I know that the last frost date for our area is around Mother’s Day. I know this fact, but in the 15 years I have been here, it has never been that late. Last week’s warmth almost fooled me, but instead I just put out a couple of over wintered plants. The past two nights have played around freezing, those plants were tucked tight up against the house and covered with a beach towel at night.
Instead of being tempted by the warmth to plant seeds, I nurtured the seedlings indoors or out in filtered sun for part of the day and worked on the fencing. I thought I had it so the chickens could keep the weeds around the garden scratched down and help reduce the bug load. A few nights ago when I went out to lock them up for the evening, most of them were in the garden, scratching around my pea shoots and spinach. I chased them out through the gate, in the chicken pen gate and worked the next morning at figuring out how they got in. There was a spot where the fencing was bent about 3 inches off the ground and they must have gone under. An electric fence step in post was used to force the bend down and a large rock added to block the hole. All was good, I thought. They continued to scratch down the weeds, clearing the path around the garden. Last night in the cold and very gusty wind, I went out and one was on the egg door, one in the middle of the peas again. The one on the egg door was an Olive Egger and they will let me pick them up, so it was put in the coop. The other was a Welsummer and they won’t let me close to them, so again, she was chased out the gate and right in to the run gate and into the coop. I went out this morning and I can not see where she got through the fence or the other one out. This morning, they are blocked from the new run. If the day warms up enough, I will go investigate more.
Today and tomorrow are warmer with milder nights, but we have severe weather warnings for tomorrow night into Monday morning, then another chill down. For now, I will shift and cover plants, nurture the seedlings, and continue to prepare the last bit of the garden for seeding and transplanting when true spring comes.
LATER:
I did go back out and found another place the hens had dug under the fence so I filled it and blocked it with a board and big rock. After dinner when I took the garbage out, they had all gotten around the barricade and into the run and two of them were in the garden again. I guess my idea is just not a good one. They may be confined to their pen again until dinner time after the dogs have been out, then they get yard time til dark.
I harvested my first asparagus spears this afternoon and enjoyed all 4 of them. There are many coming up and I know that soon I will have more than I can eat and will begin giving them away. I do enjoy fresh from the garden asparagus. Like peas, potatoes, and corn, even a few hours from harvest changes their taste from natural sweet to starchy.
Our Easter tradition has been for daughter to prepare ham, potatoes, asparagus (if they are up by then) or peas, and deviled eggs and I prepare pineapple upside down cake and we eat together. Not this year, sadly. I will prepare a half of pork tenderloin, au gratin potatoes, peas, deviled eggs, and rolls for just the two of us. I won’t bother with dessert. Maybe next year, family traditions will have returned. Or will we be living a new normal?