New Year, New beginnings.

Happy belated New Year!
So much has transpired over the last few months. Most notably is the new variant of Omicron. I am not so worried about its affects should I or my wife get it. From most accounts, it is milder than the previous variants. But rather, I am most concerned about its cascading affects throughout the world. And most notably, the crippling of the worldwide food supply chain.

It has permeated almost every nook and cranny of food production worldwide. There seems to be a building crescendo of issues in such magnitude that it defies reason that one should look forward and expect things to operate as normal. All one has to do is look at the shelves in almost any grocery store to see the effects this has had. You either can get the product you want or it isn't available. And, if it is available, its' at a much higher cost. This also reflects the reality of higher labor and other input costs.

I am a firmer than ever believer that this is the year where food will be the center focus of news stories. After all, food is perhaps the most important item needed for survival - other than maybe water. I don't have a crystal ball to predict things and have never tried to do so. But, I can see with my own eyes the slight unraveling of things that were for so long taken for granted. Food usually experiences a period of inflation before it starts to show signs of shortages. In spots, we have seen both happening.

The reason for this blog post is to highlight the need for people to begin growing their own food. This statement is based on a set of facts that are rooted in reality. The UN has stated that the world agricultural systems have been producing less food for each of the last 3 years. In the US, there has been a steady decline in food production for the last 2-3 years. The reasons for this are so varied that it would take up pages and pages of writing. I'm not interested in that.

I am not a prepper nor alarmist. My belief is actually this. It would be wise to start producing more of our own food as the supply chain (more importantly - supplies) becomes less dependable. I see 2022 as a year of tightening supplies and higher inflation. And, given this, I am being more intentional about what crops I am going to grow and how many. Its as simple as that. No grand plan, no frantic push.

As this is my direction, this blog will reflect the new reality. I hope I can assist anyone who wants to do the same or, for that matter, who just wants to grow a more productive vegetable garden. I've been gardening for over almost 50 years and have a very wide experience level. Again, take this for what it's worth. Everyone has to decide for themselves. I hope you will continue to watch this blog and start watching if you already aren't. I look forward to the coming year with much anticipation. Look for an upcoming post about where we are at this time. Until next time, Happy Gardening Everyone.

Never heard this before...

 I have seen various Youtube videos on gardening over the past year or so. Lately, several of them have highlighted the spotty to ever increasing widespread lack of seeds for vegetable gardeners. Part of the issue is that with all the Covid madness, more people have taken to gardening. Fair enough. The other part is that the seed producers have experienced dwindling seed production due to weather abnormalities. Most do believe the weather will continue to change and not for the better. But that's a whole different story.

On one video, the presenter said that there are a lot of reports of seed shortages and that the big problem seeds were beans and peas. That is because the bulk of those seeds are produced in a region where there was a huge loss of productioon due to crop damages. I filed this information in the back of my mind and decided to see if there was a local problem. I went to my usual source and asked asked if I could buy 2 lbs of each. They did have them but when I asked if they were experiencing tight seed supplies, the person who I spoke to said they indeed had some actual shortages but not many. Then they told me that their supplies were a little lower than normal. This is before the seed buying season has begun in earnest. I would just advise anyone who is going to buy seeds, to do that now. I have a pretty substantial amount of seeds and varieties so I am not that concerned at this point. I will also add that the prices of seeds have skyrocketed which substantiates the issue. The demand has risen while the supply side has contracted. Hence, higher prices.
If you know of any local seed suppliers in your area, that would be the best place to start. I just got the new catalog from a major seed company and I have to express alarm. I was amazed at the price differential of my local contact to theirs. In some cases, their prices were 3 times as much. I don't mean to disparge them, they certainly are a good company. But, if you can find a good reputable seed company locally, perhaps their prices will be easier on the pocketbook.
Well, just wanted to give a heads up today. Don't want anyone to get caught unawares of the issue at hand. Good luck everyone and Happy Gardening!

