As you can all see, my garden and flowers are growing fast.
Half the interest of the garden is the constant exercise of the imagination. – C.W.Earle
I use grass mulch from clippings from my yard in between my rows in the garden. If you look close, my carrots are peaking out between the lettuce and onion rows.
We have a cool spring with rains, but we could use a good rain now for things to continue to look this good. Hope your garden and flowers are flourishing for all of you!
Your first job is to prepare the soil.
The best tool for this is your neighbor’s garden tiller.
If your neighbor does not own a garden tiller, suggest that he buy one.
Dave Barry
About the Author:
Snickers is a country gal at heart who loves holidays, quilting, antiques and has a passion for gardening. In her spare time she keeps herself busy as an estate cleaner and volunteers for many organizations. Her bucket list overflows.
Pam@IW says
May 17, 2012 at 8:19 amBeautiful pictures, snickers. Such a joy. I am so glad you can share this all with us.
GeeWhiz says
May 17, 2012 at 9:35 amWow, very pretty snickers. Although I can’t grow anything I enjoy your pictures and articles.
Jennie@IW says
May 17, 2012 at 11:41 amGreat pictures, great garden, snickers. I am now impatiently waiting for my cucumbers and tomatoes to grow, and thinking of other things to plant. I wonder how hard it is to grow asparagus?
Deborah says
May 17, 2012 at 12:03 pmOh Snickers… I love it!!!! And so rewarding 🙂
HB says
May 17, 2012 at 2:59 pmOh YUM! Snickers, how I do love your journey from seed to mouth/s! I have noticed that many of our neighbors have erected small, very well fenced in areas in their back yards w. small rows of vegetables instead of their usual cutting flower beds! As for us…we have ferns & ivy galore. The deer didn’t waste time, they’ve already pruned the impatiens & started on the hydrangeas. The $9,500 disposal of the oak tree that split our house (thanks to Irene)…just one of many that still shades us from the fruits that need the SUN! ;0(
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I could not resist the US grown beef steak tomatoes (@59 a lb.) & white corn (@29 per)! IF this is what farmers are having to charge…it’s going to be a challenge!
snickers says
May 17, 2012 at 4:02 pmJennie,
It’s not hard to grow, but don’t expect a real crop for several years. I suggest you go to a garden center and purchase at least 6 plants. I have started one 2 years ago, and I just let it go to seed. I think I picked about 5 pieces this year. I’ve been told after the first few years, burn the stalks off in the spring for new growth to emerge.
Ann@IW says
May 17, 2012 at 6:02 pmAsparagus sounds tricky.
Snickers thanks for sharing your beautiful garden. I love your flowers. My perennial garden is full of weeds due to neglect. It’s because I sit and hover over my vegetables like a mother hen. I spent the day shooing away cabbage moths and squishing the baby caterpillars I found. They were interested in my 4 broccoli plants.
My little garden has given us two bowls of romaine leaves. I left the buttercrunch heads to get bigger and we are eating them next week. I am rating them A+. Then I will plant the bush beans.
Forget the beets. They sprouted and fell over. They get an F.
snickers says
May 17, 2012 at 6:24 pmAnn,
Just keep working at it. If nothing else, you can enjoy watching things grow, I have had failures also. I call myself a picker, pick a weed here and there as I make my way through all the gardens I have. Once you establish a aparagus patch, it will be there for years.
Rosemary says
May 17, 2012 at 8:55 pmSnickers: I am so happy that God made people like you that enjoy gardening. Others, God made like me, that enjoy going to the farmer’s markets.
JennieIW says
May 17, 2012 at 9:32 pmThanks, as always, for the input, snickers. I have a lot of room so it’s not a big deal for me to be patient and wait a bit for asparagus to grow.
CJ says
May 18, 2012 at 8:40 amSnickers, your vegetable garden always looks picture perfect. Straight rows, perfect spacing and not a weed in sight. Thanks for sharing with us.
Lily@IW says
May 18, 2012 at 10:32 amSnickers, Wow, everything is doing great! It looks so pretty.
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I LOVE the pics of your garden.
SOR says
May 18, 2012 at 3:03 pmLooking good snickers.
snickers says
May 18, 2012 at 5:01 pmThanks for all the nice comments ladies.
pattypie says
May 19, 2012 at 5:49 pmYour garden looks wonderful! Have you been able to eat anything out of it yet?
I can’t wait to see more! I do have to ask, did you plant the rows extra straight because you knew you would be showing them to us? 😉
snickers says
May 19, 2012 at 8:06 pmCut my first lettuce and pulled green onions this morning. Straight rows, nah, just years with the hoe. 🙂 I noticed my tators have blooms set on them.
Anya@IW says
May 19, 2012 at 9:20 pmThis puts a smile on my face. Love the pictures and everyone sharing about their gardens and their love of Farmer’s Markets (me too!).
