I think, based on so many little signs, that it might actually be spring. You see, we live far enough north that spring can be elusive some years. We’d had a patch of nice weather earlier, then Mother Nature played April Fools with us and dropped six inches of snow on the farm that day. I have pictures somewhere of my honeysuckle in full bloom with a quarter inch of snow on the blossoms. Since it usually blooms in May, that was a very late spring indeed.
The crocus are up and blooming in the front yard, I planted peas yesterday, the maple tree buds are swelling… it all adds up to spring on the farm. Add to that the arrival of chicks in the mail today and I know it must be true. Today and tomorrow will probably be the last days of sap flow, and the sugar camp will be broken down for the year, leaving only the sweet memories and gallons of maple syrup for our efforts. We went down yesterday to check on it since we were too busy this weekend to boil, and the snow is about half gone, leaving the creeks full and the taplines high over our heads. We set most of them on snowshoes walking on three feet of snow not more than a month ago. Changes come fast around here.
The raspberries in the main garden have been let run wild for a couple of years, and the resulting tangled patch had become very difficult to harvest, so we moved canes into rows and set up posts to trellis them and keep it neat and open. I am covered in scratches, and Dad almost lost a boot in the muddy part when it was sucked clean off his foot. While moving the crowns, we also found a horseradish plant that was growing in the wet area and moved it. We may be developing a pond there this summer, it certainly stays wet year round. The horseradish plant had actually grown its roots sideways, on top of the water table, rather than down into its customary deep tap roots.
