Farm School Summer Series Week Nine

It's the dog days of summer here in Central Florida.

Can you believe that August is almost half over?
I'm tellin' ya, after you hit 40, the years just zip by!

Things in the garden are hoppin'.

Many crops are long spent,

but others are just gettin' fired up!

Lynn decided to do a little experiment with the beets.

He's trying to see how far he can push the seeds he has.

A few are popping up from our reseeding a number of weeks ago,

but mostly, they ain't doin' much.

We reseeded them 12 to a pot this time, since we have nothing to lose.

We haven't yet figured out if it's the temps, the rain

or if the seed is just too doggone old.

The second undertaking was to plant summer squash seeds in an underused area.

Here, Lynn is hilling up the soil.

We created a berm on one side to prevent the water from running off

where the seeds will be planted.

He checked for level using water to fill up the trench.

We tweaked it a bit, and all is well.

The ends were also built up to keep the water within the planting area.

These are called golden zucchini

and they take full sun.

They'll get that here!

We planted every 12 inches.

We were able to fit twelve plants inside the prepared space.

On the other end of the garden, we checked on the Swiss chard.

As the success was hit or miss,

we decided to do what we usually do when we don't get the desired result.

Throw more seed at it!

These eggplant were ready for supports.

About half of the crops are looking very strong.

It helps to have all the equipment you need at hand.

For example, this monstrous set of tweezers 
is used to gingerly place onion sets into holes.

Because Lynn plants them so deeply,

the coveted white tops are abundant.

Most of Lynn's tools have been passed down through generations.

That's quality stuff.

He figured out long ago that it makes sense

 to keep supplies where they are used.

He stores a myriad of materials in these weather-proof tubs.

No need to go back to the shed or garage for needed items.
Smart as a whip, that man is!

A few unwanted critters were found on the beans

while we were looking for leaf rollers.

Have you ever heard of lighter knot?
I've been living in Florida over 40 years,
but didn't know what this was.
Guess I've been hangin' around the wrong crowd, eh?
It's used as kindling wood.

You can read about it here.

Lynn has quite a stash of this valuable Florida treasure.

Remnants of hurricanes in years past remain.

Others bounced back and grace us with their majesty.

We talked about the pitcher plant here.

Seems that it wants to make a new friend.

It was a red letter day here on the farm.
Being productive leaves one with a sense of purpose.
Y'all come back now, y'hear?

Feel free to peruse the entire Farm School series starting here.