back up and will revist this weekend. It's swarm season and many beekeepers have been seeing swarms this year. While we don't like to distrurb the bees too much on our inspections, we'll check the frames for swarm cells and supercedure cells and will remove them in the hopes that we can prevent a swarm.
The broilers are eating machines and the chicken tractor is working its way over to the fallow section of the garden. They should be over there in just a day or so. I sowed oats back in early May - the broilers will move through the oats then I'll till it all in and sow buckwheat which will get scythed down in a short time. Finally I'll sow oats again for a winter cover crop. That little plot of garden will have improved tilth and be rich in nutrients for next year and ready to produce high yields of delicious veggies.
| August, 2009 | |
| July, 2009 | |
| June, 2009 | |
| May, 2009 | |
| April, 2009 | |