21 Apr Sun 2013
Transform!
The school task for students was to work on vocab. The worksheet included the trans-prefix. This meant that transition and transform were there. Both words are important in what we work to accomplish. It was transform that really caught my attention. Transform-to change in composition or structure. Wow, if that isn’t what I work so hard to do.
Take a seed, cultivate it. Water, care for and foster the plant to produce an edible food. The transformation from seed to cabbage or carrot is a marvel. The transformation of a pasture or yard to a productive garden that feeds wholesome food to a community is also a marvel. The efforts to support a diverse plant and animal life that fosters the natural cycles for growth is a transformative process. Some farmers and advisors encourage the easy fixes of synthetic inputs. We look to do our transformations in harmony with nature.
At Tillers are many that educate and support all types of transformation. Whether it is producing Timber framed buildings, culturing cheese, fermenting vegetables, blacksmithing or husbandry. The process of transforming is vital…
This morning it was 25 degrees! Ouch! Near record lows. Yesterday the ground was covered by an overnight snow shower. A white world…It’s has been so unseasonably cool that little has been started in the field. A few alliums have been moved and a bit of early seeding. Soil temperatures are still in 40’s so little will germinate and grow. A row of radishes has emerged and remains yellow and reluctant to do more. Flats and flats of ready transplants back up and await better conditions. Such a deviation from last year. Adapting and resiliency are necessary attributes of farmers and gardeners.
Farmer Pete
I hear ya. We've been going through the same things here. Can't work the soil and am a month behind in everything. Last year it felt like summer by now!