Why I am drawn to gardening, farmer's markets

Talking plants is probably immensely boring to most people but it's my hobby-turned-small business venture this year. As I dove in to the world of Farmer's Markets midway through last year, I knew little of what to expect. After just a handful of outings, though, I had a pretty good handle on things and decided that 2013 would be the year to jump in to Farmer's Markets full steam ahead.

It began last year as a product of necessity. Sure, we had way too many apples, tomatoes, squash and peppers but the financial aspect of it was what really worked. So with very little investment we set forth to can stuff. Lots of stuff. Apple sauce one night. A huge batch of salsa another night. Our first time canning jam another evening. We had the jars already making the only investment the lids.

To our surprise this stuff sold. We sold plenty of jam. We sold all of the salsa. We sold most of the peppers. We sold plenty of apples. We sold a bunch of tomatoes too. All of the squash disappeared as well.

As the seed catalogs appeared around Christmas, I set forth to make up a better plan where I wold be able to start at the Farmer's Markets earlier in the year. I threw down a few bucks to get an indoor mini greenhouse. Last weekend, after having my seeds growing for 2-3 weeks already, I invested in a daylight spectrum light (grow light) and wired it into my mini greenhouse for additional light for the little seedlings.

Already, the tomatoes and peppers are growing well. Broccoli and cauliflower are growing fast as well. Once outdoor temperatures warm, I'll be able to get the squash, green beans and assorted collection of seeds planted. I even ordered sweet potato plants because I could.

I don't see this as turning into a full-time venture but it gets me closer to my roots. I like getting my hands dirty and meeting the people who will eat what I have grown. It's hard work but I'd be lost without working hard.

August 8th is a BIG holiday

The modern calendar is literally littered with pointless, often times manufactured holidays. August 8th is no different. I found this one while searching for a recipe. I plan on celebrating it this year.

August 8th is a fun food holiday that you might not be aware of, Sneak Some Zuchinni onto Your Neighbor's Porch Day.

If you live anywhere within 75 miles of me, you could come out winning BIG on this one. I have a fridge full of zucchini and your name is written all over them. Hell, I'll even volunteer to keep the U.S. Post Office in business and mail these fuckers all over America. Be careful when you open your front door and be wary of checking your mailbox. You could very well be getting a pile of the gift that keeps on giving - zucchini.

MinnPics celebrates holidays, just not the fake ones. Check it daily or a fluffy kitten dies.

The month of March is on notice

Tomorrow is March 27 and in Minnesota that can mean one of two things. It will either approach 60 degrees with a light breeze and crisp, blue skies or it will be 30 degrees with gobs of thick, wet, heavy snow piling up.

Of course due to the fact that we only had about six snowy weeks this winter, it will be the latter. Our existing snow in the Twin Cities are has already melted three times including the piles from last week's sloppy dumping but I think this is nature's way of getting eve. Sure, we had the coldest winter in a whopping seven years (that's right, shut your mouths about global warming being a crock because the coldest in seven years is like seeing the world's tallest midget -- nothing too special) but we had only about half of the normal snowfall.

I don't know about others in Minnesota or elsewhere but I am ready for this crap to end. I want my arms to breathe. I want to fling open some windows. I yearn to see buds on our barren trees. I want to be able to vacuum my car without dragging in yet more sand and sludge. I want to bitch about our hot and humid summers and wish it was cooler. I am ready for spring and the fact that I'm ordering my garden stuff this weekend only reaffirms that.