Imbolc Valentine Moon
Brother Mark, within a hundred miles of the Rub al Kahli, the empty quarter, asked me about the winter and the garden. Here’s my reply:
It has been our most severe winter since 1978-79, which was only 8 years after I moved up here. We just got 10 inches of snow and the temperatures are headed back down. It’s 2 right now and we have -15 for a low forecast this Thursday. Snow in our front yard is as high as my hip. The raised beds in the vegetable garden have disappeared.
All the dogs are good right now. Gertie gets around much better since she had the surgical crimp removed from her left rear knee.
Kate’s away at quilting retreat with her sister Anne. Just me, the dogs and lots of snow.
Last year I began using products from International Ag Labs and they increased our production even though I used them for only part of the season. The broadcast fertilizer went down fall and this spring I add nitrogen. There’s also a transplant formula to use when planting. These products improved the microbial life in the soil and add minerals found missing through soil tests. I tested the vegetable garden and the orchard last fall.
International Ag labs moves gardens and farms toward sustainable agriculture by creating healthy soil. This has always made sense to me and I’m pleased to have found them. Bill Schmidt found them.
Over this weekend I plan to place my seed and plant orders. Once I’ve done that I can 
order nitrogen in forms specific for specific plants. This means I will no longer have to rotate my crops because I’m building soils designed optimally for each plant type.
Tomatoes, beets, cucumbers, melons, bush beans, sugar snap peas, leeks, greens, herbs and peppers. The garlic’s already in the ground. This fall I’ll plant scallions at the same time I plant garlic.
The orchard is part of the program this year. That means I’ll be spraying the trees as well as the vegetables. These are foliar feedings, not insecticides. That’s a weekly, sometimes twice-weekly job. There, are, too soil drenches every other week.
Aren’t you glad you asked?