Cloches

 I have, over the last few years, begun to rely on cloches to get my plants off to healthy and early starts in late winter/early spring. Since the weather was a bit warmer than usual, I decided to take a quick inventory of the various cloches and structures I have at my disposal.

When it comes to cloches, I received these three below for Christmas. They are called Greenhouse Buckets. They look very sturdy and are made of a very durable "plastic" material which the manufacturer claims will resist fading and yellowing. They are tall and give a reasonable amount of space to use them on taller plants. I tried one in a bare spot in my garden this past weekend. It was a sunny day with temps in the low 40's. My thermometer recorded a high temp of 92 and a low of 30 overnight. It was a very non scientific process so I am hopeful about them. They can be found at greenhousebuckets.com.

I also have a set of two different types of cloches which are older and are starting to show their age. They have been through many seasons and have yellowed thanks to the rays of the sun. But, the plants last year did not show any effects from this yellowing so I will use them again this year. I'll continue to use them until there is a failure with the plants. The whole point of these is really to protect the seedlings from frost, heavy rains or even an unexpected late snow shower. And, these all have performed that task quite well.

I also have a couple of structures which I have used for various purposes. I am thinking I will probably plant seedlings in them or maybe do some early direct seeding in them. I think I have had both of these for over 7 years and they have weathered quite well. I will clean the dirt off them with a little bleach solution and will then keep them where they are presently in order to warm up the soil underneath them.
 
I have a collapsible 6 X 8 ft. greenhouse which I am considering placing next to my permanent greenhouse. Not quite sure about that at this time as I have to work out the purpose for it. The question is whether it would add any value to the garden and it's production. I haven't convinced myself one way or another. Time will tell.
That's all all I have to write at this time. Lots going on and it is keeping me pretty busy. I will update when I get the opportunity this week. There are seedlings to start and a whole myriad of garden projects in the works. So until next time, Happy Gardening everyone!

Current Status

There is so much to write about regarding my "winter" plantings. I will start with just an update of the greenhouse and garden area. I have several plants trying to grow despite the unseasonably warm weather. Yesterday, we hit a high of 75 which resulted in the greenhouse heating up even though I had the venting window and door pretty much wide open. The temps inside went into the 90's which is not good for the cool season crops I have growing. Here is the temp at 3 yesterday afternoon.

Despite that, the seedlings appear to be working hard to grow. Here are my spinach (round containers) and lettuce (rectangular) plants. The lettuce seedlings are quite small as they were delayed in sprouting. Not too bad as they struggled early due to our warm weather in the middle of October. I plan on working in some slow release fertilizer this week once the temps drop a bit. That should spur their growth as I water them.
 
I also have leaf lettuce growing well in the one of the grow boxes alog with carrots continuing to progress. I will need to cut the leaf lettuce soon. I will add them to the salad lettuce I recently bought. Then I plan on planting both of the grow boxes with lettuce as I now have a feel for how to manage them.

 
Additionally, I have Giant Ceasar and Swiss Chard growing along with a small planting of radishes. My wife mentioned she had a white onion with top growth that she was using in a roast. She cut off the top and gave it to me. After researching onions, it was apparent that you could plant that and there was a decent chance it would grow another onion. Always open to experimentation, I decided to give it a try as I had nothing to lose. Here are a couple snaps of the plantinng.
 
And heres how it looked this morning. Seems the plant has responded enough to give me hope. As I say, only time will tell.

Once the weather eventually turns, the plants should begin to grow in earnest and the greenhouse will become more productive. One thing I learned last year is that the plants grow at a much different rate than they normally do. But, grow they will.
Speaking of growth, the Winter Rye I planted in my garden beds is probably the best I have ever seen. It is not only taller for this time of year, but it is much thicker and more dense. I am truly excited as this will be a huge step for my garden soil health. Here are a couple pictures of the beds.
  
