winter projects

Yesterday was another farmy day of winter projects. During the summer I received a grant to install a high tunnel. I have one already that I have been growing in during the winter and well two would be great, actually so would seven. Getting the word that my grant was accepted felt like wining a prize. A free hoop house that I could turn into vegetables and profit! Woo hoo! So the hoop house went up thanks to some CSA members, all but the plastic and the ends remained.

I thought I might be able to wait on the putting the plastic on and the ends but I was told on Monday afternoon I had to put the ends and a door on. So yesterday that's just what I did. It wasn't on my list of things to do so I had to readjust my OCD leanings. Now the only thing that is missing is the plastic. I don't plan on planting in it until late January so the longer I can go with out putting the plastic on the longer the plastic wont have to be under attack from the Oklahoma weather. But I am anxious to have the whole thing done and ready when I need it so I may just wait until the next somewhat still day and call a few folks to help me pull it over. Its definitely not a one person job unless you want to see that one person loose their mind in a matter of seconds. With three or four hands it goes over in minutes.

Spending as much time out in the garden yesterday got my mind going again. Thinking about what I will plant, remembering and making mental notes of what did well what did not. What varieties of this lettuce do I want and so on. I got excited. I looked back at my planting list from last year and read the notes I had made. I read the desperate cries of failure and the notes of what not to do. What a gift to have a year of mistakes behind me. Fabulous lessons I can now appreciate.

I've got a list of winter projects and I've been able to tick them off with great satisfaction. My goal is to have most everything done in December so January I can relax, take some time off, read, write. Come Fabruary the games begin and I would be a fool not to take as much time as I can in January to re- fuel my body, spirit and my mind.