it’s been a really lovely spring here in the Catskills/Hudson Valley of New York, possibly a bit more appreciated than usual because of that super-cold winter we had. there’s been lots of warm sunshine and we finally got a dose of rain this week, and more is on the way. i’m extra excited about my garden this year and so far things are going well. the peas are actually almost a foot taller than this photo (taken last weekend) thanks to the rain! it had been quite dry for most of this month, so growth was very s l o w…
these are my Egyptian Walking Onions, with some volunteer kale flowering in between. one of my favorite things about gardening are all the plants that either survive the winter or re-seed themselves. i have about 10,000 baby kale seedlings thanks to self-seeding. and many kale plants simply live under the snow in a dormant state and then sprout new leaves when it warms up again. so we actually have greens to eat in late April/early May!
on the left is my first planting of lettuce from seed, which is nearly ready to start picking (and reminds me that i should sow some more so that we have salad all summer and fall) and on the right is my poppy patch. every year i mean to plant poppies which like to be sown when it’s still very cold, and even (bizarrely) like to experience some freezing spells. this year i finally got seeds in the ground in April, and they are looking quite good.
but the MOST exciting thing happening in our garden this year is that for the first time, one of our hens got “broody” and started to sit on eggs. since we happen to have a rooster, and we don’t usually, we thought we should seize the moment and let her do her thing. Midge is our oldest hen; she’s 5 years old! so 21 days after she started her vigilant nesting, one by one each of the 4 eggs cracked open just like in cartoons and out popped these wee bouncing balls of fluff.
Midge is being an excellent Mom, and it’s really fun to watch these chicks progress so much faster then our previous broods, because they are learning from a pro! i saw one of them eat a little caterpillar at about 3 days old. and they can live outside (in our original portable coop) because they’ve got Mom to keep them warm…
more chick pix to come, i promise…
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