Growing season is finally here. Valley farmers are getting their crops in.

Updated: May 3, 2018 Published: May 3, 2018

Lettuce plants poke out of the soil as Vanderweele Farms workers plant broccoli in a field. (Bob Hallinen / ADN)

Vanderweele Farms workers worked in their Palmer fields amid mixed weather Wednesday afternoon.

Farmhands set broccoli starts by feeding the starts into the planter that plants eight rows at a time. Other workers followed behind to make sure the plants were upright and the roots covered with soil.

By the end of the day, they hoped to have planted 100,000 plants. They were planting lettuce, broccoli and cabbage in this field.

Lettuce will be the first to mature, in the third week in June with good weather.

Farm workers feed broccoli starts into the planter. (Bob Hallinen / ADN)

Broccoli starts are placed into the planter. (Bob Hallinen / ADN)

The broccoli planter works the rows. Pioneer Peak is in the distance. (Bob Hallinen / ADN)

Nathanael Warte makes sure the broccoli sets are upright and the roots are covered with soil. (Bob Hallinen / ADN)

Bob Hallinen

Bob Hallinen has been a photojournalist in Alaska since the 1980s and has traveled extensively all over the state. He retired from the ADN in November 2018 after 33 years at the newspaper.