Jul 21
2008
Today In My Garden
One of my plans when I first started blogging was to create an online journal of what was going on in my garden.
Somehow, that never really happened. I had other ideas I wanted to explore and topics I wanted to write about. I suppose I also worried that no one else would be interested in my little plot of land. I also worried that if I wrote too much about what was happening in my backyard, people wouldn’t come and look over my virtual fence and chat.
Well, now that I have my gardening column on Examiner as a forum for non-personal garden topics, I can get back to some of my original objectives and make Bumblebee more about my own gardening space.
So let me tell you about my day…
Today I marveled at the perfection and beauty of my squash plants. Oh, don’t get me wrong. I am fully aware that they won’t stay this lovely. These perfectly formed and perky leaves will start to wilt. The bugs will discover them and chew tiny holes in them, some in lace-like patterns. Some leaves will wither and yellow even as the squash starts arriving by the bushel full.
But for now, I love these squash plants. They are perfect. They are mammoth. My hand cannot even reach from one side of the leaf to the other. Today, they represent the potential of abundance and are an ornament to my garden.
Today I also picked blackeyed peas. I have never grown them before, but a family friend gave me some seedlings she purchased at the local Amish market. Frankly, it was during the throes of spring planting and I just plunked them in a convenient spot. They are, perhaps, a bit crowded. And at first I thought they would need some sort of trellis to climb. But they have done just fine here, shooting up their long pods above the plants.
It was very satisfying picking a whole bucket of these beans today. Tomorrow I will shell them and find some appropriate dish to highlight their freshness. Secretly (okay, secret’s out), I am grateful that the men in my house do not like blackeyed peas. ALL MINE!
I also admired my pink bed today. When I planted the cock’s comb seedlings in the bed near the cone flowers I didn’t realize they would intermingle so companionably. But now I think I’ll do this again, since it’s a winning combination.
The cone flowers also make me smile because they are from a clump of flowers given to me by a friend about four years ago. I always think of her and her husband when I see them.
I also started harvesting the seeds from my spent cilantro plants. These coriander seeds will be a fine, fresh addition to some dish. I’ll need to begin exploring recipes soon to take advantage of the new harvest.
So, aside from the watering and bush squishing, that was my garden today.
What was going on in your garden today?
Robin
