Belle Chasse Middle School Beta members competed in virtual competitions for District Beta Day. • Kaylee Palermo placed third in Apparel Design for her design of our club shirt.

While we do have some chilly weather predicted for this weekend, I’m getting quite a few questions from gardeners related to the very warm weather we’ve been having. With daytime temperatures well into the 70’s and 80’s, some of our more reliable winter crops are beginning to act a lot like it’s summer time. “Bolting” is the term for when plants prematurely begin to grow a flower stalk and set seeds, preventing the plant from developing correctly for a good harvest. I’ve also heard it called “running to seed” or “going to seed”. In my garden, I’m observing this happen with some lettuce cultivars, spinach, kohlrabi, and cilantro. Once they bolt, they are done. My lettuce begins to taste bitter, and the cilantro flops over and gets leggy. The spinach and kohlrabi don’t get enough size to them to harvest before making blossoms.