Volunteers of America

Last week we brought green garlic to the stand that was not planted last November, but was planted the November before, 19 months ago!  It comes from the heads that we didn't harvest last June because weeds overgrew them.  Now, from those same plants,  we have more garlic than we would have gotten had we picked  it then: underground, each unharvested head ripened into many cloves which sprouted anew. The lost garlic business is a banker's dream of compounded interest.  These unintended, but welcome plants, are called "volunteers" by vegetable growers.

This week we will have more volunteers, but the week after we will begin to draft this year's better weeded crop pictured here with the lambs in the background.