Can weather be temperamental? If it can be, today was quintessential. It was sunny, it was rainy, it was warm, it was cold. If you don’t like the weather, wait a minute and all that. Still we were able to work outdoors; we just changed our clothes often. Cammy got the garden beds ready for planting corn. I weeded the older nursery rows. The young grafted trees spend 2-3 years in the nursery before they get planted out, sold or given away. They do not like weeds. It’s not tough work to keep them weeded, but you have to keep after it, and it takes time.

Weeding is often pooh-poohed as being the lowest of the low when it comes to work. Some would say it’s menial and boring. Anyone who thinks that’s the case need only to spend a few days weeding. Or even one 8-hour day. The work is challenging, meticulous, and physically demanding. I’d also say contemplative, meditative and remarkably satisfying. It can be a great opportunity to chat and socialize if you weed with a friend. Like shelling beans or shucking corn. Not only all that, you get to be outdoors. It’s one of those perfect ways to enjoy the passage of time here on the Third Planet.

The native Hawthorns (Crataegus spp) are now in bloom. There are nearly two dozen species native to Maine. I think we have only one of them here on the farm, and I’m unsure which. It pops up all throughout the orchards. Although most of our trees are small shrubs, mature Hawthorns can grow to be about 10-15 feet tall and 20-30 feet wide. The impressive thorns should really be called needles. You can do yourself serious damage if you aren’t careful. The white bloom is a welcome addition to late May, and the fruit is medicinal.