Spud time

When the daffodils bloom, Risa plants potatoes. Our straw-grown spuds have produced progressively smaller crops of progressively smaller potatoes over the last half decade, so this year, we're experimenting with traditional rows of hilled spuds. A bed has been dedicated to this, so that's 150 row feet.

We have a small electric Mantis tiller, which is seldom used. We're having a dry spring -- most years, tilling has been unlikely in March, but right now the soil is right for this -- precipitation is down, as we are on the edge of the drought that California and eastern Oregon will likely experience this year. The bed was fluffed up, three trenches plowed out with the edge of a hoe, spuds laid on, and soil raked over them with a rake.

These spuds are very close together, but this is rich dirt. As the plants grow, we'll pile on soil (and, yes, straw) as best we can -- potatoes form better above the seed spud than beside or below.