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Greetings! This may be one of the coldest starts to March in a very long time, but all the signs of Spring are here, and it will happen soon! We usually start prepping our field and planting peas and fava beans and some green manure crops on March 17th, but it looks like it is going to be a late start this year! At least we have seed catalogs to look through, and I am finding it very therapeutic to be planning and prepping for spring, and being able to teach workshops and do talks with groups of gardeners has been so much fun!
 I do have thousands of seeds started... And the little seedlings are so green and full of anticipation and getting ready to be transplanted in waves! So I decided I should offer a set of Transplanting Sessions as a follow up to the Seed Starting Workshops we've been doing... The Transplanting Sessions will be heavily hands-on workshops focusing on providing lots of experience with different types of vegetable, herb, annual, and perennial seedlings. There will also be tips and tricks and lots of organic gardening info ... and these sessions will also be a good opportunity to get individual questions answered! Transplanting Sessions are up to 3 hours long, the cost is $12 per person, and there will be free plant giveaways! Current Upcoming Transplanting Sessions:
Monday, March 24th from 10 am to 1 pm
Thursday, March 27th from 9 am to 12 pm
Thursday April 3rd from 10 am to 1 pm.
You can join us for one or all three, and I may be scheduling some more sessions in the future. Please register by using the PayPal pull down menu on our Workshops page! just CLICK HERE!________________________________________________________________________________
 A big announcement! We just had a spot open up in our CSA program, which had been Sold Out since January!
So if you missed out on registering and want to be a part of our CSA program this season, please send me a note by replying to this email.
The final CSA share will be given on a 'first come first serve' basis .... so don't hesitate if you want to join us this year!
To register, or for more information, please go our CSA webpage:
http://www.midsummerfarm.com/CSApage.htm
Click on the registration form, and mail it to us with a check. ~Just remember to please email me first!~ ________________________________________________________________________________
The soil is its own organism and entity in the garden, and it is often ignored or simply used to produce plants. I view my soil as an integral part of the farm, and I work toward nurturing and feeding it just as I  feed my plants, my animals, or myself! A healthy and full soil has an abundance of fauna and flora within it that all contribute to a healthy and abundant garden. At the talk on Saturday, I'll be going over what I do to create a Rich and Sustainable Nutrient Base for my garden, and I'll be going over the nutrients and elements healthy holistic soil needs as well as how to grow and encourage those elements in your own soil.
I'll be covering a wide variety of very successful soil building tactics from compost piles, to manure and herbal teas, biodynamic preparations, using dynamic plants and herbs, and encouraging mycorrhizal colonization. The main focus is on establishing diversity within the soil-food-web so your garden is resplendent with super-soil! Students will go home with a dose of our own homemade Biodynamic 500 preparation. Hope to see you there on Saturday!
Cost is $20 and all proceeds go to the HVGA. Register by clicking here!And I thought I would share one of my favorite Soil-Builder Recipes:
Alfalfa Nutritive Garden Tea
(this is for your garden soil's micro-herd - it is not for human consumption!)
Step 1: Add about 4 cups of alfalfa pellets to a 5 gallon bucket of water.
Step 2: You an also add a spoonful of molasses (optional). The molasses will speed up microbial growth.
Step 3: Pour the bucket of alfalfa pellets and water into a second empty bucket and go back and forth pouring the buckets into each other a couple times. This process is called boxing.
Step 4: Let it sit and brew about 3 days, boxing it at least once a day.
Step 5: After 3 days, you can carefully pour the tea along your garden rows, or strain and spray on the soil surface around tender seedlings.
I find this works amazingly well for establishing young transplants in the garden. This Alfalfa tea is super-charged and really wakes up a soil. It attracts earthworms and nourishes and encourages other insects and good micro-organisms as well. Give it a try this spring as you transplant!
Best Always,
Barbara and Mark
Midsummer Farm
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