To Market, to Market

It has been a busy week. Very much so...

The garden has been demanding weeding, and more and more it is possible to do, as the most recent seeded plantings are beginning to show. AKKK!!! Well, I must remember this is a first year garden, and it will do what it can. As much as I long for a tiller, I KNOW in my heart of hearts that, slow as the process is, the BEST way to deal with the massive "grass" problem is by loosening the soil and pulling the bastards. These are all runner grasses... crab grass and the like... and they are sending out rhizomes like mad. Every small piece not accounted for will become MORE, and tilling... well it would make many, many small pieces.

So ever.... so.... slowly.... row by row, it is getting done. My loose goal is "a row a day" and some days I make it and some days I don't even start (like today, town day).

It is interesting to see the differences with the land, row by row as well... and when I am done, my hands will have been through every last inch of tilled land. The first few rows I weeded yielded a quarter of a cart of weeds (more or less) and about half a bucket of rocks for the driveway holes. This last row I got about the same for weeds but a full harvest of rocks. LOL

On another note, though, this week begins MARKET! I learned about the Artisans Market, Thursday evenings in downtown Bangor a while back, and on a whim, signed up for a table, specifying that I would be selling produce, herby-stuff and hex signs. I signed up as Dutch Hex... but my friend Ann and I are working together to market our produce and have come up with the "Stone Soup" name for our collaborative venture, hence the "Stone Soup" on the sign... Her farm is called Abundant Acres. If this works well (and she is lining up other marketing venues for just produce as well for this season, closer to her home turf, to which I will contribute) we would like to do more next year. Next year, too, I already know that I need to plan for more staggered plantings, and starting some things, like early beet greens, under row covers.

But for now, it is crunch time! I "lost" a day of weeding to making the stretched canvas sign (photo, above) and today I need to get our shelter and other odds and ends while in town on our town day. And since I don't have a lot of hex signs in stock at present, I need to make a portfolio book as well, and figure out how to showcase the ones I do have.

Better get cracking!!