Gardening is a war

The beginning stages. I've always wanted to spend $80 on dirt. And that is just what we did. We actually paid to add some "good" dirt to our dirt. I'm sure that, mixed with the compost that we started last October, will pay off in huge dividends down the line.

I can't even tell from this picture what we've got growing. I'm sure there are some strays mixed in though.

My concern: Is this mold taking over my zucchini? The ladies at the garden store say it's just a spit bug...looks gross but totally harmless. What do you experts in the blog world say?

Proof that we've actually produced something edible.

If I can keep these peppers going...and start getting my tomatoes to ripen up...we've got the makings for some great salsa in our future!

The tomato plants I started indoors all died. These beauties are thanks to my sis-in-law. Apparently tomatoes start better in KY. Thanks to Rachel for sharing! I promised her the first ripened tomato...but so far, we've only had one and Cambrie scarfed down the "POMATO."

Cantaloupe! How excited will I (not to mention Kenzie!) be if these babies actually produce?

More pictures for the ladies at the garden store. Again, they said not to worry about these holes on my beans. And so far, the beans look fine. Any thoughts?

A closer view of the disgusting "mold" AKA "spit." Seriously..spit on my zukes. How appetizing is that?

 "Gardening is a war."
So said Mary Ann at the garden store earlier this week.
Boy, she isn't kidding. I know nothing about gardening. Well, that isn't quite true. Last year, I knew nothing. This year, I know a little bit more than nothing.

(For example...who knew it takes 5 years to get a decent asparagus crop? Note to self: Don't plan on having asparagus sustain our existence in case of emergency any time soon!)

I've commented (more than once) that it would likely be less expensive and a whole lot less time consuming to just buy all of our fruits and veggies at the store. And yet, I feel it's important for us to learn how to plant, cultivate and harvest a successful garden.
And so, we'll continue to trudge along.

As you can see from the pictures -- the beauty of my garden is clearly in the eye of the beholder. Ok, I'm kidding. It really isn't pretty at all. It's a far cry from my youth when our family's garden was planted. My dad created the most perfectly formed mounds. (Pathetically....that was another thing I had to learn. I didn't even know you had to plant everything in mounds. Is that highly embarrassing to admit? Yes. But, if and when I ever get my blog put into book form...it will be an important thing for my posterity to know -- of that,  have no doubt!)

My dad's rows were all evenly spaced (although I can't say for certain, but it is highly possible that he even took a tape measure out to make sure everything was evenly spaced.)
Planting the garden was always one of my favorite family home evening activities...and I really think it was because the corn and pea seeds were just SO cool. The corn seeds were pink and blue (right, dad? I'm not making this up, am I?) and the pea seeds...well they were just fat and looked cool.

My rows are a mess. My mounds are a mess. And if you look closely, you'll notice that cucumbers appear to be growing in with the peas. It's not uncommon to find a stray radish (or an entire row of stray radishes due to the package of seeds being dropped!) mixed in amongst the beans and peppers. Of course, I am totally blaming the lack of symmetry in my rows and between my plants on the fact that I had Cambrie and Kenzie help me place the seeds. We've got some serious disconnect going on out there...

The cilantro and basil are doing well -- despite being moved from planters into the garden. The lavender, mint, oregano and chives -- not so much. Is there a different trick involved with herbs?

The grapes (the leaves, anyway) are taking off - -right SMACK in the middle of the garden -- and the raspberries have died. (Actually, I think I waited too long to plant them and they were dead before I even stuck them in the ground.) The cantaloupe is spreading out nicely and the plant looks good...hopefully something edible will actually form on it. So far, the cucumbers, zucchini (minus the "mold") and beans (minus the "holes") all seem to look good. We've even gotten a few peas --which is like heaven in a little green pod...and had enough beans to cook up for dinner last night. The onions seem ok...the lettuce has made for a few salads...and the beets (which were solely planted because my mom made the comment that "fresh beets are delicious and the greens are really good for you,") are coming along. The garlic seemingly died a quick death before it even had a chance to get started...but the asparagus is looking nice and wispy.

Greg is annoyed because I have planted some permanent items -- such as the grapes and asparagus -- in very "non-permanent" spots. I've kindly reminded him that if he would do more than till up the ground...our garden would be much, MUCH  better organized. He has a mind and knack for those sorts of things. Me? I just figure I'm good if I dig a hole and can get something to grow out of it. Of course,  now I realize how much more sense it would make to actually plan and prepare.

Admittedly...having the sprinkler system working this year is a huge benefit. Last year, it was pretty tough to water the garden as the hoses weren't really long enough to go outside and around the fence (which is where the garden is located). It got tricky balancing on the trampoline and shooting the water (blindly!) over the fence.

Putting down some weed control and fertilizer (along with the composting) seems to be helping as well. And who knew? But actually pulling the weeds every day or two really does help to keep them at bay.

We've got a long, long, long way to go before we can survive off the fruits and veggies of our labors. But...we're learning...and that has to count for something, right?

For my own documentation sake, here is what we have planted:
*Tomatoes (7 plants total - various varieties)
*Radishes (although I LOVE radishes -- and these have grown well...I may not do them in the garden again. They are UNBELIEVABLY HOT! So hot that I can't even handle them...and I'm a girl who likes hot tamales. But these are unreal.)
*Green Peppers (doing well -- but sadly, Cambrie picked one too early...I almost cried.)
*Bush Beans (I'm eating my childhood words...not only do I feed my family beans...but sometimes, I even eat them myself.)
*White and Green Onions (how do you know when these are ready to harvest? It's kind of tough to tell which are weeds and which are onions.)
*Garlic (D.O.A.)
*Grapes (lots of leave spreading out)
*Raspberries (D.O.A.)
*Lettuce (looking good....makes for some great tuna wraps)
*Zucchini (so far I'm not killing it. Last year people said it was nearly impossible to not do well with zucchini...but I lost it all... I blame it on the ridiculous amounts of rain we got.)
*Cucumbers (already planted our second round of these -- and zukes)
* Peas (I learned last year that these are better suited for the cold weather. We'll plant our second round in August)
*Cantaloupe (trying not to get too excited about these...but I would love it if they produced)
*Beets (see reference above about only planting for mom's sake)
*Asparagus (bought 2 year old plants...will hopefully have something to eat in 3 years!)
*Oregano, Chives, Cilantro, Basil, Mint, Lavender...and something else that escapes my mind right now.)

Whew...Gardening IS a war. And I'm no general.... just a little peon in boot camp right now.