We\u2019ve spent the last week doing what every backyard grower around here does in May: staring intensely at our grow boxes and planters, practically trying to coax the soil to life with our minds. If you\u2019ve been checking your own beds, you might have noticed things are moving a little slower this spring. Across our region, the soil has been sluggish, and the plants are waking up roughly a week later than they did last year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But patience is a required virtue for Northwestern Ontario gardening, and today we finally got the payoff we\u2019ve been waiting for. Our raspberry canes are officially starting to push out their very first buds. It\u2019s a subtle change, but if you look closely, you can see the promise of fresh leaves coming in the next few days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There’s still a lot of work to do though, as we move some from the overcrowded boxes into trenches we’ve dug so they can continue growing new shoots. We’re really happy with how they grew last year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Honestly, it\u2019s hard not to get excited when things finally start moving. Every year has its own rhythm, and after a long winter, seeing that first bit of green makes all the waiting worthwhile. We absolutely can\u2019t wait to see how the planters fill out and how everything thrives this season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Stay tuned as we kick off our summer land lab program and community garden program. We take photos of the garden every week from May to September. Once the weather warms up, the growth happens fast, and it is easy to forget how small the plants started out. Keeping a visual record of the grow boxes lets us see exactly how the vegetables and berries are developing throughout the season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n