Woman With Farm Seeks Man With Tractor

(FYI - If you've never read that book (which is actually titled "Man with Farm Seeks Woman with Tractor"), you are COMPLETELY missing out!)

With Ryan's immense help, we got about a 1/3 of the 2nd Garden plot rototilled today (thank you, Man With Tractor!), and managed to transplant 20+ artichokes & 4 mullein plants until the rain forced us indoors. I still have about another 10 artichokes to dig up in the Herb Garden and replant with the others (not to mention 50 or so sprouts in the greenhouse that will eventually be joining them). I also planted another small raised bed with some salad greens seeds today - can't wait for farm fresh salads every day!!! Thanks to the donkeys and the bad ass rototiller attachment on the new tractor, the soil in the 2nd Garden pasture is looking G-O-R-G-E-O-U-S!!! So beautiful and healthy, and I know that I am just going to have an absolutely amazing garden this year. After the rain made me go indoors, I sat down and tried to work out the placement of each crop in the 2nd Garden. I had already constructed one diagram, but then changed my mind and scrapped it. So I started over today, and I think I have finally figured out how and where I want to plant everything this year.

Given the recent stretch of "mild" weather here, I plan to get my bush pea seeds in the ground sometime next week. Then will come the Fava Beans, and a small patch of lettuce. I can't get my pole peas in until I have Ryan use the tractor to place some more compost along the fence line...

I really wanted to actually measure the dimensions of the 2nd Garden today, but didn't get a chance to before it started raining. Still, I would guestimate that it easily equals the footprint of our barn, making it AT LEAST 40'x40'! That's nothing to sneeze at considering that I have ANOTHER garden plot, an herb garden, and numerous raised beds too! At the rate I'm going though, my garden will outgrow my property in another few years!

Even though the weather turned wet, Ryan still managed to get in a quick photo shoot of me wearing my "new" vintage coat. I LOVE it!