A Little of This, and a Little of That

April 8^th

Another day of planting...Cosmic purple and Scarlett Nantes carrots went in the ground.  We are hoping for a good early crop of carrots and will be planting again for a late crop of carrots.  Eight more kinds of lettuce including Bibb, Oak Leaf Royal, Red Salad Bowl, Butter Crunch, Salad Bowl, Tango, Prizehead, Gourmet Salad Blend, French Mix and Italian Mix.  We also started more flowers in the greenhouse like Lobelia, Amaranthus, Alyssum, and Marigolds in all different colors. 

  

Lissa noticed the broccoli is being nibbled on by something so she put a call into their good friends and partners in crime Grant and Christy for a good solution.  It was determined to be a kind of caterpillar called the Cabbage Looper (Trichoplusia ni) and they came up with a solution... 

A company called Green Step makes organic "Caterpillar Control" the active ingredient is Bacillicus Thuringiensis which is a bacterium that lives in soil and is commonly used as an alternative to pesticides. It disables the caterpillars digestive tract, which stops them from eating the plants pretty quickly.  John has been teaching me a lot about organic pest control and it seems like there is a large emphasis on prevention.  Things like crop rotation and proper watering practices will take you a long way in protecting your plants. 

Tonight Lissa made some carrots with ginger and orange juice, they were delicious but even better they inspired us to grow ginger this year.  After dinner we all stood around the computer reading about how and when to plant it; we all decided that it is feasible and this fall we are hoping for a small ginger crop…very exciting!