Take a Walk With Crazy Owl

Old habits are hard to break. Although, I no longer market to stores and don’t really need as much garlic as I’ve been growing, we still planted the same sized patch. Gotta keep those vampires at bay. It took me a long time to figure out where to put it. Last spring the garlic suffered…

Written by Jeff Poppen Tuesday, April 26, 2011 The light green of spring usually brightens me up, but I must admit to a sadness. Among other things, my friend “Crazy Owl” died. You may have met him, gray old fellow with a long beard. He was born in 1927, a long time ago. His family…

Farmers gamble. I’ve known that one day the Long hungry would rise up into our lower garden. For 14 years we have been blessed. No, I wasn’t surprised, or even sad, when four feet of water rushed over the carrots and peas. It was beautiful, with class three rapids, waves jumping several feet, and the…

Plowing and harrowing leaves the soil fully pulverized, soft and fluffy. Even after a rainstorm the tilthe will remain loose and mellow. If it gets hard, the organic matter is too low and there is nothing to fluff up. If the percentage of organic matter is high (4 to %%), a lack of biological activity…

Summertime in Tennessee brings forth the favorite fruits of the earth. Tomatoes and swee corn quickly follow on the heels of beans, squash and cucumbers, and the melons are swelling. So what am I doing out in the garden with lettuce and cabbage seed? We are planting the fall garden, now, during the middle of…

A great crop of garlic graces the garden shed. Tied in bunches and hung from nails in the rafters, it creates quit a sensation. Although the sight is on to behold, especially for garlic lovers, the aroma really stands out. Each clove of garlic, sown in the fall, makes a bulb. They are planted six…