Weekend Stream of Consciousness

Happiness is the onset of summer. So many great things happen, not the least of which is throwing open the windows, enjoying the fresh air and breezes and playing outside.

This was a busy weekend beginning Friday with Ellie’s departure for Peru. They actually have spent the weekend in Miami in training, but tomorrow they fly to Lima and then Cuzco. Ellie now knows that she will be teaching nutrition and hygiene to mostly children and she will also be playing with the kids–something Ellie has always done with happy abandon.

The sadness of seeing Ellie depart for nine weeks was leavened by the arrival of Alex on Saturday morning. Our most favorite Marine will be home with us for a week. He looks fantastic and it is an absolute joy to have him home.

Saturday Peter appeared with two of his friends, Eric and Allison. Although we had heard lots about them, this was the first time we had met them. They ended up staying for dinner and we had a delightful time dining on the deck on a gorgeous summer evening. It was great fun and all the more special because it is fairly rare for Peter to entertain.

After three years in the making our deck is everything we wanted it to be and the plantings are doing phenomenally well. I think our neighbors must like looking over at the deck and the array of blooming things.

This year’s garden to date

Saturday and Sunday, I was very happy to putter at home. I distributed 20 bags of mulch around the garden beds and worked in my vegetable garden.

As mentioned in a previous post, I have abandoned the spoke pattern for planting and have no fountain of sunflowers in the middle. It is, however, coming along nicely.

The sage, thyme and rosemary made it through the mild winter

Also new to the garden this year are peas, carrots, eggplant. Cucumbers and tomatoes make a reappearance.

Sunday Alex, Peter and Jim went to the Yankees/Mets game. I was not invited and, had I been invited I would have declined with alacrity. They had a great time and the Yankees won which made it even better. They returned home tired and sunburned to lounge on the deck with suds.

Even though the guys were gone most of the day, I was not alone. I had my faithful assistant and gardening companion to keep me company.

Of course, after the gardening was over, some hammock time was de rigueur. My mother’s day present was a new hammock frame. Dakota likes to lie under the hammock. I read with my eyes open and sometimes closed. The view is delightful.

One final pleasure right now are the orchids purchased on my field trip with Lauren to Venamy. Both orchids are in rapturous bloom and each time I see them it is a delight.

The Phalaenopsis has been blooming for six weeks and shows no sign of letting up anytime soon.

My Sharry Baby Oncidium is now blooming as well and the amazingly subtle scent drifts through the house.

I don’t believe I have ever written a post with less form and structure. What holds this narrative together? Well, I guess it would be contentment and happiness. With so many beautiful and beloved things around me, how could I ever be less than happy and content?

Kiss of the Sun

“Kiss of the sun for pardon. Song of the birds for mirth. You’re closer to God’s heart in a

garden than any place else on earth.” — Dorothy Frances Gurney

Yesterday was one of those absolutely perfect weather days. It was sunny. The sky was blue with just a few puffy clouds. The temperature was hovering just over 70 degrees. The spring flowers are in bloom and, despite our lack of rain this year, everything is just bursting forth into bud and leaf.

It was the perfect day to plant my garden and putter in the yard.

This year I am changing things up a little. The garden is still the same circular plot, but I have decided to forego the center fountain of sunflowers. There are two reasons for this. The first reason is that it is time for a change. This would be the third year and, while I loved the sunflowers, it will be fun to try something new. The second reason is that I have run out of space to rotate my tomato plants into and the only previously unused space is where the sunflowers were. I could not tell you which was the dominant reason. I wrestled with the “where to put the tomatoes” issue all winter long.

I am changing up the contents of the garden as well. This is radical stuff I tell you. There will be fewer tomato plants this year. I have skipped the small Black Pearl tomatoes entirely. Instead I am concentrating on your garden variety (sorry) big red, luscious tomatoes. I don’t have the space for so many and some of the more exotic heirloom varieties just didn’t produce that well. Also, the Green Zebra tomatoes confused me because I could never tell when they were ripe. They were always green!

In addition to tomatoes, I am planting eggplant, peas (for Jim), cucumbers (with trepidation since the last time we were swimming in cucumbers), carrots, lettuce and herbs. The rosemary, sage and oregano made it through the incredibly mild winter so I am adding three basil plants. I will also have chive, but I have that in a pot because it will otherwise spread everywhere.  I have completely abandoned the spoke pattern I used previously. This year’s garden is planted in concentric circles. Everything I have planted is from seeds except the tomatoes, eggplant and basil.

Last week Peter was essential in helping me rent the roto-tiller and get the soil ready. I spent some time yesterday removing any weeds around the edges, the stubborn grass which insists on growing through the fence. I raked the soil smooth and began planting. It was just warm enough to work up a sweat, but the breeze was fresh. It was a potent reminder of how much I love working in the garden. As with my knitting and so many other things I love to do, it is the process rather than the end result which gives me the most satisfaction.

As always when just planted the garden doesn’t look like much. It is more a promise for the future. But soon the seeds will sprout and it will become a garden, rather than a promise. Today we are supposed to have rain and that will start things off.

How Does My Garden Grow?

Half of my herbs

Quite well, thank you.

The summer is just perfect for growing things and my garden is looking pretty good. This year I have stuck to tomatoes and herbs. We almost drowned in cucumbers last year and Peter hated the lettuce which grew fresh and organic in my garden. So, this year it is tomatoes, tomatoes, tomatoes.

Healthy and happy

Few things are as relaxing and pleasant as spending some time tending to the plants in the garden. It is a wonder to watch them grow and to anticipate the fabulous tomatoes and meals soon to come. I have always loved tending things. Back when I used to ride, I enjoyed grooming and caring for the horses as much as riding them. Even stall mucking.

 The garden is the same circular shape as last year and I have the sunflowers growing up through the middle, but I rotated crops and the tomatoes are in ground which hosted other vegetation last year. You are supposed to “rest” the ground for three years, but I will be out of rotations next year so we’ll hope for the best. One of the most interesting things is that I have rogue tomato plants sprouting up all over the place. I wrote previously that we rented a rototiller in the early spring and tilled manure and lime into the soil. There must have been some old tomato seeds as well because I have plants sprouting up and they are flowering and promise to bear fruit. I have had to pull many out, which kills me, to give them space. So much for cutting back on the tomatoes.The herbs are looking well, too. I have  cilantro, thyme, rosemary, tarragon, three kinds of basil and something else  I can no longer identify. They are starting  to get big enough that I can use them. Ellie loves to pluck a basil leaf so  some of it will never make it to the house.

Rogue tomatoes

Such are the pleasures of a summer garden. Eating the produce is only a part of the fun.