tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-309139102024-03-19T00:34:08.193-04:00Bright Meadow FarmsRandom posts from my trials, tribulations, and successes as a kitchen gardener.Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.comBlogger315125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-23035800260974159342023-04-17T22:20:00.002-04:002023-04-17T22:20:34.287-04:00April Fools So, it is the 17th of April. The daffodils were open for Easter, but some of the blossoms are starting to fade away already. The crocuses and hyacinths have come and gone. Today I noticed that most of my tulips are blooming. The forsythia in my neighborhood have been blooming for a week. Today my order for 10 forsythia bushes arrived from Jung Seeds. Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-42990091657348450152023-03-26T16:46:00.004-04:002023-03-26T17:10:59.719-04:00Planting more seeds Today the temps are in the fifties and the sun is shining. Yesterday the wind was blowing in 50 mph gusts and it was cloudy most of the day, with intermittent showers. There is standing water in my garden, so I won't be putting in any seeds today, but I did plant a tray of tomatoes.My husband likes the Big Boy tomatoes He always tells me that I only need two Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-88205211810181088952023-03-24T20:31:00.002-04:002023-03-24T20:31:52.110-04:000hio Master Gardener Program I signed up for the Ohio Master Gardener program again this year. If you've followed me for a while, you might remember that I did this about 15 years ago in Crawford County because the classes were not available in Richland County. That was before I learned that my job was at risk because the Mansfield GM plant was closing. I transferred to GM Headquarters in Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-38422359684584446032023-03-18T15:17:00.004-04:002023-03-18T15:23:50.646-04:00And, 2023 begins. I planted some seed trays yesterday.I am going to experiment with making a photo of the seed packs in my garden log. Mesclun mx from BurpeeLast year's seedMicrogreens (Kohlrabi) from Ferry-MorseSalad alfresco mix from Garden TrendsI am not sure where this seed came from. It might have been from Harris Seeds? I planted two packets of this arugula from Burgess Seeds. I Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-5074825451977857282022-06-01T18:04:00.000-04:002022-06-01T18:04:22.509-04:00Mid-State Wool Grower's Cooperative Since I am in Columbus with my car, I decided to visit the Mid-State Wool Grower's Cooperative in Canal Winchester. With my bike, it would have been too far. But since I am travelling in air-conditioned comfort today, I stopped by without an appointment. They were very gracious. My first impression was that it was a large industrial building. As I opened Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-16436964854396633652022-06-01T09:53:00.005-04:002022-06-01T17:10:06.772-04:00How does your garden grow? I had a big rush to get my flats of seedlings planted before I left on my bicycle trip. Since I returned home last night to recover from pushing the heavy bike against a headwind on a 90-degree day, I thought I would walk around my garden this morning to see how things are going. Here is what I found.Hosta, iris, clematic doing well on west side of house. I believe this is Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-33384260096298528072022-05-31T17:21:00.008-04:002022-06-02T07:45:10.654-04:00A balm in (Mount) GileadI recently visited a sheep farm in Mount Gilead, Morrow County, Ohio, as part of a "Yarn Trek by Bicycle". For information on the bike trip, see this post. Roger Cox, along with his wife Jan, was named the 2022 Ohio Charles Boyles Master Shepherd of the year by the Ohio Breed Improvement Association. They raise mostly Katahdin sheep, which is a "hair sheep" breed.&Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-33064438115241673792022-05-29T23:00:00.001-04:002022-06-01T08:17:25.023-04:00Garden visit - Lexington, OhioI visited the Shady Lane Alpaca Farm as part of my Yarn Trek Bicycle Tour. Incidentally, I got to talk to the owner, Jean McClintock, about her raised bed gardens. They are doing quite well, her beans are at least a week ahead of mine. I do not have raised beds and I was unable to plant earlier due to the wet soggy spring we have had. Jean also pointed out the solar Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-82275422412459878982021-07-20T18:11:00.001-04:002021-07-20T18:11:30.175-04:00Late July update I went out of town for a few days to participate in a "crank-in" in Monticello, Illinois. You can read more about it on my Fiber Arts blog. But while I was gone, my flat of microgreens got not-so-micro-any-more. I am treating it as "cut and come again" lettuce from this point forward. While I was in Illinois, I had the opportunity to stop into a Dollar General. Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-10184087057355790022021-07-04T16:01:00.002-04:002021-07-04T16:01:35.791-04:00Knee High by the Fourth of July My dad always estimated the success of his and his neighbor's corn crops by the yardstick "Knee high by the Fourth of July." If it was at least knee-high, it would grow enough to harvest before the season is over. My neighbor's cornfield across the street, this year, is almost up to my shoulders! I didn't plant any sweet corn this year. But nevertheless, IBrightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-42163470466054851992021-05-03T16:23:00.004-04:002021-05-04T11:21:55.096-04:00Gardens, recipes, and travels in Seville Spain I recently travelled to Seville, Ohio as part of my "Grand Tour" of Ohio cities named after European capitols. You can read about my trip on my "BrightMeadow on Bicycle" blog.I was blessed to be able to visit Seville, Spain during my junior year abroad in college back in 1977. My friend and I travelled by train to Andalucia during Holy Week. This was during the era of Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-60446875047554818032020-11-25T10:27:00.002-05:002021-05-03T16:53:05.410-04:00Grand Tour - Rome countryside and fava beansThe next stop on the Grand Tour of Ohio is Rome. There are at least three villages in Ohio named Rome. My first stop will be in Richland County, since it is nearby. The traditional and modern cuisines of Rome, Italy is very typically what we think of as Italian food. Pasta in all its shapes and variety, especially spaghetti. Fresh vegetables abound. Fava, Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-84800668094094659502020-11-12T14:18:00.007-05:002020-11-12T14:37:23.247-05:00Strasburg Mecklenberg-Vorpommern, Germany vs. Strasburg, Ohio, USA If you follow my bicycling blog, brightmeadowbicycle.blogspot.com, you know that I am doing a series "Grand Tour of Ohio on Bicycle" where I visit cities in Ohio that are named after European cities. This week I rode a loop starting in Strasburg, Ohio. The town was settled by German immigrants and may have been named after Strasburg, Germany, although there is also a chance it Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-64498209012275240422020-11-06T15:54:00.002-05:002020-11-06T15:55:28.961-05:00Paris kitchen gardenA couple of days ago, I visited Paris, Ohio. I wrote about it on my bicycling blog. There is no comparison to Paris, France. As part of my research, I looked up kitchen gardens near Paris and I stumbled on The kitchen garden of Saint Jean de Beauregard, supposedly one of the most beautiful gardens in France. The website for the garden describes it "This kitchen garden, Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-60383128201656368552020-10-23T11:04:00.002-04:002020-10-23T11:04:51.964-04:00Garden getting ready for winter We had an early frost last week. I had intended to take some cuttings from the tomato plants to see if I could overwinter them, but it didn't happen. The predicted frost did happen, though. I pulled up all the landscaping fabric pieces that were between the rows of my tomato plants,and removed and untangled the tomato cages from the vines. Ed helped me by stacking the cages and Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-34413868806810639572020-10-16T14:32:00.000-04:002020-10-16T14:32:19.548-04:00The King's Vegetable Garden - Versailles, France On another of my blogs, Brightmeadow on Bicycles, I am writing about my latest goal of planning and executing bicycle rides through the cities in Ohio that are named after European cities. The Grand Tour, if you will. In the 1600's and 1700's, wealthy young men, and some young ladies, were encouraged to complete a year or two travelling through the different capitals of Europe.&Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-84196112291807716392020-10-09T09:53:00.002-04:002020-10-09T09:53:43.877-04:00Marigold Seeds I rode my bike on the Marion Tallgrass Trail yesterday. At each intersection along the trail, there were flowerbeds in the center of the trail, instead of the traditional bollards which warn riders of an intersection. At the trailhead, there were some really beautiful marigolds of three different varieties. Or perhaps one variety with three different appearances. I Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-23614765983815966492020-10-07T18:26:00.002-04:002020-10-07T18:51:24.951-04:00 These seed packets were waiting for me when we arrived home last night. I recently read an article about Matina tomatoes. I've been planting Bloody Butcher and Fourth of July and Independence Day salad tomatoes for the last 15 years. They are all early, small tomatoes. I rarely harvest any by the actual fourth of July, but usually have some by mid-July. I Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-44675465234249558362020-09-29T17:13:00.002-04:002020-09-30T10:25:14.018-04:00Back to your regularly scheduled programming. Life on the farm. Or at least the suburban garden. This year I planted a full tray of 72 tomato plants of several different varieties. I neglected watering them a few times, because my plant starting stand is in Ed's garage and I was in the warm house. So I planted the ones that survived in the garden. It turned out mostly the new variety of grape tomato (Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-66737205694351756552019-09-27T15:57:00.001-04:002019-09-27T16:00:13.677-04:00You CAN go home again. But it won't be the same. And neither will you be!Just moved back to my hometown in North Central Ohio. It is wonderful being back. Thomas Wolfe said "you can't go home again", but one of my very favorite authors, Gene Logsdon said you can. It's only been a couple of months, but so far it has been a voyage of discovery as there are many new businesses started and many old ones that no longer exist. In Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-47555142593121915292018-04-24T22:58:00.001-04:002018-04-24T22:58:22.369-04:00Old Age and Health IssuesI read a post today from an aquaintance that she and her husband would like to give up the farm due to "old age and health issues." Unfortunately, I think she is younger than I am!
My DH had a hip replacement last Tuesday. The weather in our area has been snowstorm after snowstorm after snowstorm. We have been waiting on spring to come. Finally, on Saturday, the snow Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-61973244335227413132018-03-17T14:42:00.001-04:002018-03-17T14:42:11.643-04:00St. Patrick's Day 2018Today is the traditional day to plant peas and potatoes in my part of the world, if it is warm enough. Here is the view from my window - there is still snow on the ground. Although it is sunny today, the ground is still frozen, so I will wait a little longer. The last frost date here is the end of May, counting backwards 6-8 weeks for starting seeds indoors, would be the first Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-62364143315884116662018-03-05T09:48:00.001-05:002018-03-05T09:48:20.535-05:00Invasive Species Awareness WeekThis is Invasive Species Awareness Week - and I have noticed the garlic mustard in my flowerbeds, drawing in the warm spring sunshine and building up sugar in its roots. Time to get these plants is now, while they are small. Don't wait for them to build up root systems and potentially spawn off new plants!
The good folks at Ohio State University Extension service have Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-63734894332336144582017-07-29T20:58:00.000-04:002017-07-29T20:58:16.084-04:00This year's gardenSince I spent six months recovering from a hip surgery and a hip surgery revision, my husband refused to till up the "big" garden in the back of our yard this year and only tilled a small 25 x 20 space closer to the house.
I've got tomatoes, cabbage, peppers, zucchini, yellow squash, potatoes, green beans, radishes, a few beets, some lettuce, snow peas, and onions. TheyBrightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30913910.post-22724397490043132412016-04-30T07:41:00.000-04:002016-04-30T07:41:08.994-04:00The Michigan soil is very sandy. The water table is high, but any water I put on the garden runs through it because of the sand.
I had some landscaping done around the house, and I took all the old dirt, full of weed seeds, to the vegetable garden. Because the landscaping had been repeatedly mulched, my reasoning is that the mulch has broken down over the years and will provide Brightmeadowfarmshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10159674153281927729noreply@blogger.com0