Organic Gardening Info from Peaceful Valley

As I sit gazing out my window at my beautiful garden on this sunny morning, the first day of spring, I can’t help but worry about the fate of my fruit trees in the days ahead. I never want to get too excited about my trees bearing fruit at this time of year though it is so very tempting.

Last year I thought for sure we had passed the danger zone and made the mistake of actually verbalizing what a good fruit year it looked to be. I will never make that mistake again. All it took was 6 hours of frost on the last weekend of April to kill all the tender fruit in Nevada County. My trees especially the peach and cherry trees are loaded with blossoms that look like pink and white popcorn. Oh how tempting it is to fantasize about all the delicious fruit that the blossoms will bring forth. Instead I look at their temporary beauty and wait in patience for the summer so as not to anticipate their success or failure.

I had the opportunity to represent Peaceful Valley at the 2009 PlacerGrown Conference (Feb. 7 in Lincoln, CA). It was a great event attended by the “who’s who” of small scale agriculture in Placer and Nevada Counties. There were many workshops focused on the following “Strands”, or topics: Community, Getting Started in Farming, Miscellaneous (included workshops on honeybees, producing firewood, and carbon sequestration in agriculture), Farming & Ranching as a Business, Marketing, Interns, and Livestock. Workshop facilitators included Dan Macon, Roger Ingram, Keith Crabtree, Cindy Fake, and Carol Arnold, all very reputable and knowledgeable people involved in agriculture.

Jim Gates (“Meat Jim”), High Sierra Grass Fed Beef

I was especially excited by the Keynote speaker, Micheal Dimock of “Roots of Change” (ROC), a collaborative of people intent on establishing a sustainable food system in California by the year 2030. ROC has a strategy to get critical people and groups working together to establish political momentum, informational links, cohesive vision, and needed grant money. His talk was both intellectual and inspiring; I walked out with a larger view of the complexities involved but hope of the real possibility of a sustainable food system. Check out the website http://www.rocfund.org/, and be sure to endorse the “Declaration For Healthy Food and Agriculture”.

I’d encourage anyone in the Placer/Nevada County area interested in local agriculture to attend next years’ conference!

It’s amazing how quickly the trees, shrubs, and bulbs display their colorful glory! After a long subdued winter, how happy to see the bright yellow radiance of daffodils and forsythia!

Working in the Peaceful Valley store, I’m also amazed by how quickly gardeners display their eagerness to garden! As soon as those Spring colors begin to show, folks from all over the County and beyond come with visions of a bountiful harvest in mind. I love to talk to customers who can only come once or twice a year; they are so thrilled to see and touch the products they read about in the catalog! With our new Nursery up and running, they like to spend some extra time wandering around the plants and inspecting our Greenhouses.

I also appreciate our regulars who have much patience during the busiest times. They wait in line and still smile, glad to gather the materials that allow them to enjoy their gardens in the sunshine.

For anyone thinking about visiting, come on over! I’d suggest that if there are specific items you really need, call ahead to check on stock (888-784-1722 talk to the order deptartment or the store). Like I said, Spring eagerness is upon us!

P.S. – St. Patricks Day is an awesome time to plant Potatoes!