There’s nothing we can do about the weather.

Except talk about it continuously.

And perhaps complain about it.

But there is no denying that the weather has been unkind to us this spring. Week after week of showers & rain, strong winds and cold temperatures – not ideal farming conditions!

It affects us in a couple of ways …

It has been a challenge to prepare the land and get our first crops planted. Usually we work the fields, then let them sit a few days so the weeds & cover crop can dry up. Then we repeat as necessary. We prefer to turn the soil as little as possible since it can damage all the living things underground. However this spring we have had to till the ground many more times since the frequent rains never let the cover crop dry up & die – it just keeps growing. As a result the first few vegetable plantings were made in less then ideal soil conditions so weeds are already an issue. And cultivating wet fields damages the soil structure and can leave us with lumps & clumps that last all season.

Vegetables that we managed to get planted earlier have not flourished. Both the soil temperature and the air temperature have been too cold for good growth. Some transplanted crops never took hold and put down roots and some seeds rotted before they could germinate. Too much precipitation & not enough sunshine!

Now the weather is finally (and very slowly) improving. This past weekend was glorious! Seeding, planting, & transplanting are all happening with a frenzy as we try to make up for lost time. We cannot catch up of course and the first vegetables will be harvested later than planned. (A CSA update will be emailed to our members next week.)

But there’s nothing we can do about the weather!

Vegetables are doing great in our new tunnel.

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Around the farm …

Vegetable seedlings hardening off on trailers (so we can whisk them into the barn in the event of bad weather). Some are for planting and some are for selling at the road.

Pawpaw trees in blossom now.