Thursday, December 6, 2012

Garden Plots


December 6, 2012



I’m contemplating a small vegetable garden. Ho-hum you say, but this is a more earth-shattering statement than you might think. It’s been years since I had more than a tomato plant in a pot on the patio. What if I’ve forgotten everything I learned about growing veggies?

The love of having a veggie garden skipped a generation in my family. My mother was never into it. She had beautiful, beautiful flowerbeds, but grow something to eat? Nope. If you grow it, you have to either eat it ASAP or preserve it in some fashion. Mother just wasn’t into it, and no one in my father’s family had a garden. So most of what I learned was at my grandfather’s knee.

I’m blessed with three acres of land, so a spot for a garden isn’t a problem. A way to keep the deer out of it is, though. Those bast…er…animals can jump over moving cars. A cute little picket fence will have them laughing. My solution - my honey is making me a plywood cut-out black “wolf pack” to install on top of the stone fence. It won’t stop them completely, but it will help.  And I’m getting another dog, one who is young, agile, and thinks chasing deer from the yard is fun. My old dog can’t run anymore, but he’s earned his retirement.

My cousin will till the plot for me, but I think we’re going to invest in our own Kubota. Or John Deere. Or whatever we can get a deal on. So muscle and deer prevention are handled. The real dilemma - what do I want to plant?

Tomatoes, peppers and lots of leafy lettuce are givens, but what else? I like cole slaw so some cabbage would work. Onions, cucumbers and maybe a watermelon would fit in the plan. That’s probably enough for 2013 as I delve back into this. I’m sure I’ll expand as the years progress and I get closer and closer to my imaginary retirement.

I like the idea of becoming more self-sufficient, even if it is in small ways. It takes me back to my youth. I suppose it’s ironic that so many people thought abandoning the backyard garden was a sign of prosperity and now it’s in vogue again, but that’s a blog for another day. Right now, I’m going to the Burpee website and look at seeds and dream of home-grown tomatoes on a thick, juicy hamburger with grilled onions and peppers, some homemade dill pickles and a side order of slaw.

Hmm. Perhaps I should’ve had lunch.

KC Kendricks




2 comments:

Shelly said...

I plan on growing one in earth boxes on my balcony and around my shrubs. I used to grow an in-the-ground-one. But we live in a deed restricted community now.

Hugs and chocolate,
Shelly

KC Kendricks said...

I think even with the space we have we'll have a combination of in-ground and raised beds. I'd like to try some baby carrots, too, so a raised bed for them solves a lot of problems. There's nothing like a truly fresh salad in the summer.