My Little Rabbit

It’s been a long while since I last wrote, mainly because I can’t seem to keep up with the speed of life. I suppose the biggest demand on my time at present is little Ward who seems intent on harming himself every minute of every day. In fact, I sat down to write this during his nap and in the 45 minutes that he was asleep, I handed off a bag of produce and chatted with a customer, sent an email to one of the teachers at the girls’ school, answered the phone, and chatted briefly with a friend who stopped at the door. Then he woke up. So now he is cruising around the dining room emptying every basket and box that has the contents of our life corralled. I will pay for this little indulgence.

In garden news, I’ve taken on three new working shares. I’m delighted beyond words to have help. I’ve gotten the fall crops in: lettuce, arugula, turnips, mustard greens, radishes, beets, carrots (which don’t seem to be germinating), kale, and chard. I’ve got more seeds I’d love to get out, but honestly, it might not happen. I’ve been thinking about the summer crops and want to get this down so I don’t forget. Four rows of eggplant are enough for 8 families. Two rows of okra are barely enough. I think one more row is needed. I had two rows of field peas, I could easily double that. I had three rows of potatoes, and I could easily triple that (if I could keep up with the darn hilling). The tomatoes … who knows … it’s been a bad year … the worms are driving me insane. It feels like at this point in the season every other ripe tomato has been eaten before I can get it off the vine. The green beans are just now really starting to deliver and they have also been devastated by insect damage. I have heard other friends who garden say they are also really battling with bugs this year so perhaps it is the extreme hot/dry conditions? I had two and half rows of cucumbers and they delivered way more than we could eat. Next year I need to stagger plant them so they aren’t all ready at once. The cantaloupe were delicious but one row wasn’t nearly enough. The watermelon, while it looked gorgeous, was a huge disappointment. The full size ones weren’t sweet enough and the little sugar babies were fuzzy in texture. I’ve uploaded a photo of me and the first watermelon I ever harvested. I was so stoked and felt like a real farmer. Then I ate it and felt a little like a poser. Oh well. Live and learn.

I’ve also uploaded a photo of an often seen occurrence: a very dirty, very tiny outfit hanging on the fence. Every time I see it I think of Peter Rabbit running from Mr. McGregor and losing his jacket. My little rabbit is every bit as mischievous. Speaking of, I had better run. He has scaled the stairs and is in his sisters’ room doing God only knows what.