Monday afternoon I spent over an hour on the phone with John Bauer, our seeds man. John knows our farm and knows the vegetable varieties that will work best in our particular climate. We have been working with John for many years now. He built our seeder, which has proved so valuable to us in the field. John changed seed companies last year and now represents Johnny's Selected Seeds. Our relationship with John and what he contributes to the farm is valuable, so we moved our business with him. He still points us back to his old company when he cannot offer seeds that are the right choice for us.
We were discussing some changes to our tomato program. We are looking to have tomatoes earlier in the season and will be using several varieties that come into production before the heirlooms.
We will have more Asian greens this spring, by popular demand. The pointed cabbage that many of you liked the taste of last springs will be sown within a week or so.
Roberto and I walked the field, and we hope to have him back on the tractor by the end of the week as the soil is drying out. He has a lot to do to prepare more beds for spring planting. There are weeds to remove and soil to loosen. Aerating the soil stimulates the soil fauna into activity, with the added benefit of releasing nutrients for the crops.
The chickens will be moved to their new pasture later in the week. They will live on these fresh 20 acres for the whole year, moving around at least once a week.
There is so much more to tell of our plans, but for the moment I’d like to simply wish you all a happy new year.. Nigel