Report From PIA – February 27
This afternoon, as light snow fell and melted on the ground, I went to the shed to look in on my crate of lettuce seedlings. The shed is solar heated, and last year by mid-February the temperatures didn’t fall much below 35 f. This made us decide to see if we could grow an early crop of salad greens. If it works, I plan to cover the bench with crates in the fall and spring to see just how much food we can raise here over the winter.
The arugula was the first to sprout, and continues to be the overachiever in this group. All of the seedlings are very small, however, and it’s amazing to me that they are developing at all given our cloudy, cold weather. This past week there hasn’t been much sunshine to provide that solar heating.
After checking that the seed-starting medium is still damp, I stop for a minute to consider these tiny plants. They have such promise but are still so small…once the sun comes out I’ll need to be sure that the soil doesn’t get too dry.
These seedlings remind me that anything new – jobs, projects, friendships, quests, etc – need extra attention. I think of my friend who wisely decided to schedule the next family gathering on a date that was most convenient to her new daughter-in-law.
We are called to think about what we want to grow, and once we’re clear about this, we’re wise to know that extra focus and flexibility will be needed.
See how the arugula is stronger than the other greens?
If this crate of greens is successful, next fall and winter I'll fill the entire shed with stretch-the-seasons edibles.
