So we went about our day harvesting and bunching and washing veggies.  After lunch, a few workers went out to bunch radishes.  Farmer Sonny came into the barn on his way up the field to mark rows for broccoli and said, "as soon as I'm ready, all the guys come off the radishes and go to the greenhouse. This is CELERY PLANTING WEATHER!"  In other words... STOP whatever it is you're doing and get those celery seedlings into the ground because the conditions couldn't be any more perfect than they are right now.  
 
Yes, it WAS a pretty nasty day to be outside.  Yes, everyone got wet and muddy.  But the celery got planted in 4 beautiful straight rows, all about 500 feet long.  Thousands of celery seedlings, half-a-pinky big, are gently laid out by one person and another comes behind them to plant. 

How are they planted, you ask?  It's very complicated.  We call it the 'poke-place-press' method.  An index finger poked into the soft black dirt makes the perfect size hole.  The seedling is carefully placed in - making sure the all of the roots are contained - then the soil is pinched around the celery to seal it off.  

We don't LIKE to plant in the rain - but it IS best for the plants (gardeners, take note!)  The cool temperatures and cloudy skies keep the plants and their fine root hairs from drying out and dying.  Once those fine roots die off, it's more difficult for the plant to take up water and they may not thrive.  The rain not only nourishes the plant, but it also helps compact the soil against the roots and seedling base, keeping it stable as it grows.
 
We're very particular about our celery, as one would imagine when the farm happens to be on Celery Avenue.  True story: A celery farmer here on the road, back when it was merely dirt and gravel, was waiting for trucks to come pick up his crop.  His daughter, being bright - as farmgirls are apt to be, posted a large hand painted sign at the end of the road that said CELERY with an arrow.  And thus, Celery Avenue was born.
 
It's actually a long haul from seed to soup (or tuna salad....)  The celery seed is planted in one of our greenhouses in March.  The seeds and rows are quite close together.  When the seedlings are several inches high, we employ a homemade power tool to shear off the tops.  This tool looks like a small lawn mower blade (with protective covering) on a long handle.  When the tops of the plants are cut, it forces the hearts of the plants to become stronger and more full, which is exactly the kind of plant we want to go outside in a few months.  We'll shear off the tops of the plants a few more times before transplanting.
 
A few beautiful, partly cloudy 75-degree days and our celery is off to a healthy start.  Despite trudging through the muddy field in raingear and boots, it was a successful afternoon.  It'll take about 2 months for this set of celery to be ready for markets, but we've got others that were planted a while ago and will be ready sooner. 
 
Who knew it took so much to grow a stalk of celery?