By RaeAnne Thayne
I’m apparently the worst gardener in the world.
I have all these grand intentions in May, with visions of juicy tomatoes fresh off the vine, crisp cucumbers full of flavor, culinary masterpieces created from the basil, rosemary and tarragon I’m going to grow.
Our traditional garden space is in a bit of flux this year as we’ve done some new landscaping and were clearing a space with the intention of (next year!) doing raised beds. This spring I cleared out a little bedding space near the house and diligently sowed basil seeds, a few herb starts, said cucumber seeds and some Jack-Be-Little Pumpkins seeds.
And then June hit.
My middle son started having health problems about the second week of summer vacation and was hospitalized twice for three nights each in a space of a few weeks. After his second hospitalization in early July, I caught a bug and was completely wiped out for more than a week. And then just as I started feeling human again, I left for a wonderful writing conference where I got to see many dear friends and talented writers.
I returned energized and excited to write and return to real life … and suddenly realized I haven’t weeded or watered my poor fledgling seeds one time all summer long. Oops!
Yesterday I finally scheduled time to clear away the knee-high weeds and found to my great delight that I actually have some flowering cucumbers plants. They’re small and a bit yellow but we’ll see if I can revive them enough to actually produce something.
The basil didn’t germinate but the rosemary plant is still thriving. My tarragon that I transplanted from another part of the yard is also doing quite well. The pumpkins were the real heroes. Three of the four hills where I sowed seeds now have plants growing.
Every year I tell myself this is going to be the year I figure out this whole gardening thing but by July, life usually gets in the way. Ah well. Next year, right?
I’m lucky, though. I might not have the greenest of thumbs but I have many wonderful neighbors who do. Just tonight, one of our sweet elderly neighbors brought over a dozen ears of early sweet corn from her garden.
If all else fails, there’s always the farmer’s market!
What about you? How is your garden growing this year? What is your favorite thing to eat fresh off the vine?
I love farmer’s markets!!!:) We have red clay soil here that doesn’t want to grow ANYTHING! So, I buy from the people who put their veggies in the front yard with a cash box and got two dozen free ears of corn during corn festival which I froze. Also bought a lot of squash which I froze. I rarely tire of homegrown tomatoes and have been known to BEG for them!lol I’m glad some of your veggies survived and I hope you get to enjoy them!:) xo
I feel so fortunate that I live in a place with so many avid and generous gardeners! There is something very rewarding about growing your own, though
Rae! So fun to get together at conference! Um. No veggies or fruits in my garden. I love the farmer’s market! And I also love the jasmine that’s blooming out in back. And the purple butterfly bush. And the hostas. Soooo big. And…well, we have lots of beautiful flora around here.
I loved seeing you too Chris! Oh, I love the flowers in Portland. That’s what I remember most from my visits to that area, the lush and gorgeous blooms having from street posts. I very much envy that here in the high desert! We can grow flowers but it takes *so* much watering.
I, too, love the farmer’s market, but we’ve got a garden as well. Several tomato plants (paste tomatoes, an Early Girl, a weird cherry tomato (green and purple!) and a something else with big tomatoes) peppers (including a Ghost pepper, which we are all afraid of) and cukes. I’ve got an herb garden but other than basil and rosemary, it’s pretty much for show. Well, and cilantro, which my oldest ds uses to make his very excellent salsa.
A soaker hose is the key for us. I’ve done some small scale canning and I make pickles. It’s fun!
Yay Ami! You go
I usually plant a couple of tomato starts but I didn’t get to that this year. Nobody else eats tomatoes in my family but me so I can usually get by with just one or two plants. They’re so luscious.
I’ve never tried growing veggies. Citrus is big out here and I love lemons. I have a space in my yard where one could fit if it doesn’t grow too big!
I’d like to try some herbs, but I’m afraid my dogs would eat them!
Stacy, it was so great to see you in Anaheim! I so wish we could citrus plants would grow here! Cherries, apples and peaches grow well in my climate but I haven’t got any trees.
I love my garden! I find it so therapeutic to go there at the end of the day and see how everything is doing. My favorite crop is broccoli, but it’s so short lived. The best producers are always the tomatoes and cucumbers. Most of the time I use baby starter plants because the growing season is short enough already. I did have great results this year with carrots and peas from seed though! I might even plant a second crop now that they’ve been harvested
Yay Laura! I’m with you on starter plants. I love seeing results so much more quickly. I’ve tried starting my own inside in March but I never quite have the patience to keep them going!
Oh, thank goodness for Farmer’s Markets! I’ve posted about my lack of a green thumb when it comes to house plants and outdoor gardening…and that goes double for veggie gardens! Growing up my mom had tomatoes plants whenever she could, her and dad loved to have fresh tomatoes with every meal!
Hi Rae-Anne – I love my garden – and as someone who has always had a brown thumb, am pleased as punch that I am now growing herbs and tomatoes (Thanks to my patient father-in-law) and I have some beetroot going great guns. I live in a town that is reknown for sweet potatoes and strawberries, and I market shop for local produce most Sunday mornings. Good luck with your garden
I’m another one who loves my garden more than it loves me, but I’m getting better. You just have to keep trying and live in hope. I’m really wanting to do good vegetables and herbs this year, and have a greenhouse that I love. It’s a dinky little plastic thing that I can just stand up and turn around in, but it’s so steamy in there and all my seeds are germinating beautifully. Really hoping for some good gardening this weekend.
I have beets almost ready, and snow peas coming up – those are nice and easy to grow. Cabbages and cauliflower not so good. Broccoli looking promising…
RaeAnne, we have an herb garden right outside our back door. I’ve become so spoiled using fresh herbs when I cook that I don’t think I can do without them. Good luck with your garden!
Dead… my garden is pretty much dead… except for the herb area, where we do water… by the way.. if you live in a zone that will freeze & kill your rosemary… get to a gardening store or organic store and buy a fabric pot [sorry but don't remember name]. They ‘breathe’ and will say so on the label… I’ve had my rosemary for 3 years… coming into the house when it starts getting cold & goes back out in the spring…
I love fresh fruits and veggies! A homegrown tomato tastes sooo much better than one bought in the grocery store.
I just wish I could grow them myself. I have the worst luck with plants.
I love farmer’s markets, especially the fruit from the orchards.
We have had two large baskets of peas from our almost a garden. But nothing else seemed to like it there. Our new cherry tree had about two pounds of cherries this year and our yellow plum finally had two plums on it.
Raeann,
I’ve got a black thumb and even if I was up for giving the plants the attentiont they deserve, they’d still die.
Like Linda S, I visit Farmer’s Markets and roadside stands for my fruits and veggies.
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