On another note, I have been collecting various compostable items to place in one or maybe two of my composters. Besides my neighbors contribution, I decided to strip the leaves off of a bunch of branches I was going to cut up. I piled them up on a tarp to begin drying them out. Then I collected my front lawns clippings when I cut the grass on Monday and piled them over the leaves. I did the same thing with the clippings from my back yard and added them to the pile. This is the result that followed all that work.

I also have been collecting cardboard from the various packages that we get. I cut them up and put them into my one cart. I'm letting them sit there to soak up the rain and my periodic watering from my rainbarrow I have to empty before it freezes. Here is the cardboard and a picture showing the current state of the cuttings as of this morning.
 
The weather here in the last few days has been wierd. Mornings have been misty/foggy then the sun breaks through in the afternoon and we have summer. Here are a few pictures to what we woke up to this morning.
 
It was warm with a light rain and pretty dense fog.
So, as can be seen, there has been alot going on in the greenhouse/gardens. I have also been trying to finish all the outside tasks that need to be completed before the cold weather sets in along with maintaining the growing. It's been a little hectic at times but progress is happening. From what I can tell, next week is going to be appreciably cooler than this week.
Well, that's all I have for now. I will write soon about my indoor gardening attempts that I am just setting up and all that entails. Until next time, Happy Gardening Everyone!

Is Fall really here already?!

That just doesn't seem possible. I know summer still has a bit of a ways to go. But when I browse the web, there are all these various Youtube gardening experts bantering on about how it is time to do the various things gardeners should do to prepare for fall crops. I get that there are lead times and such that must be considered if you are going to grow into the earlier parts of winter. I never really put much effort into growing a fall crop as I did not have the time and I guess, the energy to tend to the plants. The fall crops need more attention than the summer ones. At least that has been my experience when I attempted to grow them the one or two times I did. Maybe I am wrong and just need to try again.
I helped my Father in Law set his generator in place Monday night in case the power went out. Our areas' power is prone to outages in lightning storms or high winds. Isaias sat almost directly overhead of us for about 5 hours and it put down a pretty brisk rate of rain and winds, but luckily, we had no outages. It wasn't a huge threat to us that the local media and national weather services made it out to be.  I know the coastal areas were in a much different situation but they seemed to withstand the storm pretty decently.
I worked on my greenhouses' door Monday as it was coming off in windy situations. And thankfully, given Isaias' wrath yesterday, my decision to attend to it so I wouldn't see it cartwheeling across my yard in a driving rain was well thought out. I shimmed it and then drove screws through the metal base and shims into the 4X4 wood base. Then I tightened the various nuts and bolts. Once shimmed and seemingly unable to come off the track, I ran a bead of caulk between the metal base of the greenhouse and the wood foundation. I checked on it Tuesday night and thankfully, the door was still in place and there wasn't any evidence of water seeping into the greenhouse.
I am thinking about growing a variety of lettuces', chard, carrots and the like this fall in the greenhouse. Part of what I need to get accomplished in order to do that is to make the greenhouse more weather tight. I am going to caulk the various panels in order to cut the wind seepage down and also stabilize them in case we get a strong storm. It held up pretty well last winter. But there were a couple of times when the panel just popped out in high winds. With a little elbow grease, I can hopefully lessen the likelihood of that happening this year.
I was planning on taking pictures yesterday of all the containers I have amassed this year and what my purposes are for them but, the rains were quite heavy. They persisted until later in the afternoon. So, I will postpone that to a later date this week. Our new family room and dining area is still under construction. I think we are about 2 weeks away from completion. It has been a long process with lots of decisions and a bunch of travelling here and there to buy the various accoutrements. Now that we can see it coming together, we are getting very excited.
So, I will leave it here. Please check back in a few days (barring any last minute room issues) for my post regarding the containers. As always, Happy Gardening Everyone!

