Sprout Farm Newsletter      May/27/2023       sproutfarm.net                   open 9-5 daily        

Hello Everyone,

It officially feels like summer just don't think about swimming yet.  The ocean water temps are still in the low 50's.  So it is the perfect time to spend time in the garden.  It's been a great spring and we want to thank everyone for their continued support and Jay wants to drive me crazy. What's new with that.  So this week please take 15% off any of the remaining plants; baskets to perennials and on bagged soils.  That's a little gift for everyone.

Our talented local wood workers have been busy making some beautiful items.  The guys at Cape Cod Woodworkers have brought over their first in a series of garden items made from white cedar.  These planters are 16" and have a beautiful teak stain to bring out the natural grain of the wood.  These planters with tight joins will last for years.   Dan has brought us some of his whimsical nautical creations.   Thank you to our men and women in the military who have sacrificed so much for our country.  It only takes one visit to a WWI cemetery in France to have a special place in your heart for poppies.

 

One of the questions I've been answering is, "Do you sell mulch?"  The answer is 'no'.   We had a question about the difference between potting mix and potting soil.  The Pro-Mix brand is a potting mix because it doesn't contain soil and the Coast of Maine is a potting soil because it contains soil.  A customer asked for the clarification because he purchased a planter that said to not use potting soil but potting mix in the planter.  Jay had to think about that one for a while.  The first planting of Benary's zinnias are out on the benches and we have a second planting coming up behind them.  We are constantly seeding up trays of cukes and squash and we hope to keep them in stock but there will be days when we are just waiting for the seedlings to hurry up and get big.  I still have to find time to plant my cutting garden plants.  I am so grateful that we have Ken to work in the back and take a lot of the stress off of Jay.  I stay off of tractors, thank you. 

We have started to pick ripe tomatoes.  That's two weeks earlier than we've ever had tomatoes.  If all goes well we will have eight weeks of tomatoes from that house.  When those play out we hope to harvest tomatoes from the high tunnel and after that tomatoes from the field.  We are in a two week lull for lettuce.  We are keeping the Swiss Chard in the high tunnel because it is growing so well.  I think some of the leaves are 24".  This is some of the most difficult ground to grow in but I think we found the perfect home for Swiss Chard.  This is a very versatile veggie.  We gave up growing spinach because it was too finicky.  We will be harvesting beet greens later on and if you have ever wondered about the comparison between beet greens and Swiss chard, this is your luck day.  https://versus.com/en/beet-greens-vs-Swiss-chard   This is a website dedicated to comparing all sorts of things.  The sad news is that the snap peas had a terrible germination rate this year so I can't make any predictions on how many we will harvest.

There are no kittens to report on.  The grownups are on the hunt and they are happy to share the wealth with us.  I saw my first rabbit close to the garden area this week.  I have this little area that needs a string trimmer to keep it short.  It's just enough cover for a rabbit.  Keep hunting kitties.  You need the entertainment and the garden needs the protection.  We prefer you dine outdoors.

That's all for now and Jay and I hope you stop by and see what's growing.  We'll see you all soon,

Jay and Phyllis sprout