The snow is blowing sideways in big flakes by the window as I sit in my comfy recliner.
Fran and I love the outdoors and get out as much as possible, but the best we were able to do today was spend a few hours shoveling snow in case we have a medical emergency — most likely caused by me shoveling snow. It’s usually a race to get it done before the neighbor comes over and plows us out. We view it as a good workout, while the neighbor views it as helping those goofy old farmers out before they hurt themselves, and it IS kinda nice when we really get blasted, so it all works out. In any event I am in sensory overload, and loving every minute of it.
Last fall we finally bought a Meyer lemon tree. I have been wanting one for years, but could never justify the cost. Inside the house is Fran’s houseplant domain, and I didn’t think she would allow such a thing in her collection — especially since I’d probably kill it anyway. AND … the last tree like thing we had, generated a lot of bugs that would swarm out at night while we watched tv and drove us crazy. I couldn’t wait to throw that thing out in the spring. In November Fran and I haunt the local garden centers looking for last second things to plant and there on the clearance table was a Meyer lemon that would have done the Charlie Brown Christmas tree proud. Small, scraggly and titled to one side Meyer was fairly begging me to take it home. Besides the price was right. So in a moment of weakness, Fran OK’d my new orchard.
Meyer’s new home is on a coffee table with a south facing window nearby. This takes advantage of warmth and sunlight, well, whatever we can get in Michigan anyway. Every morning I use a soil probe to measure the soil temperature and dryness. Fran can just stick a finger in and determine whether we need to water or not, but I prefer to be a bit more scientific. If it needs water I use a pint mason jar with a splash of neem oil added to control the bugs. It seems to be working. Neem oil is fantastic for house plants it’s a natural way to control both pests and fungal disease. The problem with it is that it will solidify if stored in a cool location, so I just run the container under hot tap water if I need to add some. Every other watering I also add a splash of lemon tree fertilizer from my friends at Amazon. Less is more with watering, so even if the probe tells me it’s dry, I’ll wait a day before adding watering. Then I’ll turn the plant 90 degrees so it eventually gets evenly exposed to sunlight and then I’ll mist the leaves with a mix of water and more Neem oil.
I’m not dealing with those bugs this time. All this seems to be working! A few weeks ago we had little white buds forming everywhere, and I thought I was in trouble with some sort of fungus infection.
But no! They turned out to be lemon blossoms! Oh, we were so excited! And the smell — when the blossoms open up, they smell very similar to plum blossoms., which is my most favorite thing in my outside orchard.
The smell permeates the living room and it’s wonderful. Fran has taken over the propagation duties, where she takes a q-tip swab and transfers pollen from blossom to blossom in hopes of developing actual lemons in the spring. It’s all been very educational and now Fran is talking about expanding our orchard with tangerines and limes (come on clearance table!). Five stars. Definitely recommend. Highly enjoyable winter project.
Fran has once again brought her farming inside — on a small scale. The kitchen counters and floor are covered with miniature fields of micro-greens, and flowers.
The micro greens get cut as needed for salads, and some of the flowers we grow take a very long time to get started as seedlings.
Each miniature field has it’s own heat mat and plant light over head. When I get up to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night there’s a weird purple glow coming from that end of the house. I’m used to it, but I wonder what people passing by think.
Fran’s morning routine is to take each tray to the kitchen sink and use the spray attachment to water until her calibrated farmer finger says enough. She then dutifully practices crop rotation so the plants grow up straight and tall, by moving the trays around until she’s happy.
Next up are the house plants who also get a sink shower.
All our seeds and seedlings have been ordered, and we are dreaming of next spring. We don’t know where we will put everything, but that’s half the fun of it. There’s always room for more. You just have to get creative. I’m anxious to see what happens with our roadside stand. I have trumpet vine on one side and wisteria on the other, and the backside is a wall of morning glories. We’ll see.
All the best from Alan and Fran at Greenrock Farm
Take care and stay warm.