growth

lots of new growth in the basement recently...the yacon is coming along and the third rhizome has finally put in a appearance after well more than a month...

the spuds i transplanted came in rather low relative tot he lights because of space restrictions...so they are becoming "leggy" reaching for the lights...no worries...backfilling the containers will give them support and stimulate tuber production...win/win...

mashua continues to vine on the trellises...

the teosinte plant dead center i the photo has sprouted a second set of silks from a branch...a second ear...the gardener is pleased...

the compliment the original silks and the extant seeds...we have gotten further than i expected...hopefully there is more to come...

finally there is Jean's puddle wheat...looking robust while cohabiting with onions and entertaining a spud.

gleaned

when i visited this field forty-two days ago...

i found an abundance of field corn , on cobs and lying loose, that the harvester had missed and left behind...these photos were taken over an area three rows wide by ten feet in length...sloppy harvester work...or a malfunctioning harvester...

today when i walked down those same rows...

i did find a scattering of corn still attached to the cob ( and the last one with exactly one kernel laying nearby ) but not nearly in the numbers i did in december and i had to walk the rows searching for it...it was not the apparent corn it was a few weeks ago...

what i mostly found was lichen ( yet another green commentary on the month )

and empty cobs slowly releasing their six pounds of nitrogen per ton back into the soil...wildlife has been at work.

indecision revisited

the temperature in my back yard remains somewhat atypical for nearing the end of january in these parts...

the imported wild strawberries are seeming to be alright with the anomaly..

as are the local wilds...

and the winter rye was probably going to persevere no matter what...

brussels sprouts are biennials so their overwintering last year was to be expected...and, while some of the stalks are clearly finished, these two seem to be very green for january even though they too were planted in 2016...i wouldn't expect a third year from these...they flowered and i am assuming, set seed so i could look for volunteers in spring...we will be keeping an eye on these two anyway...

the leaf mulch on the ramp bed has irrupted in very green lichen ( green is a theme for this month seemingly ) as the mulch begins to break down ( processes in the garden slow considerably at times but rarely seem to stop ) which will, i hope, please the ramps,...

as i was pulling back the mulch on the ramp bed to have a look underneath this popped up...it is no ramp..looks more like some sort of a grass...its presence seems to be a commentary on the month...and the season so far.

spuds, vines, silks...and, most importantly, seeds

the spuds i transplanted last saturday have adapted to their new environment fairly well and have begun to expand to their larger quarters tot he extent that i have already begun to "hill" them...

there is excellent growth in the much slower yacon as well...however still no word from the third rhizome in the container...

one mashua plant is looking questionable though these two are doing just fine...

while the largest of the vines has firmly attached itself to the trellis...

the biggest news of the day is over in a teosinte container with its cohabitants the nasturtiums...

the first plant to sprout silks...

has been joined by a third...

however both have been leapfrogged by the second which has produced not only silks, but seeds...without a husk and the viability is very questionable...i am somewhat giddy to have gotten this far though.