Appreciate Your Postal Carriers!

The shot above of our visitors center was taken yesterday afternoon and my bare fingers were in pain in less than 10 seconds. I believe its even colder today. Those poor mail carriers! I'm not sure how many layers it would take to not feel the bite of these temperatures. "Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds." I don't see anything about dangerous temperatures there!?

Not much action around here. I'm working on my largest seed order which includes not only vegetables but most of the seed for our "bulk annuals." These are the ones that we'll have multiple flats grown for use for mass planting or repetitive use around the gardens. Each seed variety we order goes thru the process of catalog location, pricing, quantity decisions, ordering, securing the seed, having the seed started, pick up the plants, hauling, planting, labeling, care (watering/fertilizing/etc.), eventual removal and composting. It's a long cycle but the value of seasonals here, despite the expense and time involved, can't be overstated. We've grown over 6,000 varieties of annuals in the past 10 years and continue to go back to those "tried and true" varieties. Of course we like to "dabble" as well!


I can't believe the number of people that not only don't compost but still say, "I've always meant to compost but....". Perhaps this is your year. There are many resources (including online) that will not only describe the benefits of creating and utilizing your own compost but will take you thru the various processes and mechanisms (most very easy) for home composting; even on a small scale. As per the EPA, "compost has been shown to suppress plant diseases and pests, reduce or eliminate the need for chemical fertilizers and can promote higher yields of agricultural crops." See below for an image of a typical home composting system and the picture at the bottom is our huge compost pile at Rotary Gardens. It's "steaming" right now as I type and thanks to Marv for keeping it turned, processed and available for use around Rotary Gardens. Look in to it! It's not new or difficult technology! This is your year for a compost bin/pile.