Lettuce

March was incredibly warm in Rhode Island, lulling us into thinking that it was going to be a warm spring. April temps, however, were below normal and May has started out with the same. This has meant that some of the spring crops have been a little slow on the uptake. Lettuce and radishes are a bit smaller than usual and the beets and carrots are off to a slow start.

However, we have had some rain (we've had an eight inch deficit due to lack of snowfall and early spring rain this year) and it looks like the the second half of May will show a warm up. I'm not sure if it will be enough to have lettuce and radishes this Saturday for the Richmond Farmers' Market, but it is looking good!

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Chive Blossoms

I posted about chives earlier this spring when they sprouted in March. Here is a link to that post.

My favorite time is when the chives bloom with their pink blossoms. The flowers are edible and are great in salads. Or you can chop them up and add them to butter for a great spread.

Arugula

If you read this blog with any regularity, you know that Arugula is one of my favorite greens. I've posted about using it in pasta dishes (check out this link). In 2008, I posted about seeing wild arugula being harvested in Italy (check out this link). And I posted about one of my favorite activities in the garden, saving arugula seeds (check out this link).

This year the arugula is doing exceptionally well. Check out the heavy growth of the greens in the pictures above. By the way, if you're wondering about that red plastic in one of the pictures, it is a weed barrier. The less weeding I have to do, the more grateful my hamstrings.

I picked some arugula on Sunday and we have eaten it every day since then. On Sunday we had it in a lovely salad (it's best with shaved Parmesean cheese, I think). Yesterday, I had it wilted with some mushroom ravioli. Today, Karen made a pizze and topped it with arugula and cheese-Fantastic!

Bleeding Heart

Bleeding Heart (Lamprocapnos spectabilis) is a perennial native to Asia. It was introdued to Britain from Japan in the mid 19th century. We've enjoyed its heart shaped flowers for many years at One Love Farm. We plant Bleeding Heart in rich, moist soil with afternoon shade and they have thrived in these locations.

Creeping Phlox

Creeping Phlox is one of the showiest early flowers in the garden. They are a blanket of pastel blue, white and pink in April and May. As their name suggests, Creeping Phlox is an agressive spreading plant. The lavender flowers that are pictured above were started a few years ago from a single quart pot. Now, that has spread to an area five or six feet long. We have a half dozen of these plants in different colors that form a border defining the edge of the berm at One Love Farm. This post from two years ago tells a little more about the plantings on the berm.

Lilacs

Lilacs started blooming last week at One Love Farm. As with everything else, the blooms are three weeks early (see this post from last year about lilacs blooming).

My favorite place in the world to see lilacs is the Arnold Arboretum in Boston. They have a huge collection of lilacs and every May feature "Lilac Sunday." May 13th is Mother's Day so that would make a great trip for mom. If you can't make it up there, then cut some lilacs in your yard and give them to mom. I'm sure she'll love them.

Strawberries

We haven't planted strawberries at One Love Farm for several years. No reason, I just took the space and planted other veggies. But, last year I decided that I'd like to have strawberries again. So, I dedicated a 70'x6' bed and amended the soil with a couple yards of compost.

Saturday, I planted 150 strawberry plants. To allow the plants to establish, we will pinch off the flowers this summer. That means we won't get any fruit until next year. But, with 150 plants there wil be tons of berries next year.