Rain and then some

We got quite a bit of rain this week, more than I anticipated! According to our state climatologist, we're 2-4" ahead of our usual yearly precipitation, which is a huge departure from last summer. This large chunk of rain follows our April, which was the 4th wettest April on record for our area.

What does this mean for our garden? First, it means we've fully recovered from the drought of 2012 (which bled into the first months of 2013). Second, it means our soil is wet to the point of being sticky mud at the moment.

It's a good idea to leave mud alone. Soil has a particular structure to it -- a combination of quartz particles, air and water, with organic matter and organisms. Working with soil while it's this wet threatens the proper structure of the soil, possibly reducing its health.

So let's all do a little anti-rain dance so the garden dries out over the next few days! The increasingly warm temps (all the way up to 90 by Tuesday?) should help.