It snowed all day yesterday............
those large, soft snowflakes.........that I just can't stop watching from my window. With March right around the corner, the garden book I am sharing tips with you from says that for February.........Your trees should be sprayed with miscible oil or lime-sulphur solution.(used for pests and parasites), best to read this link for information....
Your garden tools should be painted and sharpened and you should make an inventory of your garden supplies.
It's a good time to start ordering the seeds you want to plant. Be sure to pick seed of good quality. I always remember that saying......"you get what you pay for". I have had wonderful results with Burpee and Ferry Morse.
Some of you may have read on my farm journal blog, Pleasant Prairie Farmthat one cannot sell potted, growing plants without a license.
I had heard a little about this at the farmer's market meeting, then from a friend of mine who used to run a nursery. I finally called the Texas Department of Agriculture in Austin, Texas, who told me the whole story and emailed me the application. It is easy to get a license, you just have to fill out the application and pay a good size fee. I fall under a class 2 and my fee would be $110.00. Since I don't have quite enough plants to sell to cover that fee or enough customers to buy from me........my plant selling days are on hold. I have got to plant bigger, talk to more people and dream bigger. But I'm not giving up.............hopefully, I will be selling my Italian Jasmine by the roadside................one day. How about you. Have you gotten everything ready for the busy month of March? What brand of seed do you like to plant with? Are you hoping to sell plants one day and have plans in the making? I would love to hear!
15 comments:
You're right! We should be preparing now. I am not (hanging my head in shame) :) I haven't started any seeds yet either. Tis time! -Tammy
Your snow is lovely. GA is getting snow today also. I am jinxed when it comes to seeds, but I sure enjoy the bounty from everyone else's green thumbs!
Your snow is pretty, Kathleen. I don't plant much of anything except just a few flowers in a very small flowerbed, but we can't do that until May here.
I love to hear all about it but I am sadly lacking in the gardening department. My neighbor loves it and grows for us neighbors (o: How sweet is that?
Around here ...April showers...bring May Blizzards (o:
So we are not thinking Garden yet.
Nothing is simple anymore, is it? I can't believe you have to have a license to sell little plants at a farmer's market. How many plants would you have to sell to make $110.00 Exactly what do you get for that? No wonder small business go under! We have farmer's markets here in the summer and no one makes us get a license. It helps keep prices down when the small farm owners don't have to charge us for that too. Nothing is simple anymore is it.
Deb
Have seed catalogs in a pile just waiting for time to allow my husband and I to have our annual seed catalog date. Watching it snow is one of my favorite things to do, I'm always a bit saddened when a storm misses us.
Selling potatoes gets harder..crazy! Looking ahead to gardening sound good...spring coming sounds wonderful to me, hope it hurries along! Have a good Valentines day and come say hi when you can :D
Wow, I didn't know you had to have a license to sell plants! How strange! I haven't ordered any seeds yet, but I do have a few catalogs I'm looking through.
Happy Valentine's Day, Kathleen
I hope you have had a magical love filled day. :0)
With the wildlife that I have here and of course I feed all of it. :0)...to ever grow anything much less bring it to harvest I would have to construct a framed structure and cover it with hardware cloth and then, only then would I have a chance of actually eating anything I bring to harvest..hehe :0)
It seems that every state has it's own set of licensing that can interfere terribly with a small scale plan. I'm sorry they want a fee like that..just doesn't make sense for someone like you that's in more of a homestead situation then a full fledged operation.
I know when I lived in Alabama they had a law that a $50 license should be on file for anyone selling eggs from a farmer's market...if you sold them from your farm no license was required....well..big duh, everyone sold them from their farm..hehe! :0) So silly on so many levels...makes you wonder who has stayed up late at night thinking up these crazy laws and unreasonable fees.
Since I still have so much to do in the house we will continue that work...but when Springtime arrives we plan to make our own shutters for the house. I want something very primitive since the house has the cedar siding and is sitting in the wilderness. :0)
My Thomas has been laid off from his job with no promise of being called back. We have actually been living with this possibility since last June. It's been quite unnerving for us since the 30 year retirement that Thomas had was severely hit by the stock market situation. He turned 63 the end of January..it's all just been a bit unbelievable for us as I know it has been for millions of others affected in the same way.
Life goes on...and so will we. :0) I'm glad he's home..this 900 mile round trip commute needed to end anyway.
We are expecting snow tonight and over the next three days.
♥ Love, Hugs & Faerie Dust ♥
Stephanie
You'll be needing that license before any of us know it! When you say you're going to do something - I see that you alway get it done!
I'm still planning, planning, planning. Where to put this. Why NOT to put this by this and put this plant by this one.... it makes my head spin! But it's fun in a torcherous sort of way?!
I'd better get back to it, as a matter...
Blessings,
Julie
Beautiful pictures, Kathleen.. even though I'm growing weary of snow and cold weather, I still think it's so pretty right after it falls.
I think the license is the most ridiculous thing ever... I know you would make your money back in no time, but it sure is hard to cough up that much moolah at one time.
My goodness. That is a huge fee. That is what we are seeing here fees for everything. Have to fix Colorado budget problem in some way.
Linda
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com
I already have my seeds ... garden is all planted on paper ... All I need now is the warm weather so I can do that ... Pine tree gardens is another great place for seeds.
https://www.superseeds.com/
Think Spring ♥
Teri♥♥♥
Hey, sorry you're having to wait but I'm glad your not throwing in the towel, embroidered or not, on the nursery concept. I was reluctant to apply for one for the added cost and being inspected (that is part of what the fee is for, keeping the nurseries from spreading plant diseases), but I've been encouraged to go for it because it will add to the selection of what people can come and get at the farm. Overall I am starting much smaller than I intend to stay.
The lack of winter weather up here is a true blessing for us as we are scrambling to get everything ready for when we throw the gate open. I have a certain level of readiness I really want to be at even though April will certainly not be my top season.
I've ordered from lots of places and Territorial always has the best consistency for me, but I truly appreciate T&M, Stokes has a fantastic catalog and good seed, they have been my onion seed supplier this year. And several others i am forgetting at the moment unless I rifled through my catalog basket.
Pretty snow! It has flurried here all day. It's sad that you have to have a license to sell plants. wish you the best on your adventure w/the farmers market.
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