easter. 2013. snow and ice
spring 2013 is one of those springs that seems will never come. it's been snowing for the past few days here in MN, and if it weren't for a nasty stomach bug i contracted, i might have even gone skiing again. everyone around me (which i might note, is only people in the cyber world, since this stomach flu has made me bedridden for a whole week...) is wishing it would stop snowing and start being like last april when it was a balmy 70 degrees. this is how i feel about the situation:
i would like to take this time to remind everyone that the midwest had a massive drought last summer and we are STILL in it. we need precipitation of any form, snow, hail, sleet, ice, rain, whatever. now everyone step back a minute, stop complaining that you can't wear your daisy dukes yet, and remember that this snow is vital to your LIFE.
ok i'm done now.
if you want spring to come early, just start some seeds. it's a great way to have some green around while there is still snow outside. just plop 'em in some dirt, water 'em, and voliá, seedlings! right....?
unfortunately, i've found that starting seeds to be one of the more difficult parts of farming. a lot of it has to do with the timing. every vegetable/flower/herb is different. and even different varieties can have different seeding needs. this all becomes more difficult when the only place you have to store your seed beds is your grandparents sleeping porch(my house doesn't get enough light), which is in a different city (luckily only across the river!).
however, this year I was determined to remember that seeds need to be started EARLY! the spring equinox was march 20th this year, and I started tomatoes, onions, peppers, and eggplant right around then. it wasn't as overwhelming of a task as i thought. a lot of plants prefer to be started outside after the ground is no longer an ice block. it is mostly plants that here in snow-in-april-mn need a little extra time to get going, otherwise they won't make it to harvest. it is a little nerve racking, starting seeds, it seems like for some reason, they are never going to come up. but, miraculously, seven to ten days later:
this all brings to mind a great quote from an, ehem, awesome movie from the early nineties, Fern Gully. if you haven't seen this movie, you should. i'm pretty sure it partially made me who i am, watching it as a malleable three year old. anyway, one of the characters says:
all the power of creation lies in a single seed
it is amazing how a tiny, dry seed can (if cared for properly) produce delicious life sustaining fruits. and people say magic doesn't exist. sheesh!
i am not going to go on here about the finer details of starting seeds, books have been written about this subject! i find that the packets the seeds some in, or the website/catalog you buy from give pretty good instructions for the beginning farmer.
another cool thing about starting your own plants is that if you have Food Stamps, you can buy seeds with them, rad! since they will eventually be food, the government justifies purchasing them with EBT.
i am excited for the snow to melt and get outside. i have lots of spring projects planned for my yard. it's by no means a farm, but you've got to start somewhere! it might be a while though, this was the view from my window last night:
april 12, 2013, minneapolis
on the other hand, around 5:12 this morning (i don't need to tell you why i was up, remember, stomach bug?) while it was still snowing, the birds were chirping. that is definitely something you don't hear in the dead of winter.
spring is here.
