It is 8 a.m. on a Tuesday morning. I'm not supposed to be sitting at my kitchen table right now. I am supposed to be out slinging vegetables. As I sit here sipping on my decaf and staring out the window at the beautiful mist~like clouds that take me straight back to AK~ I can hardly believe we are in week 13 of the Market Season. Thursday nights ended 3 weeks ago, but the morning markets continue on. We just received an extension for 2 extra weeks (weather pending), so now the market is slated to end the second week in October. As if my body could feel Thursday nights were done, it started to break down...wrists crunching (which is not by any means atypical of a massage therapist)...and then it came...a pinched nerve? bursitis? I am not sure what it is, but for the last 15 days I have not been able to use my right arm at a full functioning level. Because a farm girl's work is never done, I have managed to continue to work limited hours at the markets running register AND because of all this new rain, the Quinoa HAD to be harvested. What a great way to become ambidextrous!
Speed Bump: Body Injury
Lesson: Exhaustion depletes the physical and spiritual body~make time to take better care of yourself and cut down to two markets next year. Tuesday a.m. and Thursday p.m.
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| taking an overdue moment to breathe |
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| sacred intelligence |
So a few things to anyone that wishes to grow Quinoa for themselves...watch the weather. This plant is amazing in that it can survive heat to about mid 90's, cold to about high 20's, and dry...only minimal water is really needed. HOWEVER, if it rains, you must watch your plants, as the seed forms and is in that critical phase between "hard-gummy" and " hardened" you must anticipate flower heads forming. Albeit my dominant arm was not moving well on Saturday, I still decided to take some plants down. I am so glad I did, because the next evening we had rain which continues into today. Last night I went out again during a break in weather and harvested the remaining stalks. I have left smaller seed heads to further develop, as if they are still green, the rain shouldn't hurt them. Many the flowers had already started (it only takes less than 24 hours for this transition to happen), but I will salvage what is left from the seed pod.
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| Quinoa turned a brilliant red among a variety of yellows and light greens |
One more idea worth mentioning: Because we live in the mountains, many of us are inclined to use a hoop house. Plant your Quinoa crop outside the hoop house. Leave your other goodies for inside. Another lesson learned..don't change the environment of your plants mid season. This crop has been in the ground since April. Through snow, heat, and now rain! It is now drying~finally. What a journey!
Speed Bump: Rain at Harvest time
Lesson: Pay attention to your crop, where it is developmentally, the weather, and listen to intuition. I decided to harvest about 1/8 of my crop early because of the weather. Saponin will be a bit harder to remove, but I'd rather have challenges crossing the next bridge, rather than having no bridge to cross!
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| Quinoa in the dry house on a rainy Tuesday morning |
The Drying Process: Well, as of today, I believe I have set my plants up in the dry house wrong...sooo, I have to do it again. Someone said, "mold" today, and I realized that I need to rearrange some of the plants so they are not overlapping each other.
Speed Bump: Mold
Lesson: Well, fortunately for me I haven't messed this up yet, I can alleviate this before it even happens. I will report back with pictures. Thank the stars I ran into my friend today!
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| Incorrect storage~oops! |
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