On Youngberg Hill, we are continuing the journey of healthy farming and living in a sustainable environment. As our daughters get older and our Inn occupancy increasing we find ourselves going through more and more fruits and vegetables every day.  Given that, we decided to plant about a half-acre organic garden this year.  Not only would we get great produce from it, it would be good for the girls to work in the garden this summer.

So we began planting this month. The girls have been very helpful and taken ownership for the results it brings. We started in the house with seedlings of tomatoes, basil, chives, and cloves in cardboard rolls and eggshells.  We have since planted the tomatoes in the garden. We will plant seeds of tomatoes in the garden as well as grow plants that will provide fruit later. We planted starts of strawberries and asparagus in patches that will come back every year, although the asparagus won’t produce for a couple more years.

We planted sweet corn in another plot with room to plant more in a couple of weeks. We planted all the usual vegetables – carrots, radishes, lettuce, spinach, pak choi, leeks, cucumbers, pumpkins (for Halloween), beans, peppers, and potatoes.

We have been planting in accordance with the Farmer’s Almanac’s guidance regarding timing on planting. This is in concert with our biodynamic farming of the grapevines and our holistic practices on the property. By timing our planting of potatoes at the full moon, they will produce much better and that will be in concert with the rest of nature on the farm. Part of the biodynamic philosophy is that all of nature be in balance and syncronized. That applies to all plant, insect, and animal life on the farm.

As our garden begins to flourish, the girls are excited to see the changes each week, and to soon taste, literally, the fruits of their labor!