Taking stock

Yesterday was an absolutely gorgeous day in our region. We hit a high of 78 in our area with periodic clouds. Given we have had mostly unseasonably cooler weather recently, it was a nice surprise that felt really nice. As I walked to the garden with a mental list of what I was going to accomplish, I decided that it was actually going to be a day of minimal input on my part where I would just soak up the garden. Not sure what triggered the change of heart, but I just went with the flow.
So, I grabbed a garbage bag and walked the garden while gathering up the various limbs and other debris that has been deposited by my tree through all the storms we have had. Then I checked the various plants and watered those that needed it. I had a pile of cardboard that I have been working on periodically to shred for my composting. So, I finally finished that process under the shade of my tree. I put the cardboard into my one empty bin and covered that with a heaping of leaf mold. I watered that all down and went about the rest of my meanderings. 
Overall, at this stage of the gardening season, I came to the conclusion that my garden is coming along quite well. I am growing many new plants that I never had. New to me are peas, onions and potatoes. While I nurse them along, I have many plants that are also coming along nicely. Is it worth the effort? Absolutely.
Despite the challenges that this Spring season has presented, the garden is doing about as well as can be expected. There will be more issues I am sure. But that is part of the allure of gardening for me - overcoming the obstacles.
Speaking of issues, our weather is on a projected downward trajectory this week. We have freeze warnings being talked about for Mother's day this Sunday. And the outlook for the rest of May is for colder weather than normal with rain. So much for Spring eh?
But I will continue to dig in and garden. Sure, I'm going to have to adapt to the circumstances but don't we all. Today is a new day and there is lots to do in the garden. And that will keep me moving along. So I'd better get going as the new week is ahead and there's plenty to do. Take care everyone. Until next time, Happy Gardening everyone!

Moving forward

Posted on May 1, 2020 6:14 PM

Yesterday was quite a wet day for most of the east coast. It started out windy with strong gusts here. I could see the approaching storm to the west but it wasn't raining when I woke up around 6AM. I waited until it got lighter and poked my head out. It was rather warm and despite the winds, really not too bad of a day. I gathered myself and went to the garden and decided it was time to transplant my onion seedlings. I did notice that a crew was delivering shingles by crane to one of my backyard neighbors. Glad it wasn't me as the winds were increasing in intensity.
So, I assembled all my tools and opened the structure where I decided to plant them. As I kept an eye on the approaching storm, I dug the holes and transplanted the 11 seedlings in about 45 minutes. I watered them down, took the picture below and closed off the structure as a little rain was starting. I then closed everything up and went inside as the winds picked up a little more and it began to rain steadily. That's what I call just in time planting. Here is the result of my endeavors.

The storm hit way too hard for me to do much else the rest of the day. We had areas around us that flooded with over a foot of water or more. We received about an inch of rain overall but the winds and the high tides combined to push the local rivers over their banks. Not a pleasant experience for all those involved.
Wednesday, I assembled my fence garden pots in order to seed in more Spinach. I had 5 existing plants which I just cut back on Tuesday for salads. So, I planted in the remaining 7 units with Spinach seeds. I used a mixture of the Miracle Grow Organics soil, sifted compost from my composter, and some seed starting mix at the top to place the seed in. This was a unit a saw on sale last year at our local BJ's. It worked pretty well last year so I am hoping it will do the same or better this year.

Also on Wednesday, I planted in my recycled shoe holder. Yes, I am one of those people who saves things not knowing if I'll ever use it. I just look at the item and, if it is unusual, I more than likely will keep it. In this case, both the tubing and the shoe caddy were saved from the garbage by me. You just never know.
After I hung it on the back wall of my greenhouse, I cut holes in the bottom of each pouch and inserted tubing that I had saved for future purposes probably 3 years ago. I then filled the first container with the dirt and wetted it down to see if the water would empty into the container below. The test confirmed that indeed, the water did flow through. I then proceeded to fill another 7, each time testing to be sure of the drainage. Once that was finished, I had my wife pick out the herbs she would use. She picked the 8 she thought would be used by us. No sense in growing something you won't use. Never understood folks who did that unless a neighbor or other family member were going to use it.

