By Alex Kaiser 

We had the bright idea to reuse salvaged Plexiglass barriers (in the background) donated by Joanne MacKinnon to cover some of our accessible raised beds over the winter.

This worked wonders to keep our radicchio in good shape during bad weather! Radicchio is a very cold hardy crop as at is, doing well in our coastal climate over the winter, however protecting crops from the rain, snow and low temperatures over the winter by covering them with the Plexiglass is a great way to ensure a bountiful early spring harvest. We love this low-tech, upcycled solution! Check out more low-cost methods to extend your growing season here.

We spotted a yellow-faced bumblebee queen in the garden scoping out nesting sites! These are one of our many native bees and the queens are very active this time of year, being some of the earliest bumblebees to begin foraging. The queens are responsible for setting up new colonies which be active throughout the summer and fall, so we were thrilled to see that this queen thought our garden was the perfect place to set up a new home and proof that our efforts to support native pollinators are paying off.