All Things Red

I planted strawberries in a pot. See that little bit of pink? It's a strawberry. And it's almost ripe enough to eat now. It's the only one so far that looks like a strawberry and not a green nodule.

I have to share it with Alex. One strawberry cut into two tiny pieces or more likely one strawberry and his will have a bite out of it as I remove it from the plant. I'm surprised at how well they're growing. Hopefully I'll have a successful strawberry summer.

Other red things in my garden are doing well. I planted tomatoes. Some tiny plants, which you can't see in this picture, I started myself indoors. These big tomato plants are from a local hardware/garden store. They have flowers on them now, which means tomatoes will follow soon. I got a variety of types because I'm not sure what I like. I remember my grandma growing big boys, but I'm sure she grew other varieties, too. I picked out the Indy tomato and have one plant of that variety for local sake. We'll see.

I've already started planning for next year. We're going to build/install a light table in the garage so I can start more plants from seed. I saved my plastic starter pots this year so I have a good stockpile of those.

I need to research prepping the ground after the garden, but I've got a few months before that and I'm ready to enjoy the summer!

Garden for two

This is my garden. It's on the side of my house. It looks dry in the picture, but I'd already watered it. The high today is 93. I should probably water it before I leave for work this morning.

Tomatoes and potatoes are in the back rows. Peppers, broccoli, cucumbers and egg plants are in the next rows. Lettuce, spinach, squash, and brussel sprouts are in the front row.

It's a nice size garden for two people.
Right now, my favorites thing in the garden is the lettuce. I like it because it grows fast, started from seed and tastes yummy. Obviously it's not big enough for salad yet, but I've been able to pick a little leaf here and there to taste.

Everything else that I started from seed moves much slower. The large plants from nurseries are much further along but the "I did that" feeling just isn't there. I mean I guess I could say, "I replanted that," but it's not the same.

I don't want to rush my garden. Good things come with time.

A Summery Memorial Day

It's a beautiful day in Indianapolis. Birds are chirping, bees are buzzing, people are outside mowing their lawns. I've been in my garden on and off all day. My plants are looking better since the weather shaped up and the sun has finally come out again.

I planted some additional plants. My cucumbers never sprouted (from seeds). I replaced them with four starter plants. I also added in a couple of varieties of egg plants and one artichoke. I don't think artichoke grow in Indiana, but they are one of my favorites so I figure it won't hurt to try.

I also planted some herbs in pots in the back yard near the grill so we can not only eat fresh, but season fresh as well.

I picked out some sweet basil, which I also grow year round inside, some spicy round basil, which I've never tried, cap nip for the cats, oregano, parsley and rosemary.

I'm making an effort to take pictures and record my trials and successes so that next year it will be much easier. We'll see.

Happy Memorial Day, and happy summer!