Garden planting day at Roshara. Clear sky. No wind. Bright sunshine. Sandhill cranes calling. Bluebirds flying in and out of nearby bluebird house.
Early crops in. Eight rows of Kennebec potatoes, one row of Red Norland potatoes. Rows are thirty-five feet long. Any kind of year, lots of potatoes. Steve and Natasha did the heavy work. They also said they are still eating potatoes from last fall. Good keepers those Kennebecs.
Two thirty-five feet long rows of yellow onions. Everyone likes onions.
Shorter rows of lettuce, radishes and carrots. A long row of peas—can’t beat the taste of home-grown peas. The best. A short row of collards. Collards did well last year—and though they take a little patience to prepare, collards greens are a wonderful vegetable. Full of healthy stuff as well.
With early planting finished, we put up the fence to keep away the turkeys and deer—our biggest problems, plus the raccoons and ground hogs—less a problem. We’ve given up on the rabbits, hoping they have enough to eat in the nearby fields, but if worse comes to worse, we use a little “Liquid Fence,” a foul smelling concoction that keeps the bunnies away from the green beans—not planted yet, and the lettuce.
Tomato plants remain indoors, in a south-facing window. About 75 plants (seven different varieties). They are doing well and will go in the ground in late May, the same time we plant the vine crops, sweet corn, green beans and other such vegetables that like warmer temps.
THE OLD TIMER SAYS: We know it’s spring when the potatoes are planted.
UPCOMING EVENTS:
Tuesday, April 28, 11:00 a.m. Wisconsin Public Radio, Larry Meiller Show.
Tuesday, April 28, 6:30 p.m. Black River Falls Library, Sky Line Golf Course. Stories from the land
Sunday, May 3, 1:00 p.m. Readers’ Realm Bookstore, 147 E. Montello Street, Montello, WI Whispers and Shadows.
Tuesday, May 5, 10:30. Chilton Library, Chilton, WI Whispers and Shadows.
Tuesday, May 12, 10:00 a.m. Writers Forum, with Michael Perry and John Hildebrand. Eau Claire Regional Arts Center, 316 Eau Claire St., Eau Claire, WIO (Part of Wisconsin Historical Society History Tour).
Purchase Jerry’s DVDS and his Books from the Patterson Memorial Library in Wild Rose, Wisconsin (a fundraiser for them):
The library now has available signed copies of Jerry’s DVDs, Emmy Winner, A Farm Winter with Jerry Apps and Jerry Apps A Farm Story.
Also available are several of Jerry’s signed books including The Quiet Season (on which the DVD A Farm Winter is based), as well as Rural Wit and Wisdom and Old Farm, (which are related to the DVD Jerry Apps a Farm Story). Also available is Jerry’s new novel, The Great Sand Fracas of Ames County.
Contact the library for prices and special package deals.
Patterson Memorial Library
500 Division Street
1 comment:
Jerry,
No beets? They are among my favorite garden produce-and so easy to grow as well.
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