No animals, only vegetables! So I will be dirty but not dealing with fresh poop.
Thanks for the suggestions, I’m sure I’ll be back with more questions!
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oh, I can help! I grew up on and still work on a berry farm and did research/scouting on veggie farms for many years.
I like wearing hardier pants/overalls (carhartts or jeans) and lightweight shirts (hiking clothes is great for this). In the summer, canvas shorts are great. Long sleeve ufp shirts are also good depending on the level of sun protection you want. seconding layers! Depending on the crops you’re working with will also dictate sleeve length (hops, berries, etc long sleeves are necessary imo)
Big sunhats can be annoying, baseball caps are popular for a reason! but you’ll figure out what works best.
rain gear is always good to have, again climate dependent but we use it all through the year in the pnw.
Shoes: tall rubber boots/muck boots and shorter boots for when it’s not wet (blundstones are popular for a reason, but there are a lot of good options out there). Sneakers let in so much dirt. I am trying short merrell hiking boots this year instead of blundstones, but so far I find them very heavy in comparison. good socks are key
I also second the idea of waiting for a week or so to see what it’s like, before you invest in stuff. essentially, don’t wear anything precious that you don’t mind ruining. old tee shirt/sweatshirt and jeans is probably fine until you figure out what you like.
have fun!
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My bee’s choice are doing a similar thing! I’m giving them outside time when it’ s sunny and pleasant (sorry to rub it in if it’s not like that where you are) and trying to hold off on watering a bit longer than I want to.
aaaaand I bought some more (probably less nice) dahlia seeds at a seed store and planted a backup tray!
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A few of my winter sowing containers have sprouts! It’s still super early here, they didn’t germinate until mid April last year. I’m hoping they do well, I got very little last year and basically wasted the dirt and seeds.
I started a bunch of seeds tonight.
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I did a dumb thing when I started seeds last week. I forgot to put humidity domes on! 
I assume they should start popping now? Hopefully? (Some have popped without domes, so that’s nice.)
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Spring is here! I had a few plants that go dormant for the winter pop up. For some of them, it was the first year so I honestly didn’t know if they were going to come back. It’s a good feeling, that even if all of my seedlings don’t survive these guys are chugging along.
I don’t remember what these are–I think mini Solomon’s Seal
Regular Solomon’s seal
Foxglove finally putting some height on
Foxglove with just horrifying slug and cutworm damage
Hosta?
Hosta. With eggshells around it to maybe deter the slugs.
I do put Sluggo (organic pesticide) down and have done several manual removals of cutworms and I’ll spare you the photos from that expedition.
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Also. I made a seed starting mix with some of our own compost, which we have not done previously. My husband lovingly pointed out that I had several tomato seedlings growing in with my flowers, etc.
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I have a spinning compost bin for food waste, and then this for yard waste. However the leaves won’t break down! How to I make it compost?
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Can you turn it with a pitchfork? Oak leaves in particular take forever to break down.
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My dad broke my pitchfork last time he was here, but I wanted a new one anyway.
Anyone know how often to turn and if I should be trying to keep it damp?
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Depending on how your pile is constructed you might want to turn it every week or two. And yes to keeping it slightly moist. If you want to make compost fast, look up the Berkeley hot composting Method - it does work but takes a lot of effort!
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Yes, definitely wet it down. From what I can see, you basically have just leaves in there, which will make an awesome type of compost called leaf mold. It will take 6 months to a year to break down. You should turn it at least once a month. Diehard compost enthusiasts would turn it once a week, have you adjust the ratio of greens to brown, possibly tell you to pee on it. I am a lazy composter, so my method will take longer than theirs. But definitely keep it damp and turn it periodically. A shovel will work fine if you don’t have a fork.
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Pee on it? I love dirt people they’re such weirdos (complimentary)
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Nitrogen!
Yeah, as @hollaynia said, if it’s just leaves you’ll end up with leaf mold, which is also good, but not compost. Dry leaves are carbon (your “browns”), and you need a source of nitrogen (your 'greens") also to make compost - plant clippings/grass and coffee grounds are the most commonly talked about. But urine is also concentrated nitrogen. 
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I do add the grass clippings in there but it barely grew at all last year so not that many clippings!
Thank you for all the tips! I will endeavor to pay more attention than just “dump leaves in in the fall”
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