No two days the same

I worked several jobs over the years.  Car hop at A&W, consultant, teacher.... Almost all of my jobs had regular schedules for some period of time.  Farming doesn't work that way.  Nature tells you what you can do when.  Sure, there are certain jobs that are done daily, but not always the need to do at 8AM types of work.  Chickens and Turkeys can go out at 8 or they can stay inside on a bad weather day.

So, today is catch up day.  I've weighed and watered the fodder experiment.  At Day 4,  weight has now doubled in the Oats that we are sprouting and growing for 9 days.  They have sprouted at a rate of about 85%, as of today, with some more expected in the next couple of hours.  Today they go into the pan and will be watered from the top.  I already figured I need to use different pans to allow for some drainage in the future.  Not quite the 10 fold increase that they suggest, but a good start.

I also went over to the creek to harvest some water cress and other greens.  I've transplanted them into the pond for some other food sources for the ducks.  I managed to find some clay to harvest for an art project as a bonus.  I did however, manage to find some quick sand and ended up about a foot under the mud.  Didn't lose the muck shoes, but there is sure mud all over.  Socks are now grey.

I worked on the garden yesterday because of my germination problem.  Both my onions and potatoes have sprouted.  I got them both into the garden yesterday and all are buried.  We are still warm enough to have some root growth, but I'm not counting on the warm weather continuing.  I'm mulching and covering well.  I think I'll harvest as I need them or store underground next year.  One of the things about growing naturally, by not putting unnatural chemicals on any of the food, you tend to get this kind of crazy growth even under the conditions that would normally preserve food through the winter.  Hard to find places that will stay within range without freezing.

It doesn't seem that this time of year should have all that much gardening going on, but it does around here when we are trying to create a sustainable system.  When there is a glitch in the system, it needs addressing.  That's why it is a good thing there is time flexibility in farming.