Prairie View

Saturday, October 10, 2009

Out of the Ordinary

I really really don't like the weather report. Right now, at 8:00 AM it's 31 degrees, with a north wind 18 MPH, with gusts to 29 MPH. I thought it would stay above freezing till tonight, and I could dash out and gather a few more flowers, container plant cuttings, and vegetables. I may be too late.

My problems are small though, compared to the farmers who have fields of immature milo, or newly planted alfalfa--sprouted and hugging the ground, but still not at the three-leaf stage that prepares it adequately for winter. The seed is very expensive, and if the young plants freeze, the opportunity for starting a crop is lost for this year since it's too late to replant. Most field crops are about two weeks behind schedule because of the unseasonably cool weather we've had this year, beginning in August. Abundant rain also prevented more timely planting of fall crops.

On the bright side, for the first time since the middle of May when Farmer's Market opened, I am staying home while Hiromi goes to market. He was pretty sure that since I couldn't wear insulated coveralls like he's planning to do, I would be too cold. So my staying home was his idea, and I happily played into the "weaker sex" stereotype and am cozily ensconced in warm clothes inside our heated home, while he is undoubtedly struggling to stay warm on the windy side of the market. He was armed with a thermos of hot tea--a switch from the thermos of ice water we usually take along.

In preparation for the big chill, he harvested six zuchetta rampicante yesterday. Those six "godzilla zucchini" filled up the seat and floor of the passenger side in the front of our minivan. It's a good thing I didn't need to sit there. I don't think those squash are the cuddly kind, and if I had held them all, I wouldn't have been able to look out over the top of the pile.

The sweet potatoes are not dug, and the neck pumpkins are not all harvested yet. Among the flowers, I have hundreds of gomphrena flowers that could be harvested for drying. I'm not sure if I'll get it done today.

But a whole blessed day of being at home awaits. I'd better write down the long mental list that's been accumulating inside my head, and get started on doing instead of thinking.

0 Comments:

Post a Comment



<< Home