Spring amazes me each year--no matter how much you're outdoors, and how closely you watch each small change when it happens, suddenly it will dawn on you that Spring has crept up on you again! This Spring is definitely cool, and wet, which has set us behind schedule with working the ground, and even set us back from our seeding and transplanting schedules. What seeds and plants we've put out, have been slow, almost reluctant to come up, and we are in the midst of anxious moments wondering if things will work as they should--this time of year is always like that, but things always seem to work fine--even if it's a week or three late!
Thanks go to all of those who have helped us posting our flyers around East, TN--we have really been getting a lot of interest from folks, and we appreciate your effort! If you would like several of our flyers, let us know and we'll mail you enough to keep you busy! If each of you gave out one flyer, we'd have....well, lots more out there!
For a complete update, go check out our March/April picture folder we just uploaded to our facebook page!
I hope you all enjoy this newsletter, and we here at the farm wish you all a warm, dry, and productive Spring!
Adam Colvin
1-866-865-8329
www.ColvinFamilyFarm.com
March/April at Colvin Family Farm:
We're excited about how well our strawberries are looking! Most all of one variety already have fruit and blossoms all over them!
Planting onions--we've put out more than 50,000 plants already! Our goal is to be able to supply all of our market locations with as many naturally raised onions & potatoes as the market can use all of the way through season (normally these two crops are hard to find on a regular basis) and have them at a price that most normal families can afford.
Dad grading the site for our new 20x60 greenhouse.
Dad's kept busy working on our new greenhouse--this picture shows the frame up, and the roll-up curtains on. The curtains are made of material that is basically a clear tarp--it lasts for years, whereas if we used normal greenhouse plastic for the curtains (as we've done in the past) it lasts for week(s)!
This morning we put the plastic on--it's always interesting pulling $500 worth of plastic over a greenhouse, and hoping that it won't blow away while you staple it on!
As you can see Dad framed in a large door on the other end. If during the off season, we need to work on a vehicle or tractor, we can drive it under cover!
Dad, stapling the plastic down on the new greenhouse. So that the staples don't just pull right back out through the plastic, you have to staple through a strap of "webbing" material that is strong enough that the staples won't pull through.
Enough about the new greenhouse--here's a peek inside the other greenhouse! Right now it's busting the seams with transplants--this shot shows cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, celery, lettuces, chives, peppers, eggplant & more!
A closeup shot of some baby lettuce transplants.
A shot of our Celery transplants--we're excited about giving this crop a try!
Blue violets are some of my favorite Spring flowers! I love how this shot turned out!
Momma has a beautiful flowering quince bush in the backyard.
A closeup of the flowering quince blossoms--they really are pretty after the dull greys and browns of Winter!
My camera didn't pick up the colors very well, but this is a cloud rainbow us boys watched for over an hour over one of the fields. Check out this link to see better pictures of cloud rainbows and information on how they form.
We had a delivery of fertilizer a couple of weeks ago, and the driver wouldn't listen to us when we told him where to drive--he eventually got stuck four or five different times, and we eventually (three hours later) got him out. I still can't believe that we got him out! It took Dad a day with the box scrape to level the front yard/side field back out!
We have more pictures and updates just uploaded to our Facebook page--if you want to see the rest of the pictures click here!
Hey Just joined your CSA! Can't wait to sink our teeth into some of those strawberries. We are building a new house in Kingston and we are looking forward to some fresh veggies on these hot days. You can follow us here. deeradise.blogspot.com
ReplyDeletesee you at earthfest!