I did check on my beans and cabbage plants. All seem to be coming along fine. With regards to the beans, I used some bean seeds that are probably 4 years old along with brand new beans I just recently bought locally. The older seeds are still quite viable when compared to the newer seeds. I have other seeds from 2010 that I planted early this year that gave me near 90% germination.

I attribute that to the fact that I keep my seeds in a small "dorm" refrigerator and that I keep them in photo cases. I simply pull the proper colored container for the seeds I need and leave the others in the fridge. They are in the container that signifies the season that they are planted. For instance, the yellow and green are for spring. I have the seeds that are typically planted in that season stored in those boxes. Along with this, I have an excel spreadsheet that lists the various 265 seed packets that I have and what year they are from. And, each line is color coded to match the color of the boxes. I bought this at my wife's urging as they are really made for keeping photos. Yes, there was some upfront labor involved, but I haven't bought any seed packets that I didn't know I already had anymore. And this is so much more time efficient than my previous storage system. I say its worth every bit of time I have saved.

Much to my delight, when I looked at the area where I planted my potato starts, there was one that already broke through the ground and evidence that another 6 were beginning to break through too. If that holds up, I will be very pleased by that. I say that because the potato is probably far and away the most caloric and nutritionally dense vegetable. They are rich in carbs, fiber, vitamin C, B6, potassium and manganese. When processed, they lose a fair portion of everything. So, I am cautiously excited as I had a little doubt about the potatoes I received. Apparently, looks are deceiving. Here is a look at my first ever potato plant. LOL!

That's about all I have for this Friday. Much still going on in the garden so I am hoping the weather can moderate. Until next time, Happy Gardening everyone.

Status

Well, after a wet weekend (mainly Sunday), I decided to check the status of my garden. It appears that my efforts have borne out some decent results. We have received about an inch and three quarters of rain from Thursday through Sunday evening. There were pretty strong winds on Thursday but were calm the rest of the duration. When I ventured out into the garden, the first thing I noticed was that the ground I was walking on was quite saturated. I don't believe this was due to the recent rains but rather from the cumulative effects of the many storms over the past few weeks. There is only so much rain the ground can absorb. And the future forecasts are indicating we should have three rainy days in the next five.
So, I first checked the tomato bed where I put the plastic on an incline to divert the water. When I exposed a portion of the bed, it became immediately apparent as can be seen below that my efforts were worth it. I don't think I will keep the plastic on the bed long term but rather until I transplant the tomatoes probably round mid-May. I might incline the soil in the bed a little to divert some of the water but time will tell. Right now though, I'll keep it covered to prevent weeds from populating the bed.

Next. I checked the row cover and cloches in the bed where I planted Spinach and Bibb Lettuce. The bed underneath the row cover as well as the soil under the cloches were wet from when I watered them Thursday but neither showed any signs of water saturation. Another good sign. I hope that the seeds will germinate and I can get some good crops from them. Here is what I found under the tunnel.

The peas are rolling along although I do have to be aware that even on an overcast day, the cloches have to be vented as the air can get quite warm in them. They all seem to have had a growth spurt and may be ready to come out from under the cloches. I'll keep an eye on them this week and decide when to uncover them.
I have lots going on in the greenhouse presently. Yesterday, while it was raining, I started 36 cantaloupe seeds in my greenhouse. It's always pretty warm in there so I don't mind doing the work. I've been cleaning out some of the old plants as they are past their peak production periods. I'm trying to move more of the plants out in the garden but that will have to wait a little while longer until the weather settles into Spring. It's supposed to hit 75 on Sunday but then take a small dive after that. But again, I only count on about two days out with any forecast. 
Well, that's all I have at this time. I'm going to continue with the coverings and such for the foreseeable future. I will be keeping an eye on everything and begin removing them once the weather settles down. Until next time, Happy Gardening everyone!

