It's OFFICIAL!!!

GARDEN  2013  HAS  BEGUN!!!

It's that time of year!  Still winter, but spring is around the distant corner and it's time here in E Texas to put the onions in the ground!  Ever heard of "Noonday Onions" and the "Noonday Onion Festival"?   Google it if you're interested. You can even order an official Noonday Onion Cookbook from Amazon and AbeBooks.  I learned that the Noonday farmers around our parts plant their baby onions between Thanksgiving and Christmas for softball-sized big-uns - here's ya a link...

http://easttexasgardening.tamu.edu/industry/noonday.html

http://tastingspoons.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/noondayonions_thumb.jpg

http://www.tylerpaper.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=TP&Date=20090504&Category=BUSINESS01&ArtNo=905040306&Ref=AR&MaxH=300&MaxW=330

Where we lived prior to the farm was about 10 miles from  Noonday, which is within the 10 mile radius of official Noonday Onion growing.  I suppose we're too far away now to be official Noonday onion farmers, but I'm still raising Noondays.

Anyway...  here's one of my buckets of starts.

They are about 6" - 8" tall right now.  Sometimes I've gotten them around 3" - 4" tall, but these babies have already got a good start on 'em.  I will set out about 250-300. Dad's raising them, too. We love lots of green ones so they won't all make it to maturity.  They were scheduled to go in the ground this past weekend, but it rained and was nasty outside, so I've put it off til  HOPEFULLY this weekend.  I feel like I'm late to the party on getting MY onions planted!  I'd like to get some cool weather greens out, too.  We did break ground on the garden, but still have some tilling to do - that's the plan anyhow.  Yesterday and today the temps are around 75-76. (can you believe it?)  I turned on the A/C to clear the stuffiness.  It's about 98% humidity, too.  Good ole sinus headache weather... And it swells up the old wood doors in this little farmhouse and they don't wanna shut OR open.

Shout out to Kathy B. at Cedar Pond----  it's gopher season!!!  Well, it is on Sand Flat Farm all year long, but it seems that the gophers (bless their lil ole hearts) are being very prolific here lately and it's time for me to get out there and get to trapping!  Tony has kind of designated that as MY job.  He can do it, but I guess I do it better. (Why did I do that???  hmmmm...)

The chickens are pickin' up on their laying, too!  The hideous molt is over and the days are slowly but surely getting a teeny bit longer - which makes them lay more.  I did not light their coop through the winter - just gave them a rest.  We got 6 eggs yesterday from 10 hens!  They're all laying a bit EXCEPT the Ameracaunas.  Altho they are pretty and I love the green eggs, when I go to replace hens, next time I'm hanging with the Rhode Island Reds and Barred Rocks.  My RIR has laid all winter long, thru the molt, AND her eggs are HUGE jumbo sized.  She's scraggly looking still, but she's the best layer I've got. I don't know if all RIR's are like that or if she's just a great layer. (I don't know - maybe I'll keep an Ameracauna - just GOT to have some green in the mix...)

Tony asked me the other day if I still liked my chickens.  I gave him a resounding YES.  They are not pets (only one of them has an official name) but I have really enjoyed them, enjoyed taking care of them and learning all about raising chickens, handling eggs and all that stuff.  I haven't asked him, not one time, to do anything for the chickens. It's been totally MY responsibility and I've been glad to do it.  Don't even mind cleaning out the coop!  I keep it as clean as possible, doing a light clean-up every other day or so and once a week a good cleaning.  When the weather warms up a bit, I'll empty everything out and wash it all down and start all over again.

Well, it's supposed to rain later today, possible storms coming this way, so...   Luckily I'm home today, I'm cutting back on work again from time to time. I'm trying to get some painting done, and am working on a couple of paintings for my husband's office.  Fossils. (He's a geologist)  Yep, that's right - fossils.  Pictures to follow in another post.

Hang on to them skirts today girls- it's a windy one!

If interested, hop over to my art blog - a few new paintings for you!