Perennials

Jill and I just went and saw a talk by Wes Jackson of the Land Institute. Very interesting -- he talked a lot about how when we think of cool local agriculture, we are thinking about the cool farmers who are growing vegetables and fruits. He thinks that's totally great but the problem is that 68 percent of our agriculture is devoted to grains and it is mostly in the midwest where there is not a lot of opportunity to grow lots of veg. So while he is completely in support of the current trend in local agriculture he wants to also focus on overhauling the way we grow grains, primarily by breeding (not using genetic modification) perennial versions of our staples (primarily wheat, which seems the easiest). These perennials will have longer roots, thus less erosion and water run off anbd less need to fetilize. basically he would recreate the prairies, but with grasses that produce seeds in bulk that we could eat.

Carrots

Started a new tradition : Easter carrot delivery. Yesterday I dug all the carrots we'd overwintered in the ground under straw. about half were rotty and gross but the rest were perfect, probably about 80 pounds in all. As it was a nice day I loaded some up into my bike chariot and biked little bundles of carrots to all the neighbors. People were delighted to get sweet garden fresh carrots in April. Gene and Kathy Garthe were so appreciative that before I knew it I had a plate of Easter ham and homemade raspberry sauce in front of me. Delicious.

Old ones

Went to visit Grandpa Fiebing a couple of days ago. He wanted to know all about what we are doing at his farm but also was anxious for me to make sure all the tractors start. I did get the bulldozer running and moved a ton of compost to right in front of the hoophouse in about 5 minutes. At the dining table next to us an old man over heard our conversation. As we got up to go he stopped me and asked about the farm and a little about my background. "I never thought I'd meet a young farmer!" he exclaimed.

Covers

Sunday promises to be one of the most important days on the farm yet. That's when we pull the plastic layers over the hoop house frame and turn it from a bunch of metal bones into a warm microclimate perfect for planting even in the cold north. The sheeting goes on in two layers and a fan blows air between then, inflating the whole thing and making an insulative pocket of air. This modern technology will allow us to have plenty of produce by may and (crossing my fingers) tomatoes by the fourth of July.

Lots of seeds poking up

Even little tiny tomatoes are starting to poke up from the seed trays. Jill's cat Stella has displayed curiosity in green leafy things and I worried that she might start grazing on the seedlings. Using some old window screens I was able to construct a barrier around all the seeds that lets in plenty of light but it too tall for her to jump over. Plants protected.

Used Pickup truck

The 1980 Dodge Pickup truck that I might buy is the right price. It's got beautiful black side paneling and classic chrome lines. But the battery is dead. And the muffler is rusted off. And the exhaust pipe is rusted through. There are no brakes, but fortunately, there is no accelerator pad. The fuel tank leaks. And the points need to be retuned, whatever that means. The engine is in good shape, but we couldn't get the crank shaft to turn over.

I'll think on it.

Decay

Our produce, if left uneaten usually returns to the earth as fresh compost, perfect for little microorganisms and young seeds. If only all food behaved the same. Apparently a Happy Meal, like a diamond, is forever.

http://www.boingboing.net/2010/03/17/happy-meal-is-ageles.html

One year old. And still as disgusting as ever.