Rain or Shine

There's a storm outside. Lightning, thunder, rain, wind...the works. I'm home, and it feels like gold to be sitting on the comfy couch with a blanket and laptop on my lap writing to my fine readers. Despite the incessant itching and scratching the wretched mosquitoes have cursed upon me since Monday, between a glass of red vino to top off a warm homemade meal with my farm family of meat loaf, mashed potatoes and salad, I'm feeling good.

Sorry I haven't checked in for a while. We are moving in full force at the farm, primarily taking care of weeds, thinning veggies like beats, and harvesting most of what's left of our greens in the high-tunnel to begin planting our summer crops of tomatoes and peppers.

Montana weather is ever changing. While you know what to expect on the weather channel, you never really know what you're going to get. Coming from Cali, anything below 70 degrees for me is cold, add some wind chill and I'm freezing. But, I have adapted well, and now 50 or 60 degrees doesn't feel so bad. I also always bring my fleece and rain jackets with me to work. Today was the first day I wore a scarf in June. But, with the wind and gray skies, I needed my scarf to keep me warm and working.

Luckily, I work with some great people, so when weather gets really bad, like hard rain or hail, we take a break and seek shelter. The weather is definitely warming up though, which makes me happy. Although the storm hit us today, we did reach 90 degrees during the beginning of the week. The clear blue sky and sunshine reminded me of home.

It's nice to work in the low or high tunnels when it's windy, rainy, or just cold out. Here I am planting peppers in the low tunnel, lots of peppers, both sweet and hot. Jacob and I also planted basil and eggplant.

Other times, when it's hot out, working inside the low tunnel, high tunnel or greenhouse can be unbearably uncomfortable. Not only is your body subjected to extreme temperatures, but you're kneeling and your legs are getting sore and you don't have much room to step because there is another row of something growing you don't want to step on an inch from your foot. So you have to learn to shut those senses off almost if you want to get the job done in time. I've been good about wearing a hat when the sun shines brightly, but the day I got home from transplanting in the low tunnel, I noticed the top of my scalp was red. It got burned from those UV rays. Luckily, it didn't hurt. My point is you have to protect your head and cover it with a hat, scarf, or something, not only to keep skin from burning, but also to keep yourself cool. Dehydration is the worst enemy.

Yesterday was also exciting for me because I saw a deer in the field! I had never seen a deer that close before. It was a white-tailed deer and it was just roaming our vegetable field. I had been working on building our compost pile of grass clippings (nitrogen), soil (for micro-organisms), and straw (for carbon) and walked off the field to check with a visitor who had pulled onto our driveway. When I returned to the field, I saw the deer. We startled each other I think. Bambi roamed around for a few seconds and darted up and over the fence. They can cause real damage according to Jacob. It was a majestic sight for me.

I also got to try raw milk for the first time in my life!! A neighboring farm and friends of ours have milk cows and gave us some milk. I was a little worried at first, not sure how my body would react to milk straight from a cow, but I was fine. The milk tasted delicious. Cold and fresh. It tasted like half and half, creamy, but not too thick.

Today's Farm Lessons Include:

1. Always bring a fleece and rain jacket and scarf. 

2. Smile, even when it rains; it makes things better.

3. Drink lots of water, fresh milk, and some wine (especially after those long, rainy, windy, and cold days.)

*Photos by Tiffanie Ma