Tater Time and Pink Lady Slipper Sighting! Planting Potatoes

Tater Time!

Boy, am I sore!

Sunburnt as well, but I slept great!

Yesterday (Sunday) was filled with sunshine and blue skies! So we spent the day outside!

We worked our tails off, digging holes, tilling, marking, and weeding. Then came the planting, amending, and covering.

I can type that in five seconds, but it took us all day to accomplish this outside!

We chose to plant in our long mountain terraces again. Last year, our potatoes did not do well, and we believe this is due to us amending our newly turned soil with leaves that had not thoroughly composted. Now they have broken down, and we’ve worked that into the soil. We did notice that the potatoes improved once they burrowed into the ground beneath the leaves.

Everyone worked so hard!

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This year, we have amended the holes with two products. Both of these are intended to improve the health of the soil and encourage better root crops.

The first amendment is the Mycorrhizal fungi which Greg placed into each hole. This is a root inoculant, which promotes vigorous root growth. It has excellent ratings, and since potatoes are a root/tuber crop, this fungi is recommended for boosted growth.

It is interesting to note (for me, anyway) that the Mycorrhizal fungus is normally present in some of our soil, because we have Pink Lady’s Slipper orchids all over the property. Read about the symbiotic relationship between the mycorrhizal fungi and the soil. The Pink Lady’s Slippers require the fungi in order for their seed casing to open up.

The second soil amendment Greg added is the Azos soil bacterium, which helps the plant to fix nitrogen and boost growth. It is best used in conjunction with the mycorrhizal fungus (above) for improved production and less transplant shock on transplants. A little bit goes a long way. Follow the instructions on the packaging.

That’s it for what we added to the holes, except the chitted potatoes! (chitted potatoes are made by cutting them into pieces with eyes and then drying them for several days before planting)

We planted close to 1000 feet of potatoes! That was two bags! We have one more bag to plant! So the work’s not done!

Oh, and remember those potatoes Adam and I planted in the Winter? Well, they are growing well now! We can see plants in the raised beds, so my May’s end, I predict we will have a harvest! Experimenting with Planting Potatoes in Winter. Whether it’s a large or small harvest, it will be better than wasting them!

Adam and I snuck away for a couple minutes to take a little walk into the forest. I had one thing on my mind—the Pink Lady’s Slippers. I knew it was nearing the time of their appearing!

Sure enough, we found our first shoots for this year! We even found one with a flower, but not yet in bloom! Within a week, we will have a gorgeous pink flower, with more to come! We found about 15 in the woods out behind the house on our brief walk up the hill.

I did take another walk through the front of the property below the terraces, where I normally find a whole bunch of Lady’s Slippers. I didn’t see any out there yet, but I did not search, just took a quick walk to check out the terrain for another reason.

I was reminded of this fact: the flowers are always blooming out there, yet we rarely catch a glimpse! It’s only when we go out searching that we find the beauty.

That reminds me of our walk with God. The promises in the a Bible, as well as all of the blessings in Nature, wait quietly for us to discover them. They are the hidden treasures! What a blessing awaits us if we will search them out!

And the other lesson is in familiarity. Because of my love for the Pink Lady’s Slippers, I search. I know what the tiniest shoot looks like. This is because I have gone hunting them many times! I’ve learned to identify the smallest sprig of fuzzy green for what it is—the promise of a lovely bloom! Most people would tread over that nondescript set of leaves and not notice it! I would like to be that familiar with the spiritual changes too—to notice the tiniest verse and see the promise contained in it.

Stay tuned for the blooms, but for a sneak peek at what they will look like, please check out Lady’s Slipper Lane (with Free Printable)

Whatever your passion—be it wild orchids and Spring wildflowers like me, or something else, I encourage you to make a little sliver of time for it today! The work will wait, those taters will still get planted, but we can’t continue to waste another day without including a little spark of beauty or enjoyment. It’s good for ourselves, and it’s good for our families to see that work is not all there is in life!

Have a gorgeous day!

And stay tuned! I predict we will have flowers to show by the end of the week!