A very cold week

This past week, since my last post, has seen unusually cool temperatures. This makes spring garden activity somewhat frustrating. I'm having a difficult time getting tomatoes and peppers to germinate. But I also know that nature has a clock and while I can push the limits a bit, it is best to understand this clock and live within its constraints. Note that I do not use heat pads to warm the pepper/tomato six packs. This year, however, I am trying to use heat from my leaf compost pile, which is still running at 120 degrees f in the center as a natural source of heat. I've embedded three six packs of pepper and tomato starts in the top of the pile. I use a mixture of garden soil, compost, and a bit of starter mix soil as a planting mixture. I covered these with a clear plastic cover from a four six pack starter kit. A couple of peppers have germinated after 1o days.

I have learned over the years that pepper seedlings take off when the time is right. Often it is later than I like but these late guys quickly catch up to some of the early ones which struggled through cold weather in artificial conditions. I plant pepper and eggplant in the greenhouse as late as mid may. These don't get set out in the garden until late June. But by August when they naturally start their heavy production, the late guys have caught up with the early ones and often outperform them. Still, I like to push the envelope. I always try to coax a few very early producers. But nature's clock runs and vegetable plants somehow know about it.

My greenhouse is bustling with seedlings however. I hardly have walking room. These are broccoli, cauliflower, kohlrabi, kales, onions, turnips, rutabagas, fennel (which finally came up) and chard. I also have three six packs of peas. I'm setting out cauliflower, kohlrabi, and rutabagas today. I will also start a short row of purple bush beans today directly in the garden, although it is probably too early. I will mix some bunching onions with them which I know will grow even if the beans don't. I've seen some volunteer beans throughout the garden this week so it may be a sign that early beans will do just fine now.

The picture above is of my compost pile row. Note the open pile at the back end of the picture. Here is where the materials go through their two month hot cycle. The plastic bins hold compost after it has cooled. I call it curing and like to let it set at least six weeks before use. This allows larger organisms like worms to move in and encourages fungi growth. I rotate through the plastic bins. When one is emptied, compost is transfered to it from the BIOstack, next to the open pile. Then the BIOstack is filled with material from the back of the open pile which is next to the brick fence. I move the whole pile back as a turning procedure. This frees space in the front for more new material. Note the year old broccoli in the foreground among the favas. I still pick small sprouts from it. Even though they are small, there are lots of them and they taste awesome. I also believe (can't prove) that they are loaded with the valuable nutrients which broccoli is constantly being praised for. These will come out of the garden over the next couple of weeks and become valuable compost material. Four new broccoli plants have been in the garden with the cauliflower for almost a month now. They will hold us over until the main broccoli patch starts producing in May. The plants for this patch are in gallon pots which help to clutter up my greenhouse. I will try to post some pictures of the greenhouse shortly after my batteries charge up.

danh