Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Busy as a bee.....

Yet again, it holds true: if you're not working hard, you're hardly working. Here's some farm updates, rapid fire style:

1. The farm got bees! No really, ZMH is now home to three hives of lovely honey bees. I just couldn't say no to extra pollination of the squash, cucumbers, tomatoes, eggplant, strawberries, watermelons, cantaloupe, peppers, green chili, and eeeeeverything else that needs pollination. They're off to a great start and already collecting pollen from nearby trees and flowers. I highly recommend skimming the Wikipedia article about bees, it's fascinating beyond belief.

Two hives containing established hives were placed first.

A third hive was added later to ensure they have enough space.

2. Nine veggies have sprouted in the field, including kale, salad mix, carrots, beets, turnips, and more. For now, they live under toasty white fabric (Remay), which protects against wind and frost. 
Dark red beets are 50 days away!

Remay is like a toasty blanket to keep the tiny plants warm.

3. Also living under toasty Remay are 200 strawberry plants! They arrived in the mail via FedEx Express, spent the night in the fridge, and were planted the next day. They arrive almost totally dormant with some roots, but are quick to grow leaves and berries once planted.

The strawberries were planted in perpendicular rows
so I could make use of the shade on hot summer days.


4. The greenhouse is about to explode with seedlings. I'm not sure I could cram more seed trays in there if I tried. Chard, kale, and broccoli are headed out to the field this week. New to the greenhouse includes tons of herbs,  lettuce, and peppers.

A small pac choi forest.

Onions galore!

5. The garlic is loving the spring sun. It'll be ready to harvest as green garlic in just a few weeks. Believe it or not, it hasn't needed water once since November. Talk about a super crop.

8000 (más o meno) garlic plants growing strong.

6. I can hear about 130 hungry, squawking chickens outside. Otherwise known as my exit cue.

Sharing the very demanding duty of sitting on eggs.


I hope everyone has excellent plans for the weekend... 83 degrees this Saturday! Don't forget the sunscreen. :)

Until next time, happy farming!

-Christina

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