April Flowers

Well, after a 26 degree night a week or so ago, followed by 28, 30 and 32 degree nights on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, we’re finally out of the 30’s, at least for a while. Wonder why I care? Because I have a bunch of stuff planted that can take a frost, but tends to just sit, and sit, and sit, if the weather at night doesn’t warm up. And I’ve transplanted 37 tomato plants into larger containers, which necessitates them going outside into the sunshine during the day (no room under the grow lights for all of them). And if it stays above 40, I leave them out at night too.

We’ve had a lot of this this week.

We have two of these crab apples in your yard. Last night the whole yard was awash in apple blossom scent.

Don’t they look like roses?

You can stand under the tree and hear the thousands of bees in the trees. It should be a good crop of crab apples this year. They are pretty big for crabs. About golf ball sized. We’re hoping to grind some of them up and make a hard cider.

Our yard has a LOT of yellow tulips. I’m not a huge fan of yellow tulips. After 3 weeks of yellow daffodils, I’d prefer another color. But these ARE pretty spectacular, when you get up close and really look.

The ducks, at three weeks old, have graduated to the big duck pen outside (which means out of the too small too wet stock tank brooder that they have been in). We put up a small fence to keep them separate from the adults, and a warming light if they need it, and they are doing just fine. But during the transition, they got to go out into the yard into the “duck playpen” and run around in the sunshine and eat grass and get in and out of a bowl of water and splash around and generally discover their “duckness”. It was really fun to watch.
Peggy sue, the Bourbon Red Turkey, is sitting diligently on three turkey eggs and about 10 duck eggs. If they hatch, it will be around May 9th. Fingers crossed. She’s a trooper, as the adult ducks are in the pen with her at night. But she’s sticking tight.

Two turkey eggs on left. They are rich and tasty. I set aside the ones from Gracie Mae when I find them, in case she decides to start brooding a nest, in which case I’ll put them under her. But they can only be stored for about 5 days without losing viability, so after that we eat them.

Miles Away Farm Blog © 2013, where the peas, radishes, beets, chard, spinach, kale and arugula are up, and we’re just waiting for them to GROW already. Spring can never come to early, no matter where you live.