How Does The Man In The Moon Cut His Hair?… Eclipse It!
I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter and enjoyed our very pleasant weather.
We now are past the problem of too cool a temperature at night and I am so excited to be able to start transplanting the thousands of plants that are ready for their own pots. It is not too early in the season for several garden staples to be planted.
I have had Spinach grow in the greenhouse over a winter and it is very hardy and can be planted outside now as all of the following plants they do not enjoy the extreme heat of the summer and it is best to start now and attempt a second crop by planting in mid August.
All these seem to enjoy being planted in an area of full sun to part shade in a neutral PH soil and can withstand a frost should we get one. Lettuce, Peas, Swiss Card and Beets as well can all be safely be planted now, roots like Asparagus and Rhubarb can go in as well.
I had a chance to get into Lumby this past week and am pleased with the green growth I could see, in my yard I am pleased to see buds on the Raspberries, Cherry and Plum Tree, Lilac as well as flower buds on the Daffodils and a good number of Lilies that I’m sure I didn’t have last year. It is hard not to want to jump in and pretty up the beds but I’ve made that mistake before and have somewhat learned that patience is a virtue it’s like a watched pot doesn’t boil neither do seeds sprout if you are constantly looking for signs of life.
On April 8th we will the have privilege of experiencing a Solar Eclipse. This is when the Moon passes between the Earth and the Sun blocking out the light. This is a rare phenomena and will not occur again until 2044 unfortunately we on the west coast of Canada will only experience, should the weather permit, a 17 percent coverage while on the east coast it will be a full coverage that has caused Niagara Falls to declare a state of emergency. Now I can’t imagine what that could mean other than an apology for the shock of the overpricing of accommodation, food and other sundries that will occur there.
While we will only experience this 17 percent coverage it still is possible to cause severe and irreparable damage to your eyes should you decide to watch it directly by staring at the sun while it is happening.
There are a few steps you can take while appreciating the Eclipse and need not go too far out of pocket to do so, The sun will start to be covered at 10:43 AM and will be at the maximum coverage by 11:30 it will then begin to dissipate and will be finished by 12:20. Besides buying expensive eye coverage and this includes even the best sunglasses you can make a device that takes only a modest investment.
A device called Pinhole Projector can be made using stiff cardboard or white paper that is suspended to allow the sunlight to enter through a very small hole to be reflected onto another piece of cardboard or paper the cardboard or paper that the light is reflected onto should be white and the hole in the other sheet need only be a pinhole made by a needle piercing. This image will be inverted. I also saw an example of a device using a cardboard box large enough to cut a head hole in the bottom and a tiny hole high enough that it is not blocked by your head but will reflect on a white sheet of paper attached to the opposite side of the hole. This will save you from having to hold or adjust the free standing paper device to get your projection. You can adjust the size of your projection by moving the paper further away from the side it is projected on.
Remember that by only having a 17 percent coverage does not decrease the damage to that ratio and that you can sustain severe eye damage by looking at it directly so do take care of you and yours during this event!
Happy Gardening!
Samantha Nason
BS Ranch & Greenhouses
250 547 6567
sam1nason@gmail.com
