For the Farm Stand this week, we're excited to offer some bare root plant boxes from Hauser's Farm in Bayfield. Fritz and Dane have put together some exciting options, all of which are available in the Choose Add On section of the Farm Stand. Normally, their famous Red Barn Plant Sale in Bayfield draws hundreds of people out each week (myself included!) to pick up cold hardy perennial plants dug from their fields. With safer at home orders still in place, here's a way to brighten up your home for years to come with some cold hardy perennials while still maintaining social distancing. Choose from the following boxes ($45 each):
Starter Perennial Collection – Easy care, different foliage, textures, and colors, 3 of each
Gaillardia - Goblin (red/yellow, 12”, full sun, blooms early summer to early fall)
Aquilegia - McKana’s Giant (pastels, 30”, partial to full sun, blooms late spring to early summer)
Iris, Sibirica - Ruffled Velvet (purple frilled, 24-30”, partial to full sun, blooms early summer)
Rudbeckia - Goldsturm (golden, 24”, full sun, blooms late summer to mid-fall)
Pollinator Perennial Collection – Nectar sources that support beneficial pollinators, 3 of each
Baptisia – False Indigo (blue, 24-36”, full sun, blooms late spring to early summer)
Saponaria – Ocymoides (pink, 8”, full sun, blooms late spring to early summer)
Rudbeckia - Goldsturm (golden, 24”, full sun, blooms late summer to mid-fall)
Rudbeckia – Magnus (rosy purple, 30-36”, partial to full sun, blooms early summer to early fall)
Shade Perennial Collection – Plants that love shady spots, 3 of each
Aquilegia – Biedermeir (mixed, 16”, mostly shade, blooms late spring to early summer)
Hosta – Elata (green, 18”H 36”W, shade, lavender blooms 30” in mid-summer)
Heuchera – Hybrid (pink, 18-24”, partial shade, blooms late spring through summer)
Astilbe – Fanal (red, 12-18”, partial shade, blooms early summer)
Herb/Vegetable Perennial Collection – For a taste of freshness from the garden, 3 of each
Asparagus (vitamin rich, well-drained soil, once established, crown can produce up to .5 lb)
Lovage (intense celery-like flavor, use leaves, stalks, & seeds, full sun, well-drained soil)
Sage (pine-like aroma, full sun, well-drained soil, long growing season)
Thyme – Culinary (full sun, drought tolerant, use fresh or dried, long growing season)
Here at Great Oak Farm, spring has sprung, and we've hit the ground running. Literally, running. Once the busy season starts, there is much to be done and no time to waste, so I usually jog from task to task to save time. I know when the busy season has come because my legs are tired by the end of the week, and friends, they are tired today! But we've got a planting schedule to keep, and Mother Nature to work around, so we have to make hay while the sun shines. Timing is everything on a farm.
In between their school work and zoom classroom meetings, the kids helped me get the tomatoes transplanted into one of the hoophouses this week, and we cover them up with heavy row cover every night to keep them extra warm. The other night, we had 26 degrees outside, and it was 32 degrees inside the hoop house (!) BUT the tomatoes survived just fine underneath the protection of the row cover you can see in the picture above. We'll trellis them up properly on strings once the threat of cold weather has passed, as once they are trellised we can't cover them with row cover any more. We do have a few portable propane heaters we can move out there if the temps plunge again this spring for extra insurance. Tomatoes are a precious crop here in the Northwoods.
Outside, I was able to get some field work done - fields worked up and beds prepped for early plantings of carrots, peas, and onions, which will get planted next week. Getting the beds prepped a week or two before planting helps us get a head start on the weeds, so it sure is a treat when the weather cooperates prior to spring plantings. This week, the first planting of broccoli got transplanted into the field (it's under row cover to help protect it a little more), and the third planting of broccoli just germinated. Yes, spring has sprung!
On behalf of all of us farmers and food producers in the Bayfield Foods Cooperative, thank you so much for your support. We're honored to be your farmers! Happy spring, and I hope you get a chance to enjoy this sunshine.
Yours in community,
Chris Duke
Farmer, Great Oak Farm
CSA Manager, Bayfield Foods CSA
