I've Got You Covered

I feel like I've spent an awful lot of time walking around the property looking for signs of life.  It's been warmer, but still so grey.  It's been a source of frustration when searching out my daily photos for the blog camp group.  Trying to find pictures that aren't completely dreary and repetitive has been a challenge.  Then as I took a deep breath after a day of much drama, and I realized that the color I seek is right in front of me. 

All I need to do is go 'back to the garden' (please picture a smiling David Crosby here).  We planted our first cover crop last fall.  The benefits to the soil are enormous.  Our winter rye has been thriving, yet hidden under the snow.  Now it is giving me the color I seek, to bridge me until the bounty of spring color arrives. 

Our baby chicks arrive next week, but they will be but a blip on the radar for this years feast.  Our two adult hens will soon be let out in their chicken tractor (photos of this amazing thing B constructed to come soon, I promise) to consume all of the delicate blades of rye.  Once the foliage is gone, what will be left is a beautifully aerated soil that will support all of the beautiful tubers that will soon be planted.  A small amount of forethought, from color to food source to soil, really has us covered.