How does your Garden Grow?

New Jersey - the Garden State - where it seems like almost everyone manages to squeeze a few veggies into a plot of land, even if it's only 50' by 100'!  What are you growing?

I have a little pot of herbs.  For some reason, I don't have much basil, which is almost a sin at my house. :)  (I'm going to have to pick up some basil at Shop Rite next time I go over there.  I often see rooted basil plants in the produce section, right near the tomatoes.) 

I do have some nice oregano, thyme, parseley, chives, sage, and dill, and of course tons of mint growing wild along the side of the house.  A lot of that stuff comes back every year. 

 And then, of course, there are my tomatoes.  I'd given up planting tomatoes for a few years because my husband really didn't like them... but that was when he was younger.  He's matured since then.  He's come to his senses.  Now, he loves a good Jersey Tomato.

I didn't plant just ANY tomatoes. I planted all heirloom tomatoes, so that I can save the seeds every year.

I started my seeds in the house in the winter, under a big fluorescent light.  When I am planting those tiny little seeds, in the middle of winter, I just can't help myself.  I find it impossible to plant only a few, even though I know that my garden space is limited.  And then once the little seeds have sprouted, I find that I just can't bring myself to throw away the extra little plants.  I put them all together in the garden, crowding them up way more than I should.  And as they grow, they become a dense jungle of tomato plants.  My Grandfather would NOT approve.

And so far, I have lots and lots of tiny green tomatoes, but only one almost red ripe one.  I guess they'll all be red at once and then I'll be making salsa and sauce to freeze.

I have a little spot of potatoes growing this year, too.  When I was peeling potatoes this spring, I had a few that had sprouted.  I planted the peels in my garden, and just a few days ago I dug up three little new potatoes!  I was quite excited about that, and I can't wait to see how many more I get.

And finally, my absolute favorite garden plant of all ... my pots of string beans.  I always plant pole beans.  I love the way they look, and I love the fact that I get a lot of meals of beans!

You'll notice that I didn't mention zucchini.  I had a great zucchini patch last year.  This year, the seeds never sprouted.  But I mentioned that to a friend, and she's brought me enough zucchini to last for the whole summer.



Tomorrow, I'm going to show you my recipe for zucchini bread.  (How exciting is THAT!!!)