The food I’m growing

This is the third year I’ve planted a garden (because it’s the third year I’ve had a yard in which to do that). The first year I gardened, I learned what a tomato is really supposed to taste like. Now I can’t buy the waxy red balls you see at the grocery store anymore. The second year I gardened, I learned what lettuce really tastes like (yes, it is supposed to taste like something). Now the expensive bagged greens just taste like nothing.

I have tried peppers (last year–the plant flowered once, produced one puny pepper and was then pooped). And I’ve thought about trying lots of new and different things, but this year, my strategy has been to stick with what I know I will use and appreciate.

So down in the garden (pictured below) I’ve got spinach, arugula, a mesclun mix and two tomato plants. One is roma and one’s a normal big-boy type tomato. I got these at Home Depot, so we’ll see how they do. The lettuce came from seed packets, which I had great success with last year. I have grown tomatoes from seed in the past, but this year I was a little late getting started with my garden, so we’ll see how these transplants do.

Up on our deck, I’ve got some fun stuff and some kitchen staples. Really, in the summertime there is only one kitchen staple (or only one I know how to grow)–basil. On a Saturday afternoon, I love nothing more than to step out, pick a bunch of basil leaves and whip up a quick pesto to pour over a pasta lunch. My weekend pasta lunches during the winter pack so much less punch because I don’t have this luxury.

So in one cluster of pots, I’ve got a lavender plant that survived the winter, a transplanted lettuce and a transplanted parsley seedling. Both of these seem to be volunteers that showed up in the garden early this spring after I let their parent plants go to seed late last summer. We’ll see how they do. I know one little leaf lettuce plant doesn’t go very far, but I couldn’t bear to chop up the perfect little plant when I tilled my garden this year. I’ve also got a basil plant on that end.

In the other cluster, I’ve got my bigger basil pot, which has three Italian basil plants and one Thai basil. not sure how much I’ll use the Thai basil, but it’s beautiful, and I love the smell of the leaves, so it’s worth it even if I don’t eat it. I’ve got the same mint pot I had last year. Didn’t have to do anything but clear away the dead parts of the plant, the mint came back early this spring. I’ve also got some gerber daisies and petunias for color.