Jun 212012
 

Normally the gardening is done by me.  From start to finish I plant, weed, water, harvest and can.  And frankly, I don’t mind it one bit.

Rick’s involvement is getting the land ready for me and then daily inspections.  Again, just fine in my book.

But this year, he’s taken a more hands-on approach with the addition of the plot out at the farm.

We make a weekend trip to inspect their growth, pull weeds, etc.  He’s even earned a big ‘ol blister from all the hard work he’s done.

I must say that I like the teamwork this year.  He’s going to be able to enjoy the popcorn later this fall…

and the evil squirrels birds will get to enjoy the sunflower seeds.

Me?  I get to enjoy shucking it all.

Yay me…

Jun 142012
 

At the beginning of the gardening season, Rick surprised me with a little gift

When I saw it I thought it was the coolest contraption!

It does this wonderful whirligig action that spins it in different directions.

It’s up much higher than the typical sprinklers that I’ve used, so it reaches all but the very corners of the garden.

And everybody knows that if you want it to rain, just water the garden.

Or wash your car.

In this case, my garden needed it more.

Jun 052012
 

I had it all planned:  after we got done voting, I would come home and feed Calie and head to the farm for some heavy duty weeding.

It was beautiful out.  Sunny skies, a slight breeze and temps in the mid-70s.

And then I heard the thunder.

Crap

Off to the computer to see what the radar had to say about the situation.  Meh, it didn’t look bad… a small thundercloud moving our way.  It will be past us in 15 minutes, you say?  Cool beans… I’m outta here!

Yep, I can see that blue glimmer of hope in the sky.  A few raindrops ain’t gonna be enough to muss things up to where it will be a mud pit.

OK, it’s just down this road.  I can’t wait to say hi to the ducks today.  I wonder if they missed me.

And as I pull into the driveway my heart sinks.

The gate is locked.  WTF???  How could they do this to me?  Didn’t they know that I had been planning this for the last 24 hours?  My whole existence was counting on getting down and dirty with those nasty weeds that were threatening to choke out the beautiful rays of sunshine my plants needed!

I had my gloves, trowels, rakes and bucket all nestled in the back of the car, ready to go to work.

Someone’s got some ‘splainin’ to do…

 

Jun 042012
 

Since I was doing my normal Monday running around, I decided to stop by the farm and check out the two crops that I planted a couple weeks ago.

The extension department at the college has a wonderful program for our community.  They let you have a plot of land (free), till it up for you (free) and let you plant to your heart’s content!

They also provide a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) that can either be paid for monetarily or you can invest for sweat equity working on the farm.  Either way, it’s a “win-win” situation!

Last Fall, Todd (the manager of the farm) expanded the operation to include eggs.  What started out as just a few chicks has grown into a couple dozen characters, each with their own personality.

It’s brings back lots of memories of my Grandma’s farm when I hear those roosters crowing!

This guy appears to be in charge because He Doesn’t Shut Up.

The biggest kick I get out of that whole brood are the ducks that mingle amongst the chickens.  This pair always seems inseparable.  And what the hell does he have in his mouth??

Hysterical!!

And apparently the chickens don’t mind having them around.  It’s one big happy family!

Besides all the vegetables that are grown for the CSA, the herbs take center stage.  Signs are displayed showing the name in English with it’s Latin counterpart…

as well as English and Ojibwa (it is a Tribal College farm, after all).

I’m always pulled towards this patch of Fringed Sage.  I love running my hands through it and smelling that wonderful aroma!

Aaahhhhhhhhhh…

So after I came back down to earth, I remembered the real reason for my visit:

Yeah, doesn’t look like much does it?

But amongst all those weeds (which I really need to work on) are popcorn

and sunflowers.  I’d say that 95% of my seeds came up, which means that come fall I could have a buttload of harvesting to do.  But we still have a long 3 months to get through that involve extreme heat/storms/wind that could wipe everything out in a nanosecond.

Such is the life of a gardener.