What's blooming at Honeyrun...

Gorgeous peonies from our neighbor Irma Fenstermaker... technically not blooming at Honeyrun... but just down the road. These flowers smelled amazing!Wow... is May almost over already? I try to post at least once a month, and I can't believe my time is almost up. I thought I would show you what is blooming around the farm, and save an update on what is growing at the produce farm for next month (read: I have been too busy to go over to Becky's fields to take pictures!). I finally got all my cut flowers in the ground, watered in... and now the weeding begins. We are also putting in a pumpkin/squash/gourd patch that needs planted, but there is still time for that, right?
This is a "Flamenco Red Hot Poker." Only one plant is blooming so far and I hope to eventually be able to sell them as cut flowers. Below is my sage and lavender, side by side in their splendor. The bees have been so happy with these two plants, and I am quite proud of their performance this year. Soon I will start snipping the lavender buds to make our herbal infused honey.
The picture below are... yes, you guessed it! Strawberries! But they are a special kind of strawberry: Alpine Yellow Wonder Strawberries which I started from seed from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds. I was under the impression that they were annuals, but they came back stronger than ever. I enjoy looking at the dainty little flowers almost as much as I enjoy the fruit. I would describe the taste as 'tutti-frutti." It is a blast of flavor, in such a small, tiny, morsel that it is hardly even comparable to a regular red strawberry.
The berries are so tiny I have never actually picked a pint to bring into the house. I simply go out to the garden, find a few and eat them right there on the spot. It is tricky to know exactly when they are ripe because they stay yellow. Usually the insects know the perfect ripeness, because there are sometimes small indentations on the surface of the fruit. Those are the tastiest of all. If any of you readers out there want to try these, I would not mind digging up some of my plants and giving them away (you have to come to the farm or market to get them, though). Just send me an email or post a message.
Okay, so you can call this a rushed, uneventful post... but it is May after all and we aren't even done planting everything yet! This summer I plan to add a lot of great posts with recipes, beautiful pictures of Becky's produce, and information about the benefits and uses of Naturally Granulated Honey: a new product we are selling at the market this year. Come see us at market this weekend... it is going to be beautiful!

Honeyrun Farm Open House! Sunday May 2, noon - 7 pm

We will be hosting our annual open house for those who want the first chance to see our selection of herbs, hanging baskets, tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, as well as some annuals and living wreaths. This year we are giving away three door prizes and free homemade ice cream!

If you can't make it down to the farm, maybe you can catch us at a market in the upcoming weekends. We will be at Clintonville for the Sprout Swap on Saturday May 1st from 9-12, and at the Worthington Plant Fest on May 8th from 9 am - 4 pm. Come join us!

Ladybugs, Asparagus, and Earth Gathering!

The ladybugs are here! We have been releasing ladybugs in the greenhouse every night to control the aphids that usually appear this time of year. The funny thing is, we haven't really seen any aphids yet... so now I am worrying that the ladybugs won't find enough to eat. Kind of weird to actually want aphids so the ladybugs don't starve. I'm sure they will just roam outside into nearby fields if they don't find any in the greenhouse.

Have you ever wondered what an asparagus plant looks like underground? I think they resemble octopus tentacles. These are the "purple passion" asparagus I planted on Saturday. They are supposed to be more tender than the popular Jersey Knight asparagus, and emerge purple, but turn green when cooked. I really enjoy the tiny, slim, tender asparagus so I decided to give them a try. They are planted 6-8 inches deep in trenches (I dug holes because I was too lazy to use a hoe to dig the trench), and covered with 2 inches of compost. Asparagus cannot be harvested the first year, and for only 2 weeks during the second year. So these little guys won't be enjoyed until 2012. Asparagus is only for the most patient gardeners.
We also received 25 Golden Buff chicks in the mail last week. Here is our nephew Owen pondering the meaning of life while watching the baby chicks play.
This weekend marks the kickoff of our market season! We will be in Chillicothe for the annual Earth Gathering event. It is at the beautiful Yoctangee Park - Pump House Center for the Arts from 11 am-7 pm. Great food, music, art for sale, and kids activities.... and the weather is supposed to be great! We will be selling honey, soap, as well as a few cold-hardy flowers and herbs. Come join us!

Springtime at Honeyrun Farm

It's finally Spring! The winter has been fun and relaxing, and we are gearing up for another great season of honey, flowers, produce, soap, and farmer's markets. The bees are making their way out of the hives, trying to find pollen and nectar. I saw this little bee on a crocus last week, and Isaac mentioned that today he saw a lot of bees carrying the biggest pollen sacs on their legs that he had ever seen. Out of 80 hives, we have lost about 20 so far, which is a very good survival rate compared to other area beekeepers we have talked to.Becky and I started planting in the greenhouse on March 15th. The plants had one cold night as the heater quit working, but they survived and are growing well with this warm weather. As you can see we have some herbs (sage, rosemary, lemon verbena) started by plugs that are already coming along nicely. We are also trying some new organic controls for the aphids that usually turn up in our greenhouse. I am buying 5,000 ladybugs and releasing them inside the greenhouse, since they love to snack on aphids. We've heard other farmers have done this with great success.
Here's a new crop for 2010: Broccoli! I love the way broccoli sprouts look. And although I don't have a great camera or photography skills, I still attempted to do some justice to these beautiful little broccoli plants. Becky decided to grow these especially for her CSA customers. The rest of us might get some if we're lucky.
And here is one of the first little tomatoes that sprouted. So cute. It's hard to believe the bounty this one little plant will eventually provide. I am so ready for tomatoes and basil. Aren't you?
And finally... a picture of one of my little greenhouse "helpers." Maizy has done pretty well out in the greenhouse this year, keeping herself busy by crawling around the dirty ground, finding sticks to put in her mouth, and tugging at my legs. Mason likes to play with his dump truck on the dirt mound out back. It certainly has been a challenge this year with two mobile children... but the work is getting done and we are all enjoying it.
Our first market this year will be April 17 at Earth Gathering in Chillicothe. More info on this will follow!

Even Bees Get Cabin Fever

Everyone asks us, "What do your bees do in the winter?" The answer is, not much at all. They just kind of huddle up and try to stay warm. The temperature inside a beehive can stay pretty warm , due to the heat generated by the bees. They crowd around the queen and try to keep her warm. They also eat the honey they have stored up (the honey we didn't steal from them).

Today I walked outside to get some pictures of the hives covered by snow. It was a beautiful sunny day, even though temperature was still only hovering above freezing. I did not expect to see these bees buzzing around outside their hives! Some of them seemed a bit confused about the snow. I guess bees can get cabin fever, too.

And here is a picture of our 'honey house' near completion. Isaac has been working hard this winter; building frames for future hives, preparing pollen patties to feed the bees, and working on the interior of the honey house. There is a lot left to do, as we still need to install all the extracting and bottling equipment that is currently in storage. Hopefully it will completed in time to use it this summer!

When you are married to a beekeeper, you never know what you might stumble upon when you open the door to your freezer. Just the other day, I found a dead bee. Apparently, Isaac was saving it to show to the bee club (it is a queen bee). The freezer seemed like the best place to preserve it, of course.

Becky has started planting today, and is seeding her leeks that will grow for several weeks in flats in the sunroom, until we fire up the heater in the greenhouse in mid-March. The smell of the potting mix really brought back memories of Spring. It gives us something to look forward to. But for now... I am going to enjoy the snow, just as our bees are doing.