Overflowing, Amanda style
Long awaited update. At least I’ve been waiting, not sure about anyone else. I tend to do things full force or not at all– gardening is much the same for me, and I use it as a sort of practice in doing things small and consistently. But, alas, it ends up that I don’t weed or water or build or plant for some time, and then I get so into it that I spend hours and hours and hours and have to tear myself away to stop.
Much has happened in the garden this spring. My brand new garden (in my first little house I bought in the winter)– I thought it would never grow– I built it this spring, by hand turning up sod and laying compost and battling bunnies (no violence, don’t worry), and sowing seeds and whispering sweetly “grow, grow”… and hoping the wee seeds and seedlings would respond to my wishes. Admittedly jealous of a friend’s 1/2 acre city lot backyard-turned-community-garden that was already harvesting when I’d barely finished building, I became a little saddened by my own plots’ prospects for this season, sighing and saying “well, it’s only the first year.”
But, now near the end of July, and having had a good amount of heat and rain this summer (this is my kind of summer), I am beginning to overflow with harvest in my 15 x 20-ish plot. Chard has been fabulous, cucumbers are wrestling over space with the okra (which is fruiting!!!), eggplants, peppers, basil, cilantro (bolting), et al, some late seeded kale (first rounds sacrificed to bunnies and suspected woodchuck) has begun to come in, tomatillos are huge and abundant…
Oh, and tomatoes. I may just have a billion. Proudly, the ones I did from seed are doing the best– have already forgotten which all kinds I planted, but know there’s at least Cherokee purples (heirloom), cherry, roma, grape, stupice (I think, another heirloom)… Nothing blushing yet, though. So, the tomatoes are apart from the rest of the veggies– they’re in a “fenced” section of their own. I found a 1963 Ford pick up “fence” at an estate sale, and set it up in the middle of the yard (tried to find the sunniest spot) as a little tomato corralle. They’re caged in the middle, but have long outgrown their captors and are escaping outside of the fence….
The herb container gardening next to my kitchen door has done marvelously, although the chamomile really shot up, bloomed, and sort of faded– I’m thinking of moving it and seeing if it lives…. and surprise, surprise, guess which one took over in the container with the chocolate mint and lemongrass… At least I’ve had a few blades (which were great cooked up with fresh Michigan asparagus).
Now, the front yard has come along better than I expected. I took out some unidentified shrubs and scraggly yews (after spending an afternoon trying my hand at topiary, knowing I was about to pull it out altogether… Topiary’s hard!) and, in typical Amanda fashion, went full force for 2.5 hours at the local bot gardens annual plant sale extravaganza, and spent all of my money and then some and a great selection of perennials and annuals. I bought a little of everything. And, after a slow start, it’s filled in nicely, with blooms of every color, and a cottage-garden-esque look.
I quickly dug up a strip along the front walk and put in basil– thinking I’ll amend it this fall, and put in bulbs and perennial herbs. What’s better when approaching a house that smelling good things?
On the community and school garden front (my job, and, well, my passion), it was a full spring, and there are incredible harvests coming in among an even more incredible diversity of gardeners. I’ll have to do a post with some photos soon. I have 1000’s, literally…
July 26th, 2005 at 8:50 pm
Amanda, Do you mind if I move in with you?
Your garden kicks much ass. Brava.
(Not gonna say “you grow girl!” again.)
July 27th, 2005 at 12:43 pm
It looks amazing! Makes me wanna go home from work early and play in my garden!
Great Job!
Vanessa!
July 27th, 2005 at 1:22 pm
Your garden looks great!
July 27th, 2005 at 9:49 pm
That Ford tomato fence is my favourite idea so far this season. :)
July 28th, 2005 at 3:37 pm
You didn’t comment on the last 2 pictures of poke berry. The famous “poke salad” of the song. The old folks tell me if you pick the tender leaves in the spring it makes a tonic. Not ready to try it myself, I cut down a poke plant that was growing at the base of a holly bush in my front yard.
Your garden is LUSH. You must have used lots of amendments.
July 29th, 2005 at 6:39 am
beautiful garden, amanda! funny, when i saw your chicken planters, my gut reaction was “hey, there’s auntiem!” :)
is the first pic some kind of purple basil?
July 30th, 2005 at 2:20 pm
thanks for all the comments– what fun!
some replies for y’all…
lena, you’re welcome to move in, but may want to wait a couple more weeks until the tomatoes ripen… i’ve got a guest room… ;)
now, it is lush these days (taking photos in nice light after a rain helps too)– but lush with weeds as much as other things!
i was going to do another post about compost and soil amendments– still mayt– because while things are doing pretty well, some things are not doing much in comparison to some of my friends and neighbors who have been amending for years. see, i’m so used to building community gardens via raised or mounded beds out of pure compost– and i preach and teach about compost all the time– that i’m spoiled, and am just realizing how important what i preach really is. i put less than a yard on my whole garden– some spots much thicker than others, and i think it needs tons more. the soil is almost pure sand in some places. i’m realizing for the first time, ironically, what the effects of not having enough compost are… so this fall i plan to amend amend amend, and get a good several yards on things– then next spring, look out…
chicken planters– my favorite estate sale find this spring. just kitch enough to be rad… i love them– and one has a great scented geranium, that, while having not bloomed at all (shouldn’t it?) smells and looks great.
yes, purple basil indeed.
anyway, thanks for the comments and compliments and encouragement! hopefully it’ll give me the energy i need to actually mow the overgrown lawn this weekend…
August 1st, 2005 at 11:14 am
So awesome! Thanks for including the pictures. I may well do the same. I can completely relate to seed sowing and then hoping for the best. You get some victories and defeats, but it’s all learning ultimately.
August 11th, 2005 at 3:25 pm
The last pic in your post caught my eye because the plant is much like a “weed” that I have hosted in my garden thinking it might be some fun, beneficial, and potential useful perennial. What is it, darling?!
September 2nd, 2005 at 3:12 am
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October 4th, 2005 at 4:53 pm
Your garden looks great! I had the same problem last year - digging up a new garden. My ground was pretty much all clay, weeds, and rock. It took forever to amend, but everything looks healthy too. I’m also in Michigan. Great weather today!