Sunday May 3, 2020 7:51 pm
Hi Friends! Welcome to May 2020! Typing to you from the back porch! Finally able to enjoy the porch with nice weather. Gotta say the last week of April was horrible. Rain almost every day, topped by Thursday with 2 inches here on the farm. Thankfully no one floated away. Basement got a little wet, but to be expected.
The big news on the farm to report is plastic back on the high tunnel. We had a small work crew and got the tunnel covered. The tunnel hasn't seen a plastic roof since our tornado last April. A little bit of soil work out there and we'll be ready to plant. And that work will be happening early this week as the tomatoes are big and ready to move out of the seed house. A nice variety of cherries, slicers and paste. Scallions will probably also go in this week. Last Wednesday, right before the deluge, I was able to seed green beans and red potatoes. Knowing we were getting rainfall, pushed me to get those into the ground. Peas up on the top hill look real good. The brassica seedlings look strong in the seed tunnel, thinking they will go out in two weeks.
On the animal side of things, the hens are doing well. I'll curse myself and say no fox attacks in over a week. The latest predator had four wheels. Tough to run from those, usually the running is what does henny hen in. We have 50 more hens arriving on farm this Tuesday afternoon. This year I'll just put them in the coop with the older 30 hens and let them have at it. No time to build a new coop. Hoping the older girls can teach the young ones how to behave. The broiler peeps are growing up. One more week in the brooder, then out on grass for the final 4 weeks or so. They'll be out in one of our vegetable production plots and help to fertilize the soil for any upcoming plantings. Nice how that works. Last year we had the broilers out in plot five for the season. Plot 5 is where I will plant the scallions this year and when we were preparing the planting beds we noticed worms in the soil. Another great sign. Regeneration at it's best. Plot 5 took the season off last year, with cover crop and broilers covering the soil. So, we should reap the rewards this season with nice crops out of that plot!
Regeneration leads to Farmer Don and Joan's health. Gotta say we are doing well. More good days than bad. And Joan's bad days are not leading to the hospital! For me I'm through 2 weeks of a 6 week radiation and chemotherapy partnership. Didn't know you could partner with Chemo and Radi did you? Well let me tell you folks you can, I am and all a part of my regeneration. Four more weeks no big deal. Hey, I get to listen to Jimmy Buffet while they toast my throat. Doctors have me set up for success. And, hold your breath, here we go, " Food is medicine and the farm is the Farmacy." But Farmer Don, you said the partnership was with the high heat and drugs. Well as many of you know we grow vegetables here, raise pastured pork, have free range eggs, along with pastured poultry, fed organic grains, making the diet from the Farmacy really good. And 2020 CSA members, as well as our buying club friends will soon be sharing the harvest as well. I meant sharing the medicine from the Farmacy! The big medicine right now are the microgreens. Wow, just tiny little guys packed with nutrients. We'll do our best to keep the clam shells of micros going all season so everyone can enjoy.
Time to shower and get dinner going. Open face hot beef sandwiches. Forks Farm minute steaks. Yum. Before signing off gotta thanks many folks on so many levels. Number one all the members who have signed up so far. Your support allows us to run the Farmacy. And share the medicine! Number two, cards and emails offering moral support as we continue to heal. Many of you have reached out and it means alot to Joan and I . For that I thank you! Finally the physical help around the farm. From Teri in the seed house, to Jason doing bed work and help on the high tunnel ,and my Amish friend John, with his father Levi, and two of their sons putting the plastic on and growing out the tomatoes we will plant this week, I say thank you!
So, time to continue the regeneration process. To each and everyone of you, Joan and I say a very thoughtful thank you, and wish you all good health and well being. Be safe out there.
Farmer Don
No comments:
Post a Comment