One of the reasons I like using Earthboxes is I can control the moisture the plants receive. In the past years gardening where we are located the problem has been too much moisture. Then last year, 2012, it was too little moisture.
Of course with Earthboxes you can not control the temperature, you can somewhat control the amount of sun your boxes receive by where you place them. But you are still dependent on the temperature (warmer vs colder year) and sky condition (cloudy vs sunny year). Earthboxes are still susceptible to insects, blight, and critters although they are somewhat minimized by having the boxes close by the house for regular inspection by the humans and the schnauzers. Last year the stripped ground squirrels would steal some of the cherry tomatoes or eat holes in the larger tomatoes much to consternation of the schnauzers. They seemed to stop feasting on our tomatoes after a tangle with the schnauzers in which one of the squirrels became a trophy and also a present for Mom.
Getting back to moisture some of you may remember the comparison in rainfall for the past several years I did in a post last year. There are several ways to illustrate variation in precipitation from one year to another. One way that is quite dramatic is a picture of one our flower gardens from 2011 compared to a picture of the same area taken in 2012.
Another way to illustrate the difference in rainfall over the past several years is to look at the measurement of how much precipitation has actually fallen. There are a group of volunteers around the US and Canada that record and report the amount of precipitation that has fallen at their location. These people of which I am one belong to a group called CoCoRaHS. CoCoRaHS is an acronym for the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network. CoCoRaHS is a unique, non-profit, community-based network of volunteers of all ages and backgrounds working together to measure and map precipitation (rain, hail and snow). By using low-cost measurement tools, stressing training and education, and utilizing an interactive Web-site, our aim is to provide the highest quality data for natural resource, education and research applications.
The network originated with the Colorado Climate Center at Colorado State University in 1998 thanks in part to the Fort Collins flood a year prior. In the years since, CoCoRaHS now includes thousands of volunteers nationwide. CoCoRaHS is a community project. Everyone can help, young, old, and in-between. The only requirements are an enthusiasm for watching and reporting weather conditions and a desire to learn more about how weather can effect and impact our lives.
Each time a rain, hail or snow storm crosses your area, volunteers take measurements of precipitation from as many locations as possible. You do not have to measure all three, I just measure rain and snow. These precipitation reports are then recorded on www.cocorahs.org. The data are then displayed and organized for many of our end users to analyze and apply to daily situations ranging from water resource analysis and severe storm warnings to neighbors comparing how much rain fell in their backyards.
CoCoRaHS is used by a wide variety of organizations and individuals. The National Weather Service, other meteorologists, hydrologists, emergency managers, city utilities (water supply, water conservation, storm water), insurance adjusters, USDA, engineers, mosquito control, ranchers and farmers, outdoor & recreation interests, teachers, students, and neighbors in the community are just some examples of those who use the data.
Click here to visit the CoCoRaHS website or here to view a brochure about CoCoRaHS. Volunteers are always welcome especially from Buena Vista county (Iowa) as you can see on the following map.
Below is a graph of precipitation from the current year and the several past years. If you you study the chart carefully you will see that 2012 and 2011 were about equally dry. This clearer in the annual summary table also below. Surprising as you can see the total rainfall for 2011 and 2012 are about equal. The reason the effects of low rainfall for 2011 was not so serious was the great rainfall the previous year and timing of the rainfall. January and February for this year are actually worse than both 2011 and 2012, however March appears to have turned the tide, remember the March value is only for the first 18 days.
Now a progress report on how the garden is growing. If you remember last week the pictures of the tomato seedlings with only two leaves, here is a current picture. What a difference a week makes! In this first picture the cilantro is crowing in from the left and in the second photo the basil is encroaching from the right.
These plants are ready for the Earthbox. Below are some pictures of moving the tomato seedlings to the Earthbox.
The spinach is doing quite well. We have harvested enough for two four omelets. I really think the spinach is winning. Also harvested 6-8 cups for chicken-lentil-spinach soup (picture below).
The lettuce also continues to grow. We have harvested two heads and that equals four salads. As you can see I have replaced the two harvested plants with two new ones. Will probably need to start a couple more to transplant into the Earthbox during the next two weeks.
Next week if time permits I will start some seeds for the coming growing season. With the weather being so cool will need to look at the long range forecast and maybe wait a week or so.
Posted with Blogsy
No comments:
Post a Comment