MOVING ON UP.
Apologies for being a bit absent lately. It has been a little stressful around here, to put it mildly. Yesterday, we had to go ahead and move into our new house, which is still very much in the midst of construction. We are trying to live amongst the contractors and workers, while also preparing for our upcoming CSA season! Crazy times. So, we are sorry, and we hope to be back soon with more regular posts and an update about our first drop-off dates!- Hannah.
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| Home sweet home? |
HEIRS.
As a punctuation to my recent musings on Antique Farming, Hannah and I planted some heirloom peanuts yesterday from Pearl River County, Mississippi. I'd received them from two of my seed-saving heroes, John Coykendall and Jeff Ross, the respective master gardener and farmer of the famous farm-to-table–to-bed resort, Blackberry Farm. But what could be more antique than heirloom seeds?––saved generation after generation by people trying to keep a special piece of diversity and culture alive. According to John, this particular peanut can be traced back to 1850, and we feel honored to be keeping it alive another year. Year 162.We have a great love for seed-saving and it will no doubt occupy much of the blog as the season goes on and as we plant and harvest our way through the year. Our shareholders will not only enjoy heirlooms of all shape and flavor––from colorful butter beans to wild tomatoes, popping sorghum to sweet potatoes––but by supporting us can also enjoy supporting this very important act of preservation. Hundreds of heirloom seeds go extinct every year, but Hannah and I, along with our lovely shareholders, can say with confidence that we're doing our part to carry on the tradition, keeping these antiques in use.- Jesse.
FREAKS OF NATURE.
I started planting our flower bed a few days ago. Jesse and I know very little about flowers, but are eager to grow and learn about them. When we were ordering seeds, there were only a few types of flowers I knew I wanted. Other than that, it was mostly an adventure in guessing ....picking what sounded nice or looked pretty. One of these mystery varieties was "calendula." When I opened the packet, I honestly almost screamed and dropped the seeds. Seriously, they are the MOST BIZARRE seeds I have ever seen. I called Jesse over and he peeked into the package and said, "Are they alive?" The seeds look like little tiny octopus tentacles or sea creatures or worms....so strange. This picture truly doesn't do them justice. It was terrifying. But I am obsessed with them. There is so much to learn and discover about plants and vegetables and farming and nature...and I hope to never stop being surprised by it.- Hannah.
HERBS.
We have quite the little herb garden started....sage, rosemary, thyme, orange tyhme, oregano, catnip, and lavender. Right now, we are keeping them in pots because we want to plant them near the house (which we should be moving into THIS WEEKEND!) Herbs are something we know little about but are very interested in....especially some more medicinal herbs.
Also, update on the PEST situation: We flung some peppermint oil-soaked cotton balls around the garden a few days ago. Apparently, mice hate this insanely strong smell. So far, so good! However, we are also contemplating getting a cat. Just in case.
- Hannah.
