Farm School Fall Series Week Nine

It was a picture-perfect day at Farm School this week.
With the rains of Saturday moving on,
we were able to have time to enjoy the work that needed to be done.

What a way to spend the day!

Someone had other ideas about how to appreciate the day.

We did our usual check on established plants in the garden.

Some beets were reseeded this week and are sprouting up.

Worms are the big enemy, and they have been busy in this crop.

Two kinds of kale are grown here.

The crop in the foreground is Red Russian

and the one further back is the dinosaur variety.

These are hearty plants that will not be affected by the colder weather approaching.

Did you know that kale provides more iron than beef and more calcium than milk per calorie?

It's a true superfood, with many health benefits.

Read more about it here.

The papayas are being used in a little experiment.

These plants were placed near the tomato garden

to lure away the tomato hornworm.

They enjoy papayas even more than tomatoes.

They also enjoy peppers, eggplant and potato leaves.

So far, it seems to be working.

These beautiful Romas have been staked to add support.

Lynn noticed that two of the plants are a bit denser than the others,

although they were all started at the same time.

We'll see if it affects production.

Roma tomatoes

The leeks are happier now that they've been "banked",

which means that dirt was added to the pot,

much as you might hill potatoes.

Banking is done once they reach at least the size of a pencil.

Today we worked on getting a ton of lettuce potted up.

Faye and Lynn grow several varieties here, 

including Romaine, arugula, Red Salad Bowl and Buttercrunch.

It won't be long before we are sampling a big bowlful of sunshine!

Broccoli is looking good and should start producing fruit soon.

Brussels sprouts have been repotted in their permanent home.

This is another cold tolerant plant that is low maintenance.

Lynn explained to me that these grow on a stalk,

with the leaves and fruit forming a spiraling cascade.

Can't wait to see that!

Eggplant is producing and looking mighty fine.

I hope to be making Mimi's ratatouille with this soon.

We worked on tidying up the ends of the tomato garden.
These will soon be covered with netting, to keep the birds away from the fruit.

Lynn has his own method of tying baling twine on the ends of these posts.

They are easily removed with one tug.

It's nice to have it all tucked in.

Celebrity tomatoes

I tried to catch this cardinal bathing, 

but only got the very tip of her red beak.

As you can imagine, 

there are a wide variety of birds in this enchanting wonderland.

Many critters call this home.

Lynn has been collecting worms from various crops
to see what they morph into.
He feeds them fresh food daily, (room service, mind you),
so that when they metamorphosize,
he will know which critter he is dealing with.
What a fascinating way to study nature!

The morning breezes by, creating a sense of fulfillment like no other.
This garden has truly blessed me with so many gifts.
Hope you enjoyed the visit.

See how Farm School got started here.
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