Mowed Grass and a Picnic Table

Hello again! This week the Permaculture Site got a huge makeover. We were able to mow the field and area around the veggie production site. The tall grass if gone, the clover is under control, and the sun kept shining between all the strange rainstorms this week. The picture to the left is the view from the picnic tables underneath the oak tree. Nothing better.

Jess and I kept chugging away at little projects. We mulched more of the pollinator garden above the raised bed area, and picked up some more flowers to be planted there soon. One of our favorite flowers is the cup plant, or Siliphium perfoliatum. This flower is named as such because the leaf folds inwards to connect to the main stem, forming a small cup. These cups can fill with rain water, which become micro watering holes for bees and other pollinators.

We planted beans of all different varieties, including black, provider, gold rush, and royal burgundy - we saw the first bean sprouts in the black beans in the raised bed this morning! Black beans are a little different from the other beans listed above, which are just the classic string beans. Black beans are dry beans, and this is the first time we have grown them at SMC. The plant will grow fast, and the beans will remain on the plant to dry in the late summer/fall. When it is time to harvest, we will have a little harvest party because there are a couple extra steps to take before we are able to sell them.

We also had another incredible Salad Day on Wednesday, so thank you for all who came down to share some lunch with us! To the right you can see a picture of the salad Jess made for the HR department right here at St. Mike's. The first couple beets we harvested last week really brought some wonderful color.

As some of you may have seen at Farmstand, we have harvested a lot of garlic scapes. Garlic scapes can be put in stir fries, on top of pizza, or can be used as the main ingredient in garlic scape pesto. Check out some recipes for scapes, and stop by the next Farmstand to get some!

As always, the Permaculture Site is open to everyone Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday 8:00-3:00. Please come down whenever you are free to help out or to just enjoy the space! On Wednesdays 12:30-1:00, we will be having salad days. Salad from the garden, fresh bread, and homemade butter, bring your own bowl! In addition, there will be a self-serve farmstand in the Center for Women and Gender 9:00-4:00 most days. We will be having our big Farmstand every Thursday 11:00-1:00 outside Alliot, please stop bye and say hello! 

See you soon,
Erin