About that promise....

Yeah, I know I said I wasn't going to plant any more tomatoes, but I couldn't help it.  Nanny and I went to the greenhouse yesterday to get more bell pepper plants.  We had to pass right by the tomatoes to get to the peppers.  I saw "Lemon Boy" tomatoes and had to have some.  But I only bought 4 plants, so my promise isn't too badly compromised.

The greenhouse where we were shopping is "Anthony's Herb Farm."  It's a fairly small operation, but they have wonderful things, and the owners are wonderful people.  I first visited Anthony's about fifteen years ago, when I went to get a few plants to put around a fish pond I was intending to build.  At the time, I'd hurt my back and couldn't work, and The Husband and I were as poor as church mice; I only had about $10 to spend.  I asked Ms. Jean for advice on plants that would multiply or spread quickly, since I couldn't afford many plants.  I'd already chosen my $10 worth when Ms. Jean suggested "monkey grass."  When I told Ms. Jean that I simply didn't have any more money, she grabbed a shovel, dug up two big clumps of monkey grass from her own garden, and gave them to me for free.  I don't even remember what plants I bought that day.  All I remember is Ms. Jean's act of kindness. 

Anyway....

I came home, planted the peppers and tomatoes, and did a bit of maintenance in the garden.  I learned last year that the best way to keep blight under control is to start spraying fungicide before the blight appears, so I mixed up a sprayer-full of fungicide and doused all of the plants.  For good measure, I spent some time sitting in a lawn chair at the end of the squash row, willing the squash seeds to sprout.  (If they don't come up soon, I'll need to re-plant.)

After working in the vegetable garden, I came home and mowed the lawn.  It was dusty, and the wind was blowing hard, and I was covered with dust, grass, and leaf debris by the time I finished the weed-eating.  I came in and showered, washed my hair, and shaved my atrociously-hairy legs, then looked for some lotion to put on my poor, sun-and-wind-dried skin.  There was a tube of Dove "Daily Moisture" stuff in the bathroom cabinet, and I squirted a big blob onto my palm and applied it to my legs.  That one big blob did both legs, both arms, and my face, with plenty to spare.  Oddly, it wouldn't "soak in," and I had to wipe some of it off with my towel.  As I was putting the tube back into the cabinet, the word "Conditioner" flashed through my brain.  A better look at the tube revealed that, yes, indeed, I had smeared hair conditioner, not lotion, all over myself. 

Shoot, if I'd done that prior to shaving, I might not have had to shave at all.  ;) 

Cucumbers and Bradley Tomatoes

When I went to bed last night, my old bones were aching so badly from yesterday's garden madness that I could not sleep.  Finally, some time after midnight, I swallowed two Alleve, and managed to fall asleep soon thereafter.  Today, I was none worse for the wear.

At lunch, I bought 4 more tomato plants - Bradley tomatoes - and planted them when I got home.  I also planted a whole row of cucumbers, enough to pickle the entire county if they all come up.

I had about given up on the potatoes and squash I planted Easter Sunday, but it looks like there'll be at least some showing.  A couple of squash have poked their heads up, and there's a potato peeking out of that hole! 

Last year, I let a red lettuce plant go to seed.  The sprouts survived the mild winter and are thriving.

I read up on "companion planting" last night.  The article said to let the corn get 6" tall, and then plant beans and squash around the stalks.  I ordered "rattlesnake beans" last night to plant with the corn.  If the squash I planted on Easter comes up and does well, I think I'll plant zucchini around the corn.

With the exception of the rattlesnake beans and zucchini, and assuming that the seeds I planted yesterday actually sprout, I think this year's garden is officially "in."

Corn, Butterbeans, Tomatoes, Peppers, Carrots...

Whoooooweeee, I'm tired.  Tilled up 6 rows (3 passes each) and planted corn, butterbeans, carrots and onions.  Yeah, I know the carrots and onions should have gone in two months ago, but I didn't get to it, okay?  I don't know why I bothered planting the carrots, since not one of the two million carrot seeds I have planted in my garden in the past few years has germinated.  I don't know why I bothered with the corn, either, since the raccoons push it over every year as soon as the cobs begin to grow kernels.  But one continues to hope....

I am not having a zillion tomato plants this year, like I usually do.  Today, I set out 4 Arkansas Travelers, 2 Mr. Stripeys, and one "Mortgage Lifters."  We do have a bunch of volunteer Roma tomatoes that I will probably transplant to finish filling out one tomato row.  But that's it.  No more.  I promise.

Peppers - cayenne, jalapeno, and a long, sweet pepper (can't recall the name).  Need a couple more.

I'm going to try companion planting this year - green beans and squash with the corn.  I suppose the corn will need to sprout, first, and get established, before the beans and squash go in.  The theory is that the beans can use the corn stalks for support, and the squash provides ground cover for weed and moisture control.  I'll let you know how it works.