The Sweetness of Life

Have I ever told you the story about how we came up with the name for our garden? It was on a day (several years ago) that things were not going particularly well. As a matter of fact, that whole year was not going very well. As I sat in my garden wondering what I could possibly do about any of it, a little voice in my head said,  "enjoy the sweetness of life". Of course, it was a reminder to "see" the important things in life, instead of the lousy. It was one of those moments when you realize life is about moments  - and I wanted mine to revolve around the beauty of the everyday. The time I spend in my garden is about living this life -. Come on, lets go see the garden!  

Spring came early this year. As it warms up we  harvest the last of our winter greens and make room for our tomatoes, peppers and other warm weather vegetables. The lettuce are starting to bolt, so the sooner we harvest the better!

Luckily, the nasturtium made it through the winter, it's always nice to add a little zest to a salad. 

 

 

I like to wash my lettuce outside, it's more fun than standing at the kitchen sink. After harvesting and sorting, I rinse the lettuce and let it sit in a bucket of water for a half hour or so. It takes some of the bitter taste away. (especially when you are harvesting older lettuce)

A little help is always appreciated! 

 In another corner of the garden, my daughter Nikki sorts through the long, slender branches from the fruit tree pruning and saves the best ones for plant supports and other creative endeavors.

 

This year we used them for tomato supports. Hopefully, they will be strong enough to hold up under the weight of the tomatoes!

I like the way it adds some texture to the garden!

In this bed are Black Krim, Cherokee Purple, Black Cherry, Indigo Rose, and Snow White tomatoes. The Snow White tomato was planted from seed by a fellow gardener. We bartered for some tangerines. It was a good trade!

While I have you here in the garden, I wanted to let you know that the Arcadia Edible Garden Tour is scheduled for May 10th. The ticket site is NOT up yet, but I will be the first to let you know when it is! Until then,

                                                       wishing you a very sweet spring!