Dig in
April 21st, 2008
My husband patrols our patch of garden out back, squinting as he looks for an invading weed or rabbit footprint.
This year we bought a small tiller so that he would not have to borrow one from a friend. The frost of February had barely faded before he was out turning over the soil.
In March you might have seen him in the co-op one street over, carefully pouring onion sets into small brown paper bags and choosing between red and yellow potatoes.
The summer that we dated, we planted some cucumbers and peppers in a flower bed. They flourished in the flower bed, so in our first year of matrimonial bliss, Kenny decided that we needed to have our own full-blown garden.
We borrowed a tiller and he chugged his way a plot of ground out back near the carport that was about 8 feet by 20 feet. It was rough going. Apparently, a lot of fill dirt - or leftover construction dirt - was used in that area. We found lots of rocks and glass, nails and other construction leftovers.
After he finished turning the ground, we decided to plant onions, green beans, tomatoes, corn and squash.
We learned many lessons that first year. Green beans will send their clinging vines into anything close enough to invade.
Even a tiny garden demands attention. Not so much in the beginning, which is when you are most interested in it. Then summer comes and activities change. My husband is a teacher who becomes a farmer during the summer. He leaves at daylight and often does not return home until dusk. So who do you imagine has to water, weed and harvest? The person who has the least experience in these matters.
Kenny grew up on a farm. His mother cans everything except cans. (For the uninitiated, canning means putting cooked vegetables and fruit in jars.) When we go to West Virginia, we always arrive with empty Mason jars and leave with jars filled with tomatoes, green beans, pickles and even sausage and tenderloin.
I grew up in a rural area, but definitely lived the life of a town girl. I remember my mom and grandmother making peach jelly - once. We often had tomato plants or a pea patch or barrels with squash, but our vegetables were accessories - not serious eating.
Two years ago, we had our best garden ever. I was so proud of the vegetables we harvested that I cleaned and assembled them for a photo with my favorite kitchen chicken. The green beans and radishes were not represented, but in the photo are onions, carrots, potatoes, red cabbages and squash. We also grew leaf lettuce that year and corn, though it did not do as well.
We had a yard sale in our driveway that spring and we got many more compliments on our beautiful garden than we did on any of our sale items. Several people wanted to buy our vegetables!
Our garden has expanded to about 12×35. The dirt is rich and fertile. One year we had to fix the foundation and we moved all of our plants in the landscaping around the house to the garden for the winter. Their nutrients really boosted the garden, I think. We still occasionally have a forgotten bulb bloom in the middle of the veggies.
When I got home this evening, Kenny was standing in the rain by the garden. “Come here,” he called excitedly and when I got to the edge of the garden he pointed out how the potatoes have already started to grow. Onions are up about six inches and the peas have made their presence known.
I know for Kenny this little patch of ground out back is a direct connection to his folks and the farm he grew up on in West Virginia.
For me, it is an opportunity to spend time with my husband - to grow our relationship. As we harvest tasty vegetables, we also feed that part of us that is drawn to the earth. It is a bonus of living here that we choose not to ignore. (And if our tomatoes don’t turn out as we like, there’s always the Farmer’s Market!)