As April begins, we feel the fullness of the spring tide, wrapped in a cloak of verdant green life. The birds sing loud, the daffodils and dandelions bloom bright, the grass grows lush, the henbit and dead nettle cast their purple haze over fields.
The first round of plants have made their way out of the greenhouse and into the field in preparation for our first May harvests. A slew of other plants (lettuces, radicchio, bok choy, beets, spinach, kohlrabi) are hardening off outside the greenhouse, waiting to be planted next week but building up their tolerance to the elements first. My big greenhouse task for the week is potting up my spring brassicas (kale, purple sprouting broccoli, and sprouting cauliflower) and Swiss Chard, a few weeks later than usual due to the especially cold February days. But the first of the summer crops have popped up (tomatoes, basil, eggplants, and peppers) and I am starting my first round of cucumbers and squash in the next few days.
Dead nettle and chickweed flourish
In the field, the dandelions are finally blooming which means the soil has warmed enough to plant potatoes. I have been busy preparing beds for that big task. The first outdoor seedings are up too, and promise harvests of carrots, beets, arugula, greens mix, baby kale, spinach, French Breakfast radishes, and Hakurei turnips around the end of the month. But the first seeds sprouting means the first weeds aren't far behind so it's time to sharpen and oil the hoes, making ready for battle.
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