Playing in the Dirt

I posted several days ago about our difficulties with bugs or little green worms eating all of the leaves off of the broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, and cabbage seedlings that I had started from seed in seed pots and was about ready to transplant.  Not to worry. I got busy and planted the seeds directly in the ground. We'll get the work done one way or the other!

I have several old round bales of hay that were given to me and I try to keep the garden covered with hay at all times.  I use it as a mulch around the growing plants in order to retain soil moisture and as a protective covering over the ground when it is fallow in order to discourage weed growth.  It is not 100% effective, but it crowds out about 90% of the weeds.   I got out there the other day and pulled out what little weeds were growing in the rows and then planted (re-planted, if you will) the broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts and cabbage that I lost to pests.

Some of our 30 foot rows are planted

I gave the newly planted ground a liberal sprinkling of water and in no time at all, we had little plants popping up like crazy!  Although the picture below is so blurry it looks like I took it with a potato instead of a camera, it evidences the happy little plants jumping up out of the ground with such vigor, that it makes me get excited.  I love watching things grow!

Plants Popping up!

But let's back up a bit.  I want to show you a practice I've incorporated that seems to be working.  I don't mind sharing things we've tried that haven't worked.  This is a trial and error farm and we learn from our mistakes all the time.  One of the things we try to do is amend the soil with as much compost, leaves, coffee grounds, and other organic matter so that we are constantly building and improving the soil.

For two years now I haven't tilled the land so that I don't disturb the soil structure. Throughout the year I keep the furrows between my rows filled with leaves, hay, and grass clippings.  Over the course of the year, it all decomposes.  I'm holding some of the material in my hand below.  If you were to smell it, it would smell musty, earthy, rich, and aromatic.  In fact, if you were a plant, you'd want to run your roots through this stuff.

A real handful (of decomposing material)

When I'm ready to plant, I gently take this material and hoe it up on top of the row, chop it up a little bit with my hoe, and then plant directly into it.  Let's take a closer look: 

A Haven for Earthworms

If you take a quick glance, it appears the ground is moving.  A closer inspection shows a plethora of squiggling earthworms.  I spot five nice earthworms in the photo above and that is just what is exposed with one hoe-width.  In the past, I could take a shovel and dig and not be able to locate a single worm.  Now, if you want to go fishing, you don't need to dig very far.

Earthworms are great.  They tunnel, providing aeration for the soil.  They poop, providing fertility for your vegetables, building a great growing medium for healthy plants.

Now I'll just re-fill the furrows between the rows with leaves, hay, grass clippings, coffee grounds and anything else I can get my hands on.  Repeating this process over the years has improved the quality of my soil.  Adding organic matter and keeping the ground covered with hay and mulch makes the ground so much easier to work.  It doesn't pack into a hard pan like it used to after a rain and it enhances the medium for growing vegetables AND these guys:

So after I had a few of my rows ready to be planted, I got out my seeds.  Two of the interesting new varieties I'm planting this year are Purple Cauliflower and Green Cauliflower.  I got these heirloom seeds from Baker Creek.  I can't wait to see how these grow.  I always enjoy a visual feast in the garden and then a gastronomical feast!  I'll be sure to keep you updated with how these grow.

Colorful Cole Crops

I label all of my rows with the crop name and the date planted so that I'll know what is planted on each row and when it will be ready for harvest.  It is very important to label the rows as you go since broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, and cabbage seeds all look exactly the same.  It further complicates matters when you plant several different varieties of the same crop.

Cauliflower Seeds

Swiss Chard and beet seeds look the same, too.  I have Bull's Blood Beets, Golden Beets, Red Mangel Mammoth Beets and Swiss Chard planted. 

Swiss Chard Seeds

I used a stick to make a slight trench in the top of the row, seeded the row and then sprinkled 1/8 inch of topsoil over the seeds.  Then I watered the dirt to start the seed to swell and then sprout.

Ready, Set, Grow!

It is always so interesting to me how a seed can sit dormant in a package or in a bottle for years.  It waits, patiently, for the right conditions to arise.  When those conditions are present, the seed awakens from its sleep and grows, producing a crop and producing seeds to reproduce itself.  It's a miracle the way our Creator designed things to provide for us.

Indeed, the LORD will give what is good, And our land will yield its produce. Psalm 85:12