Way back in 1995 when I lived in Huntington Beach, CA, I was lucky to live near a community college that had an organic garden. I signed up for a plot in February 1995, and kept the garden for two full growing seasons until I moved further south to Aliso Viejo. I kept a gardening journal from beginning to end of what I intended to plant, what worked and what didn't, and as I look out today on the snow still covering my backyard here in north Georgia, I retrieved that journal. I have to read you one of the passages that made me laugh out loud . . .
Dated Sunday, October 29, 1995 . . . "the preceeding page illustrates the garden as planted. Some pluses and minuses as noted are: the hollyhocks never came up, although I let a weed get pretty darn big, thinking it was a hollyhock! Having planted pole beans then letting the leftover morning glories live among them was a mistake . . . the glories strangled not only the pole beans but the cherry tomato plants that were planted nearby . . . "
I had never had a garden before, but I went at it like I truly knew what I was doing. From that 10' x 20' plot, I installed four rectangular raised beds, tilled the soil with cow manure and planted seeds and young plants. My little "slice of heaven" produced an abundance of vegetables and flowers . . . the pole beans mentioned above, plus three types of tomatoes, yellow squash, zucchini, bell peppers, radishes, beets, collard greens, corn, and some of the biggest sunflowers you've ever seen!
This Spring, I will have time to cultivate the long narrow plot along the side of the house, and will again plant my garden, using the remaining pages of my little gardening journal to chronicle the progress from seeds/young plants to truly edible delicacies. The only caveat is that the north Georgia growing season begins a little later than southern California, so I can only dream (and order seeds online) and wait for warmer weather!
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