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| Napkin roll from the batch I just finished. |
The winter rains have finally come to Northern California and with them I am taking the opportunity to bask in the glory of indoor projects. I am finishing sewing projects, seeding flats and potting up perennials in the greenhouse, studying seed catalogs, scheming on summer marketing plans, and making lots of beef stew.
Meanwhile, Wil has been outside digging holes and planting the Honeycrisp apple trees we just acquired, digging a trench for a another stub-up in the orchard, filling cups of soil to start summer squash (yellow crookneck, black beauty zucchini, and white scallop), and scheming on setting up a major compost and worm operation.
Stan finished his greenhouse, and one windy afternoon week before last, the three of us pulled the glazing on and stapled it down. We're hoping to get some early squash out of it. Stan and Wil also fenced a new area for our gang of American Guinea Hogs, and really I should be pulling on my boots right now to step outside and help shuffle pigs over there. We're down to one sow, one bred gilt (for sale), a boar (for sale maybe to a couple of nice ladies who want to raise Guinea Hogs? He's too territorial with menfolk), and five six month old gilts (also for sale). We're down-sizing because there are more piglets on the way, and pretty soon all of our attention will need to be in the garden.
I've been rototilling in the areas where pig pens have been in the last three months, and throwing out some flower and herb seed afterwards. What I really need to do is get a five pound bag of clover, or some other dryland forage mix, but for now I just rummage through the seed cabinet and find stuff we have more of than we'll ever use and scatter it out there. Birds willing, I'll be pleasantly surprised at what comes up in those areas.
I'm really enjoying my birds too. They're getting to be real chickens with all their feathers, but I'm still bringing them in at night in order control their light and make them think the daylight hours are decreasing, instead of increasing. I don't want them to start laying yet and I'd be up all night worrying about them if I left them out while the weather is so unsettled.
We're still planning on bringing back the veggie subscription in May. We'd like to provide 20-25 people with weekly produce boxes this season, so if you know of anyone that might want to join, please pass on our email address. If you want to join, please let us know as soon as possible so that we can hold a place for you. I handmade a sheet of flyers that I'll photocopy and put up at the co-op and other appropriate venues around town, so if you want one to put up at your work, or gym, or where ever else, let me know.
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| Stan's Greenhouse: done! Will plant it soon. |
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| The one with the red was formerly Igor, but has shaped up to be a fine Frida. |
