Sarah Vs. the Black Thumb (part whatever the second)

After returning from Indy I wandered to my back yard to water my plants that had been neglected for four days. Apparently there was a really windy day at some point because the umbrella from our patio set had been whipped from its stand and the main post wrenched in two. Seriously...the metal just sheared off...I'm amazed.

Anyway, it landed on my garden. My heart stopped when I saw it. Rob has sincere doubts as to my ability to successfully grow a functional garden and I saw another year's efforts flash before my eyes. I peeked under the umbrella and dropped it in stunned amazement. Apparently it acted like a greenhouse. My tomato plants that I purchased at a farmers market three weeks ago at less than six inches tall are over four feet tall. Of course they weren't that big when I left so they are a sprawling undisciplined mess right now. And I have no idea where Rob stashed the tomato stakes and cages post move. Actually I'm not sure I have tomato stakes taller than four feet as it has been years since I had a plant get that tall.

So instead of trashing the umbrella or letting Rob fix it, I may mount it on a pole and plant it in the middle of my garden.

Sarah Vs. the Black Thumb (part whatever)

My vegetable garden is in! HA! Stop laughing, it's only the end of June and in my family that's actually not half bad!

I am so not going to have vegetables before three feet of snow blows in off the lake in early October...

I'm telling myself this is so I can learn how to make seeds sprout (and I have the whole summer to try over and over again until I get it right. By next year, I might know what I'm doing.

That sounds plausible right?

How Does Your Garden Grow or: Sarah Vs. The Black Thumb (Part III)

I went out today to weed my garden and settled for admiring how many plants are coming up instead. I'm telling myself it will be easier to weed after the day and a half of rain we are supposedly going to get. So I didn't feel like it was a total loss, I did water the plants in the garage as I have a bad tendency to kill them a week or so before I end up planting them.

The daisies are blooming, I will have to post some pictures at some point to prove that I managed to grow something...

Sarah Vs. the Black Thumb (Part II)

Status update:

Back flower bed ripped up, landlord planted shrubs, I planted bulbs which are coming up (yay!)

Front flower beds weeded, some plants relocated, lilac bush planted, daisies starting to bloom, roses pruned.

Garage flowers and veggie starters look pretty good, I had about a 70% success rate with the seedlings and will probably plant them next week.

I have green stuff that doesn't look sad!

Sarah Vs. the Black Thumb

I have a terrible track record with growing things. But I love the idea of gardening so much that I attempt it every year.

When we first got married, I had houseplants...sad, short lived houseplants.

When we moved to Alabama, I got gardenia bushes and azalea bushes that I planted in pots and put in the house to get big enough to face the outside world. My cats ate one of the azaleas and I killed the rest through overwatering.

Then we moved back to Indy and I had a second story apartment whose balcony I filled with potted plants, which I managed to kill through neglect stemming from frequent road trips.

Then we moved to the house we are in now where I discovered bulbs, which apparently, are Sarah-proof. I also managed to successfully grow two fruit bearing tomato plants. I got about 20 cherry tomatoes off a plant that probably should have given me over a hundred tomatoes and a grand total of two yellow tomatoes.

Last year, I got some really huge basil plants whose leaves didn't taste at all basilly and an insane amount of lettuce and of course, my bulbs (which I thought I had dug up) came back up being fairly hard to kill. We also got a really great crop of green onions which I had planted the previous year, but had never come up. Apparently the days to maturity on that particular variety is 380.

Last fall, while digging up our sad little garden, I promised Rob no gardening fiascoes this year. Then a few weeks ago, while grocery shopping Sarah and I passed a center display filled with seeds. Tiny little packets of vulnerable seeds, full of promise. I literally could not help myself. I wasn't going to tell him, I was going to plant them and watch his amazement as everything sprouted at which point it wouldn't be a 'gardening fiasco' now would it! He helps me unload the groceries, so I pulled the seed packets out to tuck somewhere out of the way until planting time, but I missed a packet. He unloaded the bag, held up the seed packet and said "Honey, what is this?"

I was very very busted. I sold my 'isn't one of the most wonderful things in the world eating a huge juicy tomato like an apple, right off the vine?' He pointed out that we have never managed to get big juicy tomatoes to actually grow. So now, I am under obligation for it not to be a fiasco. I have read and researched how to make the seeds happy, the kind of water, soil, and sunlight they need. I have read about using compost and what mulches leach nutrients out of your soil. I have read about timing your garden and planning early and late blooming plants to maximize the beauty of it. I have laid out a plan for the garden and for bringing it under my dominion and subjecting it to my will. I figure I have tried the nurturing hovering approach and I ended up smothering my plants. Now I will do the confident in my plan of action, tough love approach and hopefully my little seedlings will grow up big and strong and independent. Sorry, I may have my parenting books and gardening books a little confused.

Week One progress report:
Actions: I started tomatoes, hot peppers, cucumbers and daisies last week. I have tomato seedlings two inches tall with one or two sets of leaves and cucumber shoots four to six inches long. The daisies have poked out of the soil but aren't really doing anything yet.
Attitude: I refuse to believe there is anything I cannot master with learning, hard work and determination. I will have tomatoes this year if it kills me.