May Has Been Totally Unpredictable! …As Predicted

June Newsletter

Want to make Mother Nature laugh?  Just tell her your planting plans.  Carefully map out a planting schedule, a weeding timeline, and a bug management program, and you will her laugh so loud it will sound like thunder.  We started out the planting season with a drought, which causes seeds to germinate at different rates, and as a result I hauled around 300 feet of hose to the different fields.  A few weeks after that we had nonstop rain, which cause me to plant seeds well into the night just to get it all done in time.  Then who could forget Minnesota’s 40-degree temperature swing in less than 48 hours that ultimately brought a frost so late in May.  Sadly, all the eggplant fell victim to the frost.  I will be planting more, but Eggplant Parmesan might have to wait until next year. 

All these events, although unpredictable, were totally predicted.  Every year around this time it is always something that goes wrong or does not work the way you planned.  Like last year when I planted 25 swiss chard plants only to have provided a feast for the local deer community.  They were pleased, I was pissed.   Or how about three years ago when I tried to inter-plant beets and corn only to have a bumper crop of weed grass grow instead.  Not my finest moment.  So, nothing really surprises me anymore.  I have gotten used to predicting that some things are going to fail, and some things will exceed your expectations.

Lastly, the first produce is coming out this week! Just a fair warning, the first few weeks of a farm share is very leafy.  Meaning we are going to get lots of greens and herbs for the fresh produce.  Do not fear, more will be coming.  It goes along with this whole unpredictable thing; you never know what the start of the season is going to give you.  Let us just say Mother Nature is laughing her ass off right now.