We had such a relatively mild winter this year that I kept waiting for that one last shoe drop of a cold snap.
Oh boy, did we get it! It started with a freakish wind storm which destroyed the cover of our high tunnel and then carried on up the hillside to tear lots of shingles off my neighbors' houses.
We were sad about our high tunnel cover, for sure! This adds one more job, and expense, to a long spring list. But, we got almost twice the life that we expected from the cover so we couldn't cry too much!
Crazy wind always seems to blow in a weather change and although I had spent this day in a t-shirt and jeans, snow and drastically dropped temperatures quickly followed. It was 11-degrees outside this morning! Brrrr!
But I spent my day of sunshine (I think) productively. I went morel mushroom hunting. According to everything I've read, these little morsels should be coming up now. Unfortunately, in all my questing didn't find a single thing that looked like a mushroom. Maybe it's still a little early for my area.
But the search was not a total loss. I found some fresh wild leeks, or ramps. I only dug a few because they are very pungent. When picking ramps, be sure to always leave some in the area so that they can regenerate. I made a simple little dip with mayonnaise, cream cheese, and finely chopped ramps. At first the dip was ho hum, but after the flavors melded for awhile in the refrigerator - wow!
There's a little place out on a peninsula of forest in the middle of a field where these beautiful daffodils grow. There are no houses or even signs of a house anywhere near where they grow. It's interesting to speculate how they got there and who planted them. I don't speculate why though; I think it's just for the joy of creating an area of simple beauty.
This twisted old hawthorne tree is so interestingly shaped. Look how it grew back together at the top.
And now, back at the farm. I found that the garlic I planted last October is sprouting. Notice the chicken wire covering the patch? That's because chickens seem to find it irresistible to dig up the thick mulch covering the garlic. Then they damage the young shoots and I lose part of my crop! This makes it impossible to dig in and they don't seem to like to walk on it.
Now I'm hoping this cold snap blows through quickly and we can get back to spring!
We still have ONE Idaho Pasture Piglet available. It can go to it's new home in the middle of April. Email the "Contact Me" link above to the right or call if you're interested. 814-274-7825. Please leave a message with your phone number if there's no answer. We might be working outside! We'll get back to you ASAP.
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