April 2023 Farm NEWS

The spring birds seemed to make a sudden overnight reappearance after their winter absence. The red wing black birds arrived first, or at least their large numbers made their presence most obvious. I started hearing them early one morning last week on my trip out with the dogs to feed the big animals.  On another morning a male redwing flew from branch to branch ahead of me along the road on my way back from a walk in the woods.  Usually, they stay fairly confined to the water and tree line along the water's edge.  Seeing one as far out as the road I wondered how the birds feel about returning home to find their pond still frozen, the tussock grasses they nest in just barely emerging from the snow. 

Along with the birds, return all the other smells, sounds, and signs of spring.  The snow melts along the sunny side of the field first, revealing flattened grass and hints of the garden beds.  The ground is saturated from the snow melt, and puddles collect in all the low-lying places growing larger then smaller with each round of rain and sun.  The mud sucks at my feet as I walk which makes pushing the full wheelbarrow from the barn to the compost pile each day feel like an Olympic sporting event. A test of both physical endurance and the waterproofing ability of my boots. Looking at all the mud I always wonder how in just a few short weeks the earth will dry enough for us to prep and plant, and soon after that the field will be a moderately tamed jungle of color and green.  

Seedlings are being sown into trays according to the planting calendar we have tweaked and perfected over our years here. I look forward to early mornings and cloudy days spent with my fingers in the potting soil, making small depressions in the trays for each seed, and carefully maneuvering growing plants from outgrown cells to larger ones. In another week or two, hardy seedlings will move out to the unheated greenhouse to make room for more tender starts and our morning watering chores will expand outward.  There comes a point in late April where it feels like half of each day is spent watering plants in trays, walking back and forth showering them until saturated, and then sometimes watering again in the evenings the trays easily dried out after an intensely sunny day.  And then its May, time to start transplanting all the seedlings out while our watering chores dwindle and our focus shifts to the summer tasks of weeding and harvesting.  

A good spring rain, a few more warm days, and we and the birds will wake up to see the pond transformed from white to blue.  The puddles will expand and contract threating to keep us off the garden forever until suddenly they will just disappear completely.  Seedlings will grow and outgrow their containers until making their final move into real ground.  We await the start of another growing season, reminding ourselves to be patient, to enjoy the slowness of the spring freeze and thaw.  Soon enough we will be in the thick of it enjoying the excitement and productivity of the garden, complaining about the endless weeds and heat, living in the glory and the misery of it all.  

Notes:
 -Baby girl "Ryah" was born here on the farm 3/16/2023. We are adjusting/re-adjusting to baby life again in preparation for the summer season.  

-If you are looking for seedlings to start your gardens, we suggest you check out our friends at OLD WELLS FARM who do amazing seedlings for sale.  They are in Limington Maine.  You can pre-order on their website. Old Wells Farm 

-We are Not doing a Earle Farm pickup this year.  

-We are not doing early high tunnel greens this year as we are focusing on family time until the real season begins.  Friend Joanne at Mountain Heartbeet Farm does incredible early greens and often offers pop up shares in April and May.  Find her on instgram or website Mountain Heartbeet Farm