Spring Preparations

As I said in my last post, the weather is beginning to affect planting schedules in a serious way. In the region where I live, we are experiencing a very wet and cool Spring. We had a pretty nice March but April has been decidedly different. And that has forced me to take steps that I would never have considered before.
Once again, I took an inventory of what I had stored away and made a plan that would allow me to continue with the necessary plantings that I needed to get accomplished. After all, plants have a window of seasonality where they will grow proficiently. Outside of that, your crops will not perform as they are "wired".
On a side note, my brother called me this past yesterday and we ended up talking about our gardens and the dreadful weather. He related that last Tuesday his area had a hard freeze with a temp of 27. Most of his plants were dead Wednesday morning. He said that he was so frustrated this year with the weather, but questioned what could he do. I could feel and relate to his frustration.
So, with that in mind, I began my quest to adapt to the weather we are getting. I consider it a challenge to say the least. I gathered up my various structures and other implements to decide how I was going to place them in my garden.
I had beans and lettuce already planted in one bed so I had to get those covered. After measuring, I decided to put a Flowerhouse portable mini greenhouse over the beans. It is 5 ft. wide and 9 ft. long. I generally use it to harden off my seedlings but it fit the bill for protection. So I placed it and thankfully, it covered the already seeded area perfectly. After that was completed, I still needed to cover the lettuce seeds. For that, I used a solar logic mini hothouse which I have used to grow carrots in the winter before I had my greenhouse. After measuring that, it fit right between the Flowerhouse unit and my greenhouse. So, that took care of my planted bed as shown in this photo.

Next, I wanted to seed in two rows of lettuce and spinach in the next bed. And, given the forecast called for rains through next Tuesday, it had to be protected or the seeds would otherwise rot in the ground. Too much water is a very bad thing. The only thing worse is a hard freeze or appreciable snow.
After thinking it through, I decided to employ the adjustable fleece tunnel to plant the spinach. Then, I gathered up 4 of the rectangular cloches and my 3 bell cloches. I will use the cloches for my Bibb lettuce planting. I then lined up the tunnel along the one side of the bed and set up the cloches on the other side. I seeded them in Wednesday and watered them down for the next couple of days. Hopefully, these steps will keep the ground dry enough to allow the seeds to grow. Here is a picture of the setup.

When I finished with these set ups, I turned my attentions to my third bed which will be where I will be planting my tomatoes. I came up with a plan to slope the bed to channel the water off the bed. I raked the bed to effect a slope left to right in hopes of diverting the water into the adjacent garden path by topping them off with the garden plastic I used previously. I placed a run of walkway bricks on the high side, then laid the plastic over them and put bricks on top of the placed stones. Then I pulled the plastic taught on the other side of the bed and pinned them down with more bricks. This way, the water will drain off the bed. Or at least that is the hope. Here is a snapshot of the bed as it sat Thursday afternoon..
t shall be seen as to whether I am successful or just wasting my time. As I finish this post, it is beginning to pour outside. This will be the pattern for Thursday night through Friday afternoon. I will eventually wander out to see what the verdict is Friday once the downpours stop. The forecasts call for rain on Saturday then alternating days of showers and or rains through Wednesday. So it continues.
Well, that's all I have to say about my weather travails. Until next time, Happy Gardening everyone!

Will we ever see warm temperatures again?

This is our morning sky today. As you can see, our skies have turned decidedly purple. I am currently listening to Prince on Amazon music. It kind of sets the tone. I went out earlier this morning to tie everything down as the NWS is calling for thunderstorms in the next hour or so. The weather has been rather cool for the past week and that is not good. I seeded in two rows of beans, lettuce seeds and transplanted a pea seedling too Wednesday evening. I used my trusty garden knife for spacing the beans. I crowed them a little bit by spacing them 2" apart. I am hoping they will support each other this way. But, having followed the weather forecasts, I knew I had to devise a way to protect the seeds and the transplant. As seen below, I first planted the two rows of bean seeds, watered them and then covered them with the vented square cloches. I then seeded in the two patches of lettuce and covered them the same method I did with the beans.
 

