First Rites of Spring

The snows have disappeared and my tulips and daffodils are poking up out of the soil. Daytime temperatures are hitting the 50’s and it looks like we may have survived winter. Hooray!!

Last Sunday, daylight savings time, I ordered my seeds and plants. Burpee had presciently sent me a discount coupon and that was all it took to get my business. This year’s garden will be a little streamlined from last year. The sunflowers, tomotoes, herbs and lettuce will all reappear. I think we can dispense with the cucumbers and swiss chard.

Late Thursday afternoon this week, Jim and I headed to Home Depot. We were well ahead of the rush. The garden center was deserted and we loaded our cart with 28 bags of Bovung cow manure with humus and three bags of lime. Good thing to have the truck around these days. I unloaded the cargo and felt the first excitement at having a new garden at hand.

The Other Dakota

Fragrant and rich

 Tilling the garden was a whole different experience from last year. Last year was a nightmare pulling the long and deep roots from the deceased Flame Bush and trying to break through the grass and rocks. This year the rototiller broke through the soil easily (well, the thing pulls like the dickens, but it is all relative) and quickly churned the soil, last year’s straw, lime and manure into a soft, rich looking patch of soil. Boy, if I were a plant I would want to sink my roots into that soil. We had the rototiller back at the rental place in two hours flat.

The farmer at work

Of course, it is stil early. The rental guy thought our soil was still frozen. Far from it, but I don’t expect to plant for six weeks. If the early bird catches the worm, we should have lots of them in the garden.

Faithful assistant

It was hard to stop working in the yard and head inside. But I think we are ready for some planting when the time comes and I can dream about the hours to be spent this summer fussing in the garden and all the fabulous tomatoes and vegetables in our future.

Work well done

How Green Is My Garden

One of my greatest pleasures this summer has been my vegetable garden. Of course, it helps tremendously that we are having one of the best growing seasons in history. But it is nonetheless true that I have wanted a vegetable garden for years. It is a source of great happiness and hours and hours of contented puttering not to mention a bumper crop of gorgeous tomatoes, lettuce, cucumbers and herbs.

Way back, b.c. (before children), I grew tomatos and was both happy and successful, but the joys of gardening went by the wayside with the rigors of childrearing. For the past years I have made plaintive gardening noises each winter and was met with Jim’s complete and utter unhappiness and disinterest. He didn’t want to have a garden stuck in the middle of the lawn. He thought it was too much work or, more likely, that he would be stuck with the work. There were many objections all adding up to “no.”

But this past winter the winds blew in another direction. In March we suffered the great wind–a huge spring storm which uprooted many trees, took out all our fences and destroyed the enormous flame bush which dominated our side yard. The flame bush seemed to be the key. We had to have the bush removed and the stump dug up leaving a very large circular spot smack in the middle of the side yard. We had to do something with the big open area and Jim felt ready for it to become a garden. Okay, then, let’s go!!