You Can’t Win Them All
Every season on the farm there are things that are frustrating and other things that seem effortless. This season I am so frustrated with the winter squash and pumpkin plants or lack there of. Last year’s all I did was…
Category Summer
Tomato Love
The tomato harvest is slowly starting to roll in. The various cherry tomato plantings are all starting to ripen. Even though, back in January when I was working on my crop plan I scheduled the plantings to be weeks apart…
Harvesting Begins
The summer harvesting has begun. As I prepared for Thursday, which is my harvest and farmers’ market prep day, I knew I would be picking the first blackberries and tomatillos. I’ve been watching both of these crops closely. Playing the…
Summer Maintenance
Last week was filled with general summer field maintenance tying tomato rows, patching drip tape that animals have chewed on, mowing the edges of the field, moving flash tape to keep birds away from the wee popcorn, and of course weeding.…
Hot Days
Well, it is officially summer and the weather is following suit. The mornings start out bright and sunny. With the temperature quickly climbing and by midday it is way too hot to be anywhere near the greenhouse. By the early…
Everything is Planted
The entire field is finally planted. Last week I planted the last of the popcorn, a bit behind schedule but in the ground nevertheless. The tomato plants are getting big. The cherry varieties have lots of green fruit on…
Spring Gardening Classes
I am very are excited to announce my 2015 spring gardening classes. All the classes will be taking place at The Stone House, the office of HWY 12 Properties, at 147 East Spain St. in Sonoma. Reservations are required as space is…
This Year, Last Year, Next Year
Last week, during a late season heat wave I had to keep reminding myself what month it was. It was so hot outside that if I wasn’t selling pumpkins at the farmers market, I would have thought it was July.…
Purposely Small
A few weekends ago I was at a grand opening party for a local Sonoma Valley business, T.A.T. Gallery. I ran into friends and acquaintances, enjoyed tasty food, good music, even an amazing magic show. It was lovely to get away…
Living Seed Catalog
Last week I spent some time at the National Heirloom Expo. Each year they have large, detailed displays of squash, tomatoes, peppers, and melons. All organized by varieties, its like a living seed catalog. As a farmer you spend a lot…