My sister asked “So how do you make your tomato sauce?” Simple question, but instead of the obvious answer, I wanted to stress freshness, so my answer started with “Well in May you prep the soil and plant your tomato plants…” I’m blessed to have a great spot for a little garden, right beside the lake. I also have a backup garden, at my Mom’s house. I’ve seen a huge improvement in produce at the grocery store, especially imported stuff, when items are not is season here. Having said that, there is nothing like picking something, bringing it the 10 feet to the door and using it. There are certain things we grow every year and some things that we switch around. Here is a picture of the garden taken just after it was planted and 3 weeks later.
From right to left, we have Roma tomatoes (for sauce), Early Girl tomatoes, a yellow pear tomato, and a new addition, a Pineapple Heirloom tomato. Next are multicoloured carrots, multicoloured swiss chard and then lettuces. We have red leaf lettuce, romaine, mesclun and spinach.
Just after we weeded the lettuces, this group went past…. I may not get any lettuces this year again.
Just out of the picture are yellow and french green beans. Along the front edge are cute stuff peppers in red and yellow. They only grow the size of apples, so they are supposed to be good for stuffing. Just in the back, along the fence are the herbs.
This year there are chives, Shallots, parsley, tarragon, cilantro, lettuce leaf basil, sage and rosemary. Just behind me are the sunflowers, well the two leafed things we hope will be sunflowers in the future. And finally the picture at the top is a flower garden, but on the right, guarded by St. Francis and the gold gnomes is the rhubarb. So with the garden just outside the front window and the bird feeders attracting all sorts of birds and other creatures, is it any wonder that I love to just sit and read and watch the parade go by….
Beautiful photos. I guess you have a love/hate relationship with the birds.
I love to sit and read in the morning and watch the birds come to the feeders. The geese I could do without. We have had ducks come up on the deck, right to the door.