Green Daily

Jennifer, Lauren and I brainstormed about what we'd like to grow in our food garden while our kids were playing one afternoon. I scribbled down the names of fruits and vegetables as they flowed freely from our lips. Lettuce, tomatoes, beets, squash, pumpkins, corn, onions, spinach, chard, herbs, potatoes, berries, melon, grapes. Whew! We were definitely imagining eating more than all the work it would take to grow these things.

So we pared the list down based on a little rethinking and a little research. We learned corn could be hard to grow. We decided we wanted to stick to things we'd eat more regularly or might be inclined to simply use as a seasonal decoration than pumpkin. In the end it was mostly about what seed packets Jennifer and I saw at the store. We're sowing seeds for a lot of greens, yellow squash, tomatoes, carrots, beets, cantaloupe and watermelon. Jennifer picked up some small berry bushes that we plan to secure to the fence.

We have enough seeds started so that we can afford to lose a few along the way. In the end, I'm confident we'll at least yield enough to have some decent salads and some other very nice company for our summertime meals to go along with our neighborhood guests.

Tomorrow: read about the lasagna style locale for the Neighborhood Garden Project.