Seams of Life

turning over

 We were blessed with beautiful weather this week and used the opportunity to start prepping for spring planting. As always, my husband and I are suffering from extreme spring fever and I think we may have passed it onto our children as well. That's my son up there, expertly tilling the garden as if he was an old hand at the chore. I love this time of year. I love working in the dirt and the sunshine along side my little family. I love the planning, the dreaming and the planting. This year my husband full-filled one of his long time homestead dreams and planted a small orchard of apple, peach, pecan and fig trees.

Usually, by summer's end, we are all sick and tired of the upkeep - the picking, the weeding and the watering - that a garden requires. We are fully aware of that fact going in. But those sweet memories of the spingtime planning and picking those first fruits (or veggies) always stay with us through the winter and cause the whole the whole thing to start again.

garden lessons

Sadly, our little backyard garden is no more. I have not been a dutiful gardener this summer and the garden is now overcome with grass and weeds and wilt and plants that have gone to seed.

 
 In fact, just about everything in my yard is overgrown or dead.

I could blame the heat and humidity for keeping me indoors most evenings, but really, I only have myself to blame. When I am in the throes of spring fever, planting like a mad women, I forget that gardening requires a lot of hard work.

However, all is not lost. We did have a very good harvest this year overall, before the garden turned into a jungle that is. The zucchini and squash were plentiful. As were the cucumbers and okra. We had our first watermelon this year, too. And then a second.

 
The gourds are still going strong. In fact, they are growing everywhere, including up the tomato cages and into the woods. I'm looking forward to many more gourd birdhouses hanging from my trees.

 
The tomatoes had issues this year. They developed a weird disease (maybe blight although we can't be sure) that caused the stems to turn brown and die. We also had a lot of rain this summer, so the tomatoes that ripened often split before they were picked.

 
Our best harvest has been the peppers, bells and jalapenos. They must thrive on extreme heat or something.

I've come to realize that there is a learning curve to being a good gardener. Because every failure is a lesson, every year gets better than the previous. 

Next year I will know to do the following:

be more diligent in tending to my garden,

pick the vegetables at least every other day,

weed at least once a week, 

wait until the end of June to plant pumpkins and gourds,

plant the tomatoes in a different spot,

and to plant lots and lots of peppers.

  

 

 

garden happiness

 ( photo by Jacob )

   ( photo by Jacob )  

 ( photo by Jacob )

  

Lately I've been enjoying...

 ...cutting hydrangea bouquets,

...learning about the creatures found in the yard,

...picking just enough strawberries to make freezer jam. And also taking Molly style pictures by the sink.
  

and sow on

 
Over the past several years my confidence in my gardening ability has grown. Not so long ago I could barely keep a houseplant alive. Okay, so I still have trouble with the houseplants, but outdoor gardening seems to come easier. And I just plain love it. I look forward to our family's evening walk around the yard, through the flower bed and down to garden discovering what new flower has bloomed, how tall the tomatoes have grown and which seeds have germinated finally broke through the dirt.

Each year we've planted new things in the ground hoping they will thrive and we will enjoy them for years to come. The hobbyist/collector in me compels me to accumulate as many beautiful plants as possible. I want to enjoy them all and know everything possible about the all the plants in my collection.

 My list of new things to plant this year included hydrangeas ( I now have 5 bushes and still want more), gardenia, wisteria (this one will have to wait because it's an aggressive grower that requires lots of pruning), phlox, Japanese Andromeda and, the one that makes me the happiest, blueberry bushes.

Oh my, how I'm dreaming of the bushels of blueberries these guys are going to produce. I also learned a few valuable tips on growing blueberries from the lady who sold these to me:

• For the best blueberry production, you need at least two varieties of blueberry bushes.
• Blueberries like alkaline rich soil, so fertilize them with Azalea fertilizer or 10-10-10.
• The berries are ready to be picked when they fall off in your hand.
• By year six, the bush should be in full production.

I hope that helps anyone who wants to add blueberry bushes to their collection.