More rugs, and more farm work

I got started today on what will probably be the last rag rug warp until next fall. Once the market starts up on a weekly basis I don't have a lot of time for fiber arts. Not that I don't have a bunch of ideas for other rugs in other color combinations. But they will have to wait until fall.

Today we planted the second bed of onion sets, the first bed of sunflowers, more radishes and the first bed of beets. Joel also planted out a bunch of brassica seedlings and tilled up more ground. Our garden area is pretty wet in the winter and dries out slowly, first the slightly higher areas and last the lowest ones. So we don't till the whole thing at any point. We work up whatever beds are dry enough and plant in them and then go on bit by bit until it is all planted, usually not until June.

The apple trees are just starting to show a bit of color. If we get a bit of warmer weather they'll be in full bloom very soon. I've been wondering if we will get any plums this year. The egg plum has been in full bloom since last week's snow but it has been awfully cold for any pollinators to be out and I haven't seen more than two or three bee type critters in it. We don't have many honey bees here so we have always depended on native pollinators for our fruits and vegetables. They do a good job. Over the years several people have brought bee hives here but it is a small island and we don't have a lot of big areas of flowers so it is hard for the bees to make much of a honey crop.