May 4 Newsletter – We Are OPEN
Is the gate open?
Time to go to work
I think I’m not just hoping
So keep watching and stay alert
Hello!
It’s fun to get started At The Farm.
We reorganized the front of the Barn to serve you and help you get started to garden. I can’t believe what I need to learn. It will be a great garden season. A lot of new gardeners, I love to teach.
There are some things you need to know when you garden.
The soil needs to crumble in your hand. Do not have a ball when you squeeze it. Then, it’s time to plant.
If you plant warm crops in the cold ground, the plant goes backwards and takes a lot of time to go forwards. If you plant when the soil is warm, it goes forward and excels. It’s worth waiting for.
I have excellent potting soil. 40 or 20 lb bags, compost manure 40 lb bags and cedar mulch.
Strawberry Rhubarb Plants
Now, when you plant the new plant, you cannot harvest it (or pull it) the first year. You could kill or stunt the plant for production. You can pull about 1/4 to 1/3 of the stalks – in the second year you can pull 1/2. Do not harvest after 4th of July, it ruins the plant. As the roots of the plant spread, you can share some roots, take a sharp shovel, step down on a clump of roots and remove from base. Re-plant or put it in a pot for a friend. Do this in the spring only as the plant starts to grow, about 2 inches out of the soil.
I opened Friday, April 24th. It was so fun to visit with my customers. Had one new one from Green Isle. He wanted seed potatoes and peas. He wanted me to cut his spuds for planting. That was a first in 44 years selling spuds.
When you plant potatoes, remember, eyes up. About 6 inches deep, 1 foot apart. They are slow to come up. I think the plant is pretty when it starts to come out of the ground.
Remember it is not dirt you plant in, it’s soil. Dirt is under the bed. My mother worked for Tonkadale Greenhouse in Minnetonka. Her boss, Bob Anderson taught her this and I have told that story for 44 years in selling.
Hope the weather stays nice and no rain so Don can work the fields.
Got the fertilizer spreader from my farmer friend. Don can work Organic Chicken Pellets into the soil. I will have some of that fertilizer for sale soon. You can apply it anytime. Has Nitrogen Phosphorus, Potassium Plus Calcium, Magnesium Trace Minerals. Always fun to learn.
Don is opening up the fields and planted potatoes. Brenda is planting onions, nice.
Got the first load of blooming bedding plants in. They are fabulous. I found a new grower. The hanging baskets are out of this world.
The big news of the day is I’m on Instagram. What a gift to have a fabulous person to do this for me. She took a lot of photos. Fun to have great people to help me to make me look good. You can find me @atthefarmwaconia. Can’t believe this.
I have one more item to do. I will take charge cards. That is not my cup of tea, but the handwriting is on the wall, Heavens!
That’s it for now.
Donna
At The Farm
Instagram: @atthefarmwaconia
For Your Vegetable Garden
Blue tag certified
Seed Potatoes – Yukon Gold, Viking, Red Norland, Dakota Russets, Kennebec
Vegetable Seeds – sold in bulk
Onion Plants – Candy, Torpedo, Sterling
Onion Sets – Yellow
Shallots – Yellow
Chives, Onion, Garlic
Vegetable Plants
Herbs, Tomatoes, Peppers, Cabbage, Lettuce Plugs, Kohlrabi
Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)
Untiedt’s Vegetable Farm is now accepting Registrations for the 2020 season.
New this year is a Mini Share, designed for those who have a household of 2 people. You can also order the Family Share for households of 3-4 people. Pick up At the Farm on Tuesdays.
Learn more at http://untiedtswegrowforyou.com/store/untiedts-csa-program
“Register to receive your share of our fresh-picked fruits and vegetables, our famous State Fair sweet corn, and much, much more! We honestly believe our produce can exceed your expectations for homegrown flavor. We look forward to an opportunity where We Can Grow For You!”
– Untiedt’s Vegetable Farm