Three locations of potatoes planted. One raised bed for fingerlings, a larger new bed for early varieties, and a garden row for later varieties (“keepers”).
And a bonus photo of Sam sifting manure in the solar-powered trommel:
Potatoes planted
Month: April 2020
Snowareness
Potato prep
I knew I overordered potatoes from Fedco. Now they are here and we have to deal with it.
And I learned this morning that the community garden is discouraging the planting of potatoes this year due to a potato beetle infestation last year.
So two things: offer extra potatoes to family friends and get Sam to make another raised bed at home.
The new bed will be a modified hugelkultur mound. It has sides made from old slab wood, but will be filled with an initial layer of wood, then partly decomposed wood chips from previous years’ garden paths, then soil.
This new bed will have the “early” varieties. Another bed will have fingerlings. And a garden row will have the later varieties. Extras will be sent to other garden homes. Potato beetles will be dealt with this year before they get ahead of us!
Corner trellis
A nice warm day, perfect for working in the garden. I planted seeds under the corner trellis, where we grow the next succession of greens after the hoophouse gets too hot. Arugula, spinach, escarole, Salanova lettuce, spring raab and Russian red kale.
I also adjusted the row cover so it would be more secure over the row of broccoli. The seedlings look ok, maybe a little worse for wear after being buried in snow and attacked by strong winds.
Sam refreshed two paths with wood chips, readying the root crops row for planting. And we managed to replace the zippers on the front wall of the hoophouse. The zipper tapes, presumably cotton, had deteriorated and were ripped apart by wind and our zipping. This was a monumental chore, and not finished yet. The wall is laying in a bundle on the living room floor waiting to be reinstalled.
Vegan meatloaf
We eat a whole-foods plant-based diet. Vegan plus. No meat, no seafood, no dairy, no eggs. No oil or other added fats. I cheat more often than Sam does. I enjoy finding new WFPB recipes. Highly recommended: the Paprika app, where I save all my recipes and make my grocery lists.
Here’s what I made last night (half eaten):
I’ve never been a huge fan of meatloaf, and in fact I loathed ground beef in any recipe although I ate it occasionally for many years. The texture of this vegan meatloaf was a little disturbing because it reminded me so much of ground beef.
But actually it tasted ok. Bland, but nourishing enough. And useful for sandwiches the next day. It would be better if pulsed less in the food processor to reduce the paste-like quality. And with the recommended barbecue sauce, which we didn’t have.
Here’s the recipe:
https://www.kathysvegankitchen.com/vegan-meatloaf/
I used three portobello mushrooms. I didn’t have red pepper, so I skipped it.
Good Friday snow fall
A somber day marked by overnight snowfall, power outages, struggle to grocery shop during a pandemic, and a series of beautiful snow squalls.
I had to unearth my broccoli seedlings from burial under row cover flattened by pounds upon pounds of wet heavy snow.
I took too many photos of snow. I can’t resist. More photos on my iPad, will post them later.
Potting and planting
Seems too early. We’ve always vowed to get a jump on spring and that’s what’s happening. Time on our hands from sheltering in place, I guess.
We potted up approximately 100 tomato, tomatillo and ground cherry seedlings today. I think they will outgrow these containers before ready to plant in the soil which is a worry. But they look nice. We have to move them inside every night and outside every morning.
We also planted out a row of broccoli seedlings with a few cauliflower and red cabbage here and there. These are going under row cover. Hope they don’t get too cold! Note the down coat and winter hat Sam is wearing…
A little April snow
Under the tightening grip of the pandemic, it stays peaceful here. Today a little light snow. Robust tomato sprouts will soon need transplanting.
