So here it is January 10th. Where did the time go?? I intended to put together a holiday blog, along with a photo of the winter time hoop house so that you could see how things are progressing, but the time got away from me. I'd even penned a Holiday poem to go with the photos. Bummer! So I think I will amend the poem and post it anyway, as a winter tribute!!
Twas the week after New Years and all through the hoop house,
not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse (thank goodness).
All the vegetables were all nestled under their row covers, snug in their beds,
while thoughts of springtime breezes danced in their heads . . . . . .
As you can see the produce is all nestled under their row covers . . . . by providing this protection for the plants it allows the temperature under the row cover to increase by about two growing zones. The row covers are similar to an interfacing type of fabric (for all you seamstresses out there), that same density and weight. This extra layer help keep the plants a little warmer at night. We keep the row covers on the rows 24/7 now. The row covers are thin enough that they allow light to penetrate. Here take a peek at the produce under the covers . . . . . not bad, huh?!?
With the temperatures as cold as they have been our harvesting hours have been cut down. You don't want to be cutting greens when they are frozen, and believe me they do freeze. So we have to wait until mid-day to cut any orders. We have few things that didn't handle the extreme cold like we've had. The salad bowl lettuces, and the romaines are pretty much done. Although I'm still using romaine for my sandwiches. The asian greens are doing great, as are the carrots, turnips, rutebagas, and beets. How are the spinach and swiss chard you might ask?? OUTSTANDING!!!! The spinach is so sweet tasting. And the swiss chard has surprised me the most, it's got a nice subdued flavor now, no bite to it like you might have in the spring/summer. It is sweet, and sometimes hard to tell from the spinach.
Today,Duane was out in the hoop house harvesting, the temperatures outside are in the 20's and he said it was 53 in the large hoophouse. That's in the early afternoon. He had his jacket off and his sleeves pushed up. Wow!!! He did say that temp didn't last long, and by the time he headed back to the house it was in the 40's in there. We are noticing, as I'm sure you are too, the days are longer and the warmth of the sun is more apparent. Yesterday afternoon, on the back deck it felt like spring to me. Remember, I'm adjusting to Michigan from Minnesota, so we don't see too many upper 20's, low 30's in January. Yesterday reminded me of March in Minnesota at the ski hill. Ah, memories!!!
We're still processing a lot of produce orders, so feel free to give us a call and place your order. We'll let you know if what you want is available. Don't forget we also have farm fresh eggs and raw honey available.
Our thoughts are already turning towards spring and what we'll plant early this year. One item on the "early" schedule snap peas. We're also trying to decide what to plant where. This will be the first summer with the large hoop house, so we need to determine what will grow in there, the best. It's funny, we thought we'd have January to rest and relax, and ponder the spring/summer growing season. Yet, business has been brisk, keeping us hopping, and this we are thankful for!
