Saturday, March 26, 2011

Gardening 101

Some people make things look harder than what they are. What I learned about plants you can fit in one sentence. I will give it dirt and water and watch it grow. When I lived in an apartment we longed for a garden. We put out containers of flowers and railing planters and expanded even over to outside our neighbor's apartment. I was loath to throw away old potatoes, avacado seeds and yes the tops of pineapples. I wonder if my old neighbor still has that three foot pineapple plant that out grew my sunroom and found his. My boyfriend bought me things that ended up out in the gully behind the apartment because no one complained. we and our neighbors ended up with a lovely little flood plain garden. It flooded every now and then if the storm was a good one. The steps we made would disappear and we'd watch as the flowers went under water and miraculously reappeared sometimes in other places.
I learned yes you can grow kale and rainbow chard in a pot if it's big enough. The best tasting tomatoes are grown dangling just off your balcony and you eat them like apples. You better pick them all if you are in an upstairs apartment with neighbors below. I grew basil that begged to be pinched and eatten with tomatoes, purple sweet onion and mozzarella a sprinkle of balsamic vinegar and olive oil.
I also learned even in a city you can find a quiet spot to grow something and find a little peace among the kudzu.

No comments:

Post a Comment