This year a mid-March windstorm + very frosty nights led to a high tunnel calamity… which was the end of most of our secondary flower seedlings and a big chunk of our 2023 dahlia seedlings.
It was a blow for sure, but as farmers the world around have always done, we picked up the pieces and started again.
I find it eternally interesting that “disasters” like this almost always end in fascinating projects or experiments for us. Maybe it’s because we are curious, maybe it’s because we’re not risk-averse, but we do love pushing the boundaries of our expectations to see what will happen!
This year our first-year seedlings went out later than ever before, but I’m not panicking, and here’s why.
Our goals for first-year seedlings are:
- Assess height and blooms to determine if we want to grow for a second year
- Grow out enough of a tuber clump that we can overwinter and replant for year 2 if we decide to grow it again.
Even though our last round of seedlings was planted just last week (thank you Team Triple Wren!), there will be plenty of time to accomplish these goals. I may not get the towering, bountiful seedling rows I love to enjoy in late September, but I’ll still get the data and tuber material I need. It won’t be my original plan, but it will still be great! And with this later planting, the blooms will actually hit at a point in our farm calendar when I’ll be free to pay extra attention to them. Who knows- this might turn into our new M.O. for dahlia seedling timing! I’ll keep you posted.
Oh and all those lost annual seedlings? Wait till I tell you what we’re pivoting to after that calamity! I’ll tell you more next week! What dashed dreams are you “making lemonade” with this season? How are YOU turning your losses into wins in your garden this summer?!