49. Spring Things
I predicted back in August that the weather for the following seasons would be as such: very long and pleasant fall, short and cold winter, long and wet spring. So far, my witchy weather predictions are ringing true. It’s mid-February (Valentine’s Day, actually), and I plan to plant peas tomorrow. Yes, it’s too early, historically, to plant anything outside from seed (aside from a cool-season perennial cover crop, which I’m behind on completing), and even transplants might not make it, though I do have a laundry room full of kale, broccoli brussels sprouts, celery, and cabbage for the transplanting. But yes, the weather gods are telling me to put out peas, so that’s what I’m going to do: clear beds, plant peas, scatter some compost, cover with straw, set up hoops, and cover with row cover to protect the babes from the nightly dips. And don’t get me wrong: this time of year, it should be too cold to plant. But it’s not. I may even miss an opportunity to tap our maple trees because spring weather is approaching so quickly. Hope not.
In other news around the farm, I have a new off-farm job. Say goodbye to being a cog in the corporate machine of Amazon’s robot overlords (a job I thought would fit the bill for us because I didn’t have to put any effort into it whatsoever, and I could get health insurance, but made me grumpy and dread going into work. Another perk was the activity—I walked about fifteen miles a day.) and say hello to the land of non-profit environmental conservation! I am an urban soil specialist for a state-wide initiative to encourage small-scale and urban growers to adopt healthy soil practices on their farms and in their gardens. I get to teach, advocate, travel around the state, meet new people, and work with lots of organizations, local, state, and federal government employees, and talk about what gets me revved up: soil health and its role in the future of agriculture on our planet.
Pretty cool, right?
So while I am not a fan of sitting in front of a computer for days at a time, the trade off is that I get paid to do what I would be doing already: talking about and practicing healthy soil advocacy. Just need to fit in that whole farming thing…