Summer Harvest

One thing I miss most about growing up on a farm was our huge garden! My parents would plant everything--peas, corn, tomatoes, potatoes, cucumbers, carrots, beets, onions, pumpkins, lettuce, zucchini, rhubarb and strawberries. It was wonderful to walk out and pick whatever fresh veggies (or fruit) we wanted to eat that day! And later we would can, freeze or pickle what was left, making it last into the winter.
This spring I mentioned that, if there was a place for it, I would love to have a little garden in our backyard. So in keeping with his tradition of spoiling me, :) Kyle went to work making it happen! We had one small strip of dirt along the side of our house so we decided to try planting it there. Unfortunately, the ground was so hard that Kyle had to use his axe to break it up. Afterwards we watered it and let it soak overnight. By morning it was a nice thick mud--perfect for planting! So in my little 4 x 12' garden I planted pumpkins, cucumbers, carrots, corn, beans, peppers and tomatoes. And a few strawberry plants. Then we waited. And waited. I started to think they weren't going to grow when we finally saw some tiny green leaves poking through! Some of the plants don't get much sun over there, so I'm still not sure if everything will produce, but it's been fun! So far we've had a handful of strawberries, although they came in one at a time. :) And a few days ago I picked a cherry tomato and three green beans. It was quite the harvest! :) Maybe at some point we'll have enough for dinner.