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Love the quotes too! My mom and her next door neighbor shared garden tools for 15 years. Gardens give us more than just beauty and food, don’t they?
lynn says
May 20, 2012 at 8:29 pmWell I guess I can kiss my garden good bye yet again. I didn’t even get pics of it yet. It did look awesome. Imagine my tears because they are there.
snickers says
May 20, 2012 at 9:11 pmlynn,
Oh no, what happened, hail again. If so, I’ so sorry!
lynn says
May 20, 2012 at 9:24 pmYep. Wasn’t even supposed to rain today either. I guess I’ll be spending next few days cutting and replanting just so it will hail again. Sad thing is I dont have very many spares this year and it still early.
snickers says
May 20, 2012 at 9:50 pmSo sorry lynn, we had 60 mph winds with rain, but no hail. Very cool here now. Cut them back, and hopefully you can save some.
lynn says
May 21, 2012 at 6:50 pmSome pics. I so wish I took them yesterday.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/77634162@N03/7246009166/
lynn says
May 21, 2012 at 6:51 pmClick on older to see them.
Ann @ IW says
May 21, 2012 at 7:13 pm#Gardening:
Lynn, I am so sorry. 🙁 That must have been some hail storm. What part of the country is this? Your pictures of the started plants in pots in April are so beautiful. I hope all is not lost? I would cry, too.
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I took pictures of my husband building our little garden here and stored them on a computer than crashed. My son installed another OS on it, so I need him to show me how to find the pictures and transfer them to my laptop so I can upload them here in an article. Stay tuned!
lynn says
May 21, 2012 at 7:44 pmI have about 1/3 of the peppers, tomatoes and cabbage left in the garden left in the green house room. Not enough. But it is ok. I will just pick up the pieces and start over again. I have been hailed on 1- 3 times every year for the past 5 years. It is really getting old. My patience this year is really wearing thin.
lynn says
May 21, 2012 at 7:49 pmI meant 1/3 of the plants in the garden are atill ok and 1/3 of them are still in the green house room.
snickers says
May 21, 2012 at 9:39 pmlynn,
So sorry, but if you still have green on the plant after a couple of days, cut them back, I think they will come back. Weather is the biggest challange to people who love to garden.
Ann,
Looking forward to seeing your pictures. 🙂
JennieIW says
May 21, 2012 at 9:45 pmI have a tiny tomato on of my tomato plants and several nascent cucumbers. So excited!
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Lynn, so sorry for your loss. 🙁
snickers says
May 21, 2012 at 9:51 pmJennie,
How wonderful for you! You are way ahead of us here, just caged my tomato plants last weekend, and my cukes are just up!
lynn says
May 22, 2012 at 9:27 pmWell looks like I lost about 20 peppers and 3 cabbage but rest will be ok with a little snip. It is way too hot for that though.
snickers says
May 22, 2012 at 9:45 pmlynn,
Great news, just give a little extra water to the plants in the garden. Most plants will snap back within a week with new growth on them. We are having winds, but they say rain is in the forecast.
lynn says
May 23, 2012 at 7:30 pmLet it blow. Let it hail. Let it pour. I will deal with it but please get it out of your system already. Sorry I had to vent.
snickers says
May 23, 2012 at 8:37 pmlynn,
We are in the storm front tonight, praying no hail here, but the winds are crazy! It rained so hard and the wind was blowing like 45 mph, no rain in the rain gauge.
lynn says
May 23, 2012 at 9:09 pmI am beyond frustrated can you tell?
snickers says
May 23, 2012 at 10:08 pmlynn,
Yes,I feel your frustration. This time of year the weather is scary. Hopefully your garden will spring back some.
lynn says
May 27, 2012 at 9:48 pmI am having one awful gardening year. Between the hail, the wind and 90+ temps I think I might be semi toast. Maybe I will plant in Jan next year. Hope everyone else garden is good.
snickers says
May 28, 2012 at 7:44 pmlynn,
Don’t give up, but how you keep up with that huge garden is a job and having a new baby, your plate is full. So far, I have lucked out, hail all around us, just much needed rain. I noticed today, a few of my potatoes are blooming.
lynn says
May 30, 2012 at 10:53 pmI haven’t given up yet. I picked my first good batch of leaf lettuce, radishes and a bit of spinach that was good. My peppers are sticks but the cabbage I have left is starting to head. I only lost 1 tomato amazing. Tommorrow is going to be cooler and less windy so I am going to replant the plants I lost.There is a 20% chance of storms tomorrow so watch it hail. Last time it hailed I had just replanted the peppers I lost because of the wind during the day. They didn’t last long LOL. I reburied my potatoes today for the third time just because.
Lily@IW says
May 31, 2012 at 8:46 amWell, I did not get my raised beds, I think that has been pushed back since I have other projects pressing for now.
