Improbable Things

Outdoors - finally

Although the garden is not planted... we are finally outdoors enough that I can think about the garden. The crocuses, daffodils, pussywillow, and forsythia have brightened the landscape. I see some hyacinths breaking free, but not yet in bloom. Shoots are creeping up out of the ground around my many perennials. Buds on the plum tree and dogwood have me hopeful that the new trees planted last year survived my August neglect. I worry most for the baby black gum and I can't tell yet if he survived.

 

The garden is still more bleak than lush. Something about the contrast of weary brown stalks juxtaposed with hopeful bulbs stirs my blood. I can hear analogies to the long nights we are still suffering with the new baby. Spring is coming. Spring is coming. Change is coming.

Glimpse of Garden Harvest

I gave the lb of green beans to my MiL, so they are missing, but here are some of my modest garden treasures.Not a lot but I'm finding it rewarding, considering it is my first attempt at a garden.

How does your garden grow?

I'm not sure why I've been neglecting the garden. It's been hot, it's been wet, the mosquitoes travel in mobs. Those are all good excuses, but none of them usually keep me from tinkering. The last few days have been overwhelmed with a deadline, which explains a little. The upshot is that you get great surprises when you ignore the garden for a week or two. Suddenly, there is so much changed!

Here was my new raised bed in May. At the time, I felt I was getting a late start. There are some tiny tomato plants in there that I started from seeds indoors. Eventually I planted eggplant, okra, and a whole lot of bush beans.

In early June, things were coming up. I was having to admit that it was crowded. I moved four of the tomatoes and thinned the beans, though not enough. This shot is shady, but you can see the beans coming up.

Then I waited too long to build tomato supports and ended up doing it on some 100+ degree day, just about fainting in the process. Already by then the tomatoes were 3' tall and I pulled a few more, realizing I still had too many.

This season has been as rainy as last year was dry. Lest year we didn't get rain for almost 4 months but this year, we get an evening shower or thunderstorm at least once if not twice a week. So this is what we get just a few weeks later:

Yes, those are crazy bush beans. I didn't use any supports, thinking, ya know, they are bush beans. The tomato supports are already swamped.

If things go as I plan, I'll be swimming in tomatoes. Enough to have to can a bit of sauce. That'll be a crazy fussy project, but I've never done it and I feel like it is a necessary right of passage - to can something. I'm pretty sure that'll be a mess in the kitchen to deeply appall my dear husband. I'm totally looking forward to it!