Circle M Farm

I’m sure there’s a whole great big pagan history of why Easter ended up being celebrated the way it did; why eggs and bunnies have come to represent the Western version of the holiday. It all somehow makes intuitive sense to me, and maybe that’s simply a factor of being born in the West and steeped in the culture. Culture is funny but it somehow works. Now that I’ve got this farm and I’m living more in tune with the seasons than I was able to in Chicago, I find many of those cultural givens make actual sense. continued »

No planting today. But I spotted the first sprouts! Who says a watched garden doesn’t germinate? “He who sees things grow from the beginning will have the best view of them.” Aristotle. He knew what he was talking about. continued »

Another day without rain, another chance to poke some seeds in the early spring soil! But I sure hope it rains tonight. In today:

• Mache, or corn salad, a tender green for fresh eating
• Field Peas, these are a cover crop in an area I’ve recently cleared of quack grass, luckily they taste delicious as shoots, too -Snap Peas -Dwarf Grey Sugar Peas -Blue Kale -Red Russian Kale, I’m going to try this baked with a little olive oil and salt, like chips, this spring. -Rainbow Swiss Chard, delicious, nutritious and gorgeous! -Dill -Forget-Me-Nots, a gift from a friend, went in the “Sit and Watch the Garden Grow Nook” a shady rock-walled spot next to the lower market plot

I had an epiphany while planting the spring garden this past week. Prostrate on the ground, hands cupped and gently sprinkling compost on the just-embedded seeds, I realized that I was praying. Really praying. continued »

Circle M Farm Almanac – Late March, 2007
“Poop, Poop, Glorious Poop!”

The weather is fantastic today, warmish with no wind, sunny and fragrant here on the farm. It’s hard to describe the smell, since we’ve got a mix of so many different kinds of animals making their marks on the pastures. continued »