You'll be happy to know that, like me and all other right-thinking individuals, President Obama does not like beets. That's right up there with butternut squash, turnips, and cooked spinach as one of the few vegetables I will not eat. (And I'll make an exception for cooked spinach if it's chopped up and buried in lots of ricotta in a calzone or lasagna.) According to the news, Mr Obama just said no to beets in the new White House vegetable garden.
I would very much like to grow a container garden this year on my sunny back deck and follow my Commander-in-Chief's example. Especially since our neighbor over the fence who leaves us bags of garden tomatoes when the harvest is in is almost as old as my dad and has already had a carotid endarterectomy, so who knows if he'll be planting this year? I like to browse the Burpee catalogue wistfully and pretend I am someone who could grow all those lovely vegetables and flowers. But, sadly, while I am good at nurturing people and animals, when it comes to the vegetable kingdom, there isn't a plant in existence that I cannot manage to kill with my black thumb. So instead of vegetable gardening being a thrifty recessionista activity, with me it would go like this: buy potting soil, buy containers, buy seeds and/or seedlings, buy MiracleGro, watch everything die, die, die, and say goodbye to about $100.
On the other hand, I do have a wild patch of chives in my backyard, because once you plant those, they come back every year and spread, spread, spread. So if you wanna make potato salad, I'm your girl! But other than that, it's farmer's market, supermarket, kindness of neighbors. Sigh.
xoxo
P.S. Spellcheck is telling me calzone is not a word. Are they crazy?
8 comments:
Calzone is not a word? What's *wrong* with these people?
Two things that will outgrow chives and may be even more useful are oregano and mint. Even the cats love mint.
I use beets for red flannel hash. Period. They are of no other earthly use.
I had to google red flannel hash, because I had no idea what it is. Lemme say, I am still deeply suspicious of it.
I think I should grow basil. Is that easy? I use a lot of basil.
Basil's easy to plant but as I recall, it's an annual and does not, as they say, self-propagate. This makes it a high maintenance herb.
I grew basil last year, and didnt think it was high maintenance at all.
Keeping it picked before the slugs or whatever was munching it got to it was the hardest part. LOL Slugs love basil apparently.
But oh, the Caprese salads I enjoyed. Yummmmm.
I planted my container garden last Friday, a few new things from last year, yes, I spent a few buckes, but I think it will be returned when harvest time comes. Spinach, sweet basil, peas, beans,trying some zucchini and yellow squash, dunno how that does in containers, but we will see, lots and lots of lettuce which is extremely easy to grow. Just needs water and sunshine. :)
I used to have a black thumb too, I killed cactus. I bought myself a potted plant one year, a purple passion, fuzzy purple plant, it stayed alive for over a year till I transplanted it outside, and forgot about it. Sadly, plants do not do well when forgotten about.
:(
Anyways, I encourage you to try planting something. Container gardens are very easy, and really dont take much work.
Buckes...um...thats how we say bucks down here in the South. LOL
Oh, and beets should be banned...they are evil.
I'm trying not to be jealous that your container garden is probably outside already, because I bet it isn't 28 degrees at 10 am where you are :-) But I too am all about the caprese salads. Yum! I think I shall try growing the basil and the mint (if only for Evil Kitty's amusement...though, y'know, mojitos at my house? Hmmmm...)
No, um...it was 45 degrees at 10 am at my house.Not that Im gloating or anything. :)
Yes, my little containers that are planted with seeds are all outside in the sunniest area of the backyard, doing their stuff. The tomato seedlings are growing like crazy in the yoga room inside, as they arent big enough to be planted yet.
There's something to be said for getting your caprese salad or pesto on the hoof, so to speak.
Don't forget chocolate mint. It grows forever. I wonder how it does in mint julep...when lightly bruised.
:D
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