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Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Rainy Day Spring Garden Warriors!


Linda Lauren pulling weeds around their new sprouts and planting carrots

Azaziah, Zeke, Zac, Matt, Rayshawn, pulling these pesky little weeds that look like sprouts and are very tricky to identify!

The Ducks are back! A breeding pair returned to the pond to enjoy straining food materials out of the water with the filters in their beaks. They mate for life!

Troy, Spencer and Sedric's onions have a head start as they grew over winter!

Russian Red Kale and Chard starting to really make a push in spring!

Of course radish is the first to come up!

scatter plant method in the front line/row plant method in the back. We'll see which one is more productive.

Lonely Troy on a rainy day turning a bed...alone.

Panorama shot!

Monday, March 17, 2014

Sunny spring preparations


Repairing some beds that are starting to loosen up. Salem on the hammer, McKenzy there to support
Some beds really needed some help, this one needed a whole board removed and reattached by Linda and Lauren

    Today we planted beets in the garden and it beats being inside! As you can see it is March 5th in this photo by the date marking on the popsicle stick. We planted beets today because the weather and soil temperatures are finally warm enough for germination. Mr. Iverson planted these beets in the Giving Garden to later donate them to a shelter when they are harvested. Beets need to be planted in 1/4th inch of soil and in can be spread in rows or scattered in a box area. They take about 40-60 days to mature and form deep red edible roots underground. Additionally they can be susceptible to various worm pests and grubs that feed on the roots. 
      Additionally, beets have many uses. Some people dehydrate them and make beet chips. Beets are grown for their high sugar content also. Mr. Iverson prefers to put them in his stir fry because they turn the entire dish pink! Early humans used beets as a clothing dye and ink source. They are also a favorite for a eastern European soups called "Borscht."
     Beets are part of a group of vegetables that are eaten for their roots. Others in this group include carrots, parsnips, rutabagas, and radishes. There are many varieties of beets that range from deep red to golden. Because they can live through the winter they can be grown in many climates year round. For all these reasons above, it should be said that you can't beat a beet!
Spencer checking out the compost full of old cabbage.