First Harvest

This week when we returned from vacation we found that our little garden did finally provide us with some vegetables. I am afraid that those little tomatoes will never make it in the house. Chris and the kids eat them like candy just as soon as they find ripe ones on the plant. I had to make them all wait to eat these so i could just get a picture. And, honestly, i did not have much hope for getting zucchini but these were picked by a neighbor who was caring for the garden while we were gone. They were a big surprise. We have eaten one already for lunch. I like to saute some onion and the zucchini with just a little garlic and some season salt...it is very nice. It is not much but i am pleased, it feels like a accomplishment, and it is nice for Avery see the fruit of her gardening. She and i started these from seed.

Fairy Watermelon

we found this little gem in our garden today. I am certain that it was not there yesterday. We called it a fairy watermelon because it is smaller than a penny. I know that it should have been planted sooner and it would have been bigger by now...but we are new to this gardening. I am more than thrilled with this miniature version of absolute summertime pleasure.

Isn't it cute?

This is our tiny attempt at gardening. We had originally wanted a big one, but then we joined the CSA and knew that we would have more veg than we could handle just from that, so the garden plan got called off. However, Avery really loves the dirt and just wanted to see something grow, so we started a windowsill garden....that eventually began to overtake our windowsill. So, we ended up with the garden anyway. I am sure there is no self respecting farmer or real gardener that would have planted it the way we did but...we are expecting little and hoping for much! There are tomato, and squash, a watermelon, sugar snap peas , carrot and golden beets. Wow...that is a lot. Maybe soon i will have some home harvest pictures to share.

Are they doomed?

I am not the greatest gardener. I do pretty ok if the said plants are growing out of doors, but when it comes to indoor plants, potted plants, i usually steer clear. I forget to water them, or water them too much, or forget they are there all together(ie, the plant on my porch that was a gift, oh the pressure). So, you might ask yourself, what was I thinking making terrariums. Well, the short answer is that they were way too charming and pretty for me to forget about. I spotted instructions for them here and here, among others, and could not get them out of my head. I finally found these jars at Target and a plan took shape. We rounded up all the "ingredients" and i just dove right in....because over thinking it could kill the whole project. Chris set up a improvised gardening area in the middle of the driveway on saw horses and plywood...good husband. Avery was my helper and we got things underway. I have to say that right now it is a resounding success. They look as pretty as i hoped they would and they even have a nice sunny home on the windowsill in our kitchen. Now you may check back in and see how they grow or don't grow over the next few weeks. That is to be seen. I understand that over watering is the main killer of all terrariums....since i am not so good at remembering to water, these could be a bad gardeners dream!!! And, no, those are not real critters in the terrariums! One of the charms of a terrarium is making them look like a tiny other world...Mitchie chose a dinosaur in his so his plants look like a prehistoric forest. The pictures below are the inside of one of mine(lizard) and Avery's(turtle). She did a great job.