The storm that is expected to roll in tomorrow will bring to a close the short, dry “window” that has allowed us to get in with the tractors and ready some ground for planting into. At our Lewis Road site we have already transplanted lettuces, chards, kales, and collards. Today out there we are direct seeding cilantro, beets, mei quin choi, scallions, red pearl onions and mustard greens. At our home site we left an acre or so bedded up so we could get an early start. Yesterday we made a shallow pass with our “Perfecta” cultivator which undercuts weeds and loosens the top few of soil. Tomorrow we will transplant out a large block of brassicas there, including: broccoli, cabbage, romanesco and cauliflower. If all goes according to plan, we should be able to finish up before the rain starts sometime in the evening.
The warm temperatures this last week have really pushed the strawberry plants along. As happens every year, they just hang out during the first few months and then suddenly seem to double in size overnight. We went through with pruning snips a few weeks ago to cut premature flowers off—rather than putting energy into fruiting at this stage we want the plants to grow vegetatively so that they will have a large, productive frame. It seems to have paid off. The plants that look particularly good are those in the one acre ASD trial that we did. (This is the rice hull soil treatment that has been part of the field trials we have been participating in with researchers at UCSC.) It will be very interesting to see how it compares with the non-treated plot during the course of the season.
In the greenhouse, in addition to our ongoing successions of lettuces, brassicas, fennel, celery and the like, we have started our first rounds of tomatoes, peppers and squash. So far everything is looking good this year. The significant rains and our new well have reduced the water worries, and we’re very optimistic that we have a good growing season ahead.
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