I’ve been splitting my time between job-hunting and the farm. My current job isn’t giving me enough hours to pay the bills, so I’m hoping to find something better.
In the mean time, garlic! I had 4 kinds of garlic planted in one bed. They were jumbled together enough that it’s hard to tell which is which. Some were ready to dig, most weren’t. But circumstances changed.
The spot where I was growing them is on a terraced part of my hill, near the road. This is a private road, not a public one. On a busy day you might see 10 cars pass by. Because it’s privately owned, most years that means I can plant stuff right alongside it, and only have dust to deal with. That makes this terrace a perfect spot for root crops most of the time.
Until now. This year, at the meeting with the other property owners who share this road, it was decided that it was time to spray the wild parsnips along the shoulders. So, ready or not, out the garlic comes! I have some that are so small it’s hard to tell they’re even there, and I have some that are full-sized and ready to pull. I dug every last one of them, no matter what stage they were at. Now I have two bags full, and not many places to store them. I’m thinking of braiding the smaller ones so I can hang them up. The biggest ones will be saved for planting.
Eventually, I have selected the perfect strain for my growing conditions. For now, everything’s still in testing phase.
On the plus side, my corn and beans are doing fantastic! They were late getting planted, but they caught up fast! I’ll have to start taking my squirt gun full of mineral oil next week so I can treat for ear worms.
Dust would be a real problem but oil is even worse. Do you have enough water to hose the dust off? And when do you plant your garlic. It’s mid October here on the west coast.
Hope you have good luck with the job hunt. Too bad about the little garlic. I only plant enough for our use. Most of mine this year turned out pretty big. I will use the tiny ones first also.
Garlic is one of my favorite things to grow, because it needs so little for success. We are getting quite a few squash and zukes, but not much else is ready.
Tomatoes are going to be slim pickins.