Me-n-the-Hens in the Hoophouse

Yesterday, I did more planting  in the hoop house.  Four square feet each of sweet and storage onions, and a four foot row of bush peas.  I also got everything watered that I had seeded earlier in the week... that would be cabbage, broccoli, kohlrabi, lettuce, spinach, vit, New Zealand spinach, orach, purslane (garden and golden), miner's lettuce, carrots, minutina, rattail radish, white icicle radish and zlata radish.  I specify seeded, because I still have started cabbage and cauliflower in the kitchen to plant.  The plants in the kitchen did not do well, because I set them on the heat pad, and they got too warm and grew leggy.  It wasn't the light, because I had them two inches below the plant light which was on 14+ hours most days.

I'm not sure I should have seeded all that in the hoop house quite this early, but it was mighty warm in there, (I was sweating in a short sleeved shirt and jeans), so I thought I'd give it a go.  I'll be seeding all those plants outside in April and May, too, to see where they grow best.

On my way to the hoop house, I grabbed Golden Claw (the Buff Rock hen) and three of her companions-in-corn-and-crime followed along.  She wasn't happy about being picked up, but was thrilled to take a dust bath (actually many dust baths) in the hoop house, with breaks for weed and bug tasting, while I worked.  Eventually El Jefe showed up for a breather from hauling wood on the sled to the house.  Then the kids stopped by to watch the fun.  The Pirate thought she would pay for the hens day at the spa by weeding, which I found highly amusing.  I admit I encouraged that.  The Princess actually did more weeding than anyone, while chuffing at the hens who kept kicking up dust in her direction.  I did take pics of the hens, which I'll try to post here tomorrow.  And I'll have to get some of the freshly planted beds.

Oh, last but not least, the garlic is up!  I didn't get it in the ground 'til REALLY late, because I quite forgot I had it (yes, my memory is that bad), but it seems to be doing fine now - 3 inches tall and quite green.  It was all Polish softneck.  I'll replant that outside this fall, but I still have to decide where.  And where to put the Music hardneck, then, too.