Snap-Pea Tee-Pee

Get it, snappy (snap-pea) tee-pee.  A sign my jokes are bad is that I have to explain them.

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We have no shortage of unwelcome saplings on our property so when we cut them down I recycled them into a tee-pee for our viney legumes.

I left an opening on one side only because I think it would be cool to go inside it once it is covered with plants.  Kids will like it anyway.

One little pea finding its support.

Arch 'gate' is also made of cut down sapling.  I planted Sweet Peas to grow up this.  Hopefully vines will improve its crocked appearance, oh well....

Things are behind here in regards to peas and other cool weather crops.  It has been a cool spring so I am not sweeting it, literally.    Though you can't see them lettuce, beets, spinach, cilantro, leeks, onions, carrots and white potatoes are also hiding/sprouting in there.

And the asparagus is still making its presence known, getting 1or 2 meals a week from it.  We will keep cutting it until the spears start getting smaller in diameter (the diameter of a pencil or smaller), showing we need to let it 'go' so it can start storing energy for next year.

Duckies growing very fast, but still cute.  I think they are about 4 weeks old?  Staying outside all the time now (biting my finger nails when I think of the raccoon and weasels, hard to keep them out).

We also doubled our chicken flock, adding 7 more Production Reds (RI Red/Delaware crosses) to the mix.  The initiation hasn't been that bad, as the older hens are not torturing them too much.  The farmer who raises these from hatchlings always trims their beaks to keep the peeking attacks on each other less harmful. Notice the size of the red combs on their heads, I hear you can tell how close one is to laying their first egg by the size and how red it is (it gets larger and more red).  I anticipate these will start laying early to mid summer. (14 eggs a day).

The older ladies are all enjoying the longer days and each are finally giving us an egg a day. (During the winter, shorter days, not all of them lay eggs daily.  The Production Reds are our most consistent.)

That is it for now, stayed tuned for exciting piggie news (it is exciting to us anyway).

What Does April SNOW Showers Bring?

I assume April snow showers bring flowers as much as rain.... since it is essentially rain that waters the soil.  I keep telling myself that the thawing and refreezing of the ground is probably good for our soil; all the freezing/expanding then melting of organic matter.  It is my optimistic way of looking at things.

Truth is, spring in New England is always a little trying on me.  It is a muddy, cold season.... but with hope.  There is a short period in May it is lovely, then comes full on summer.  But with summers at beautiful beaches and a nice fall we make up before winter comes again.

Sunday was officially 6 weeks until our average last frost (according to the Rhode Island Master Gardeners, May 15 is the date).  I was supposed to be transplanting my onion seedlings this week.

Since we got about 5" of snow, I think it is best to wait.  Cold and frost don't hurt more mature onions growing, but it could cause rot to the young ones when when they thaw out (so I read).

Here are our garlics we planted last fall.  The plan is to grow all bulb and root vegetables (except potatoes) in raised beds after this year.  Our soil is compact, and cool muddy springs have not been good to our bulby friends.

The chives don't seem to mind though.  Love me some chives.  Low maintenance, great with eggs, come back every year and beautiful purple, edible flowers.  I promise those are chives and not grass.  If they are we have been eating grass on our eggs.

Holy basil in sprouting, yearning for some sunshine it seems.

It will soon be joined with some cucumbers, more basil varieties and flowers.
I am actually growing flowers this year because I made more money (at our roadside stand) last year on flowers than I did my heirloom vegetables.  Doesn't make a ton of sense but I guess you need to learn your market.

Birds are scavenging for food on Little Lady's homemade bird feeder.

Since my spring snow pics are not very exciting, closing with some more lovely ones from a New England photographer I really like @ - http://www.anewenglandlife.com