Tuesday morning started out beautifully. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky and the temperatures were already in the fifties here on Act III Farm. I knew that we were going to get a frost that night, but I didn’t expect to see snow on the ground when I got home from work that night.
No one that I know thinks that the weather that we have been having this winter is par for the course. If anything, it is way over-par. If I were a golfer of weather, I would lay down my clubs and say that this just wasn’t worth it.
The Damage from the Deep Freeze in February.
In February I got perennial plants just before we had the deep freeze that froze our pipes for the next week and a half and made it so we did not have running water in our house for a week beyond that! I planted the plants as soon as was humanly possible, but many of the plants did not survive. All of the Ozark Beauty Strawberries gave up the ghost as did the rhubarb. If I want to get more this year, I will have to replant both.
The potatoes that I planted last fall did not come up either. I am guessing that they didn’t grow for the same reason that I lost the perennial plants.
On the plus side, I had chicks that hatched right after the deep freeze and all that survived the first night, are still alive. For that matter, they are currently trying to integrate with the big chickens in the main chicken yard.
The Damage from this Last Freeze
Because I knew the cold snap was coming, I did cover my corn, but I didn’t think about covering the potatoes. The corn, which is starting to sprout survived, but the Russet potatoes (the ones I planted this spring) were severely damaged. Will they make a comeback? Only time will tell. The Red Norlands I planted have not yet sprouted so doubt they will have any problems when they do.
The peas, the garlic, and the onions all look good as do that lettuce, radishes, beets, and carrots. The freeze didn’t seem to affect them one bit.
Like a Farmer, I Still Remain Optimistic
I sold the seven chicks that hatched early last week to one of the neighbors. He has an 800-egg incubator, and we were talking about making a deal regarding my eggs and his incubator. I have been saving eggs this week.
Next weekend (May first) I will be attending Farmer’s market for the first time. Last weekend I purchased a canopy for this purpose. I am excited for this venture. I might have a little produce like lettuce and radishes and oregano, so I am going to try to sell some baked goods in addition to the produce. I was going to include the chicks I have, but they seem to be integrating so well with the adult chickens that I think I’ll let them hang around.
How about you? What do you do when weather is adverse? Do you persevere or do you give up?
The Perpetual Homesteader 