Verdure

 

As Terry says every year at this time, “The first spring rain paints the whole world green.” He’s such a romantic! I took this picture during our rainy weekend, and even though the weather was dreary, the new grass and budding trees lifted my spirits. Green is a soothing color, and the natural green of plant life is the best!

Green grass on a rainy day

I noticed this year that the house finch males turn a bit redder for the breeding season. Not sure why this took me so long.

Mr. and Mrs. House Finch. Note Mr.'s extra-red forehead.

It did not take the ground squirrels long to discover the sunflower seeds under the bird feeder. They’re so cute with their cheek pouches stuffed full. There are not a lot of them so far, but I have seen two at once. More are undoubtedly on the way.

Sunflower cheeks

We had a parade of turkeys in the field on Thursday. I think there were 7 hens and 3 toms. I don’t know how they ever make more turkeys. Every time I see them the hens are totally uninterested in the strut and bluster of the toms.

A parade of turkeys, 7 females and 3 toms (larger, in the middle of the pack)

A tom and two wingmen seemed to have two hens interested. The toms seem to be saying, “Hey baby! Look at me! Am I not majestic?”

Guys! Guys!  They're looking at me!

But soon the hens’ interest waned….

Over here! Look back over here!

And disappeared. The whole thing reminds me of a Junior High dance. The boys hunt in packs, and the girls laugh in their faces.

Shoot. We lost them

I read up on mâche and learned that I should harvest it by cutting at ground level. I cut all the mâche and a few of the larger lettuces from the raised bed in the high tunnel. I also cut the larger leaves from the spinach. It filled a pink tray and will provide salads for awhile.

First high tunnel harvest for 2021

With space cleared in the bed, I transplanted my lettuce seedlings.

Transplanted lettuce seedlings

I also planted some herbs in the herb bed. One pot of parsley was really 4 plants. Had I know, I would have gotten only one pot instead of three. We won’t be short parsley. I cut out half the chives to make room. I don’t use chive much. Why do I grow it? It’s so aggressive.

Newly planted sage, parsley, and rosemary next to the overwintered chive, thyme, and oregano

The rhubarb will soon be ready. Every year I am amazed at how quickly it grows. Pie, crisp, or coffee cake? Decisions, decisions. I'll have to consult with Terry.

We moved the hens to summer pasture last night. When Terry opened the coop this morning, several of the girls flew over the ramp rather than walking down. I left the food in the coop today so they would get used to going in and out. They all spent time in the orchard last year. I wonder how much they remember.

Free to roam!

In any case, once out, they were just as happy as can be. They start un-mulching the apple trees immediately. We like to think that they are finding and eating apple pests. There is anecdotal evidence that the apples have fewer bugs since we’ve been running the chickens in the orchard. Hard to say if there is a cause/effect relationship there, though. It is irrefutable that the chickens love having more space to run around. Maybe now the Wyandottes’ feathers will grow back.

Scratching and pecking in the mulch beneath the apple trees