There is poison ivy mixed in the honeysuckle growing along the fence line where I wanted to put one of the beds. I had put up a board to retard some the growth until it was sprayed and then a cat (known to me and born on my porch this Winter) had her one little kitten behind that board. Sigh, cute little kitty took preference. They have now found a good home, so I can at least kill the poison ivy before it gets worse. I did get my tomatoes, so I won’t be crying going around looking for green tomatoes to fry up. 🙂
The garden I keep at my mother’s got a lot smaller this year as it had to be retilled. But, she will be happy to have a few things to put up this Fall.
snickers says
May 31, 2012 at 11:08 amIt’s crazy how well my garden and flowers are doing, hot spring, cool, damp, no rain, 90’s back to the 60’s, etc. Now rain and overcast. I will take a pic and post.
lynn, hang in there! 🙂
Lily, there’s always another year!
lynn says
June 5, 2012 at 4:21 pmSome new pics.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/77634162@N03/7343203620/in/photostream/
Rosemary says
June 5, 2012 at 5:50 pmLynn: Looking good. I would soon have that first one in a pot or stir fry.
snickers says
June 5, 2012 at 6:01 pmlynn,
Your garden looks fab, the hail didn’t do much damage. You garden is way ahead of mine, altho I don’t water much, just to get things started. New pics of mine coming soon. Do you sell at the Farmers Market?
lynn says
June 5, 2012 at 7:21 pmI’m not real happy with my peppers and cabbage. I have lost a couple every time I replanted and I am starting to run out of them. The tomatoes are still a bit small but getting bushier and I have 2 flowers. The peas and corn are doing incredible. I lost my cucumbers and melon plants but growing them inside in hopes to have some eventually. I have to laugh at the farmers market thing. Only in my dreams I am lucky to get enough for us.
snickers says
June 5, 2012 at 7:57 pmlynn,
I do not plant corn in my garden, that is planted in the country. Corn will root down to find water. My tomotoes are full of blooms, they are getting big. My green beans are just setting a few blooms, they are one of our favorites here. I have noticed that some flowers have dried up leaves already, crazy weather year. I think some bulbs are trying to re-correct themselves. Enjoy your garden. 🙂
lynn says
June 5, 2012 at 9:32 pmI am sorry. I didn’t mean to step on your turf. I will back away.
Pam@IW says
June 6, 2012 at 6:25 pmlynn,
That is a huge garden. Do you get any help with that?
snickers says
June 6, 2012 at 9:05 pmlynn
What?? No problem here! Corn does not grow well in a garden in town here. I was just telling you what I do. I have always enjoyed your garden! 🙂
JennieIW says
June 6, 2012 at 9:41 pmOMG, I checked today and I have like 8-9 little baby tomatoes coming along! So excited. Now if the cucumbers would catch up (I have two smallish ones growing but the rest are just babies and who knows if they’ll really grow – I don’t trust these things until they really happen!)
snickers says
June 7, 2012 at 7:00 amJennie,
How great for you! Mine are blooming and nothing on my cukes yet. Don’t worry, those cuncumbers will come. Enjoy! I so want a fresh tomotoe.
Pam@IW says
June 7, 2012 at 7:06 amlynn,
I think you might have misunderstood. I don’t think there were any comments made on here that felt you were stepping on anyone’s turf. We all love to read your posts and I know snickers especially loves the interaction. Please continue to post about your garden. 🙂
Pam@IW says
June 7, 2012 at 5:13 pmNew post up by snickers https://imperfectwomen.com/greetings-from-the-garden/
Lily@IW says
June 7, 2012 at 8:22 pmCongrats Jennie, good luck w/the cukes.
Snickers, it wasn’t grown at my house. But, I got some tomatoes from the farmer’s market this weekend. Just heaven. How do we wait all year for that kind of taste?
snickers says
June 7, 2012 at 8:47 pmlily,
It will be a long time for me to have a fresh tomatoe. This time of year we can get some nasty weather, or go into a drought. If everything goes right, I will have sweet corn and green beans first. Have enjoyed the garden lettuce and onions.
snickers says
August 18, 2012 at 3:15 pmMy garden season has to come to an end for this year. I have cleaned most of it off, and will get it ready to be tilled and let the earth rest for another year. Many ups and downs this year with the wierd weather patterns across the country this year. All in all, no major complaints here. The plus side of things were greenbeans, onions, cabbage, tomatoes, sweetcorn, and potatoes and cucumbers. With the extra produce from my garden I was able to donate to our local food bank and Senior Center with fresh produce.
The failures were brussell sprouts, carrots and decorative corn. I planted pumpkins and ghourds in the country and will wait to harvest them later this month.
I have cut back flowers and bushes and enjoying the fall mums which are brillant in color. We have had a drought year, but welcomed rain this week to our area. Until next time, hope your season was fun and you all had a great garden.