I placed the lettuce up against the greenhouse in order to prolong the growing season. Being unfamiliar with the new layout I have, I am almost certain that this area will be in the shadows of the greenhouse until probably late June. I am hoping the diffused sun will result in a cooler temperature soil. I'll be keeping an eye out on that. 

Likewise, I planted the one pea plant and covered it with one of my home made cloches given its one plant. As our low Thursday night was very close to freezing, I was grateful I covered them up. I live near a small river so our temps were moderated somewhat by it. Naturally, since we were only 2 degrees away from freezing, we came very close to a frost.

Over the weekend, I went to a local pop up plant, flower and vegetable sale. I found a few tomato plants, and some flowers for our front porch - all at a pretty decent price. The people running and attending the sale all practiced the distancing guidelines. The merchant made sure it wasn't overrun so that was good. The overall message I am hearing from our local greenhouses is that selections will be down as they are just not able to man the greenhouse appropriately. That makes sense as seedling propagation is very labor intensive on the front and back ends of the process. Kind of makes me thankful that I have my greenhouse.

I decided on Sunday to transplant 5 more of my pea plants. So I planted them as the weather was overcast and cooler. The seedlings were getting kind of big and I need the trays for additional seed starting. So, I planted the five and here is the first starts of Peas I have ever done, complete with their cloches. I take the tops off during the day and close them up at night. I have been told peas are almost foolproof. We shall see.

I then planted an additional five plants on the opposite side of the trellis Monday evening in the same manner.

There is a lot going on as I begin to roll out the plants from the greenhouse. Besides erecting my fence, the tomato system and the structure for cucumbers, I have had to contend with the noticeably different weather that we are having. It is not a local thing from everything I am reading. Our farmers are now contending with many more serious issues due to the coronavirus, historically high rain totals and the breakdown of the supply chain in various places. One has to put all this into context though. My response was to up my gardening efforts and to broaden my plantings. I have been a gardener for 5 decades now - yes, I am old(er). And I am not alone in this effort as I believe people are seeing the issues at their grocery stores. It kind of harkens back to what happened in the US and many other countries during WWII. We had the Victory Gardens and Britain had the Wartime Farms. Thanks to a tip from a friend, I watched a very interesting series on YouTube called The Wartime Farms. It's definitely worth a look.

As an example of our weather, as I was writing this, we experienced a horrendous thunderstorm. It's approach was very ominous as seen below.
 
You could hear the thunder and see some lightning. As it approached, there was a very sudden uptake in the winds and rain. The wind was forcing the rain horizontally to the point that both of my rain gauges were dry when I checked after the storm. The storm lasted about 20 minutes and it was pounding everything. Everything, that is, except my plantings. I took some precautions that, if not taken, I would have probably lost the various plants I had. I will outline the precautions I took in my next post. But, my point is this. In the past, I would not have considered taking the unusual efforts I did. But, these storms are getting more ferocious and damaging than in the past. Tonight, there is a large area freeze warning in effect. Again, if my crops weren't covered, many if not all would probably die tonight.
We have to realize that our climate is changing and I, personally, believe it is heading towards cooler, shorter growing seasons. I am convinced of this due to what is happening here and in most countries around the world. Weather is crazy everywhere. And, to wrap this up, the world production of food has fallen precipitously for the last 3 years due to erratic weather. That is why I am gardening not for fun, but for production. I only wish I had 3-4 acres of land to work instead of my backyard. I could do so much more but I will be content to do what I can for my family. And in the final analysis, that's all that matters
So, in my next post, I will go into detail as to my precautions that I had to implement to account for a much cooler than normal spring this year. I will also bring everything up to date as I said earlier, it's been crazy busy. Until next time, stay safe and Happy Gardening everyone!