A Little Bit of Gardening News

I have mentioned my adventures in the garden a few times, so I thought it was about time to show you a little of what I've done out there, with God's help, of course. I have buckets and trays filled with little seeds that are just beginning to sprout. The peas, radishes, and cucumbers were the first to sprout and also make me very happy. There were given a shot of Miracle-Gro on Monday to help them along. Once they reach about two inches in height, I'm going to have to figure out what to do with them. There is a spot behind our house which gets alot of sunlight, but it also seems to be a haven for spiders and other creepy bugs. Oh, well, I won't let that deter me. I am my mother's daughter after all! Those bugs had better find themselves a new home. Note: After writing this yesterday, I went into the garden to water my plants and accidentally knocked over the pot of radish sprouts with the hose. I replanted them, but we will see whether or not they are able to recover from their little trauma.

In the flower bed itself, I planted nine impatiens plants. All nine of them came in the tray I am now growing my seeds in for only $2.50. They are a little pathetic looking, which could be the reason they were on clearance- yes, I shop clearance in the garden center also. But I will not give up on them. With some prayer, pruning, and Miracle-Gro, I'm sure they will be fine. I also picked up a pepper plant (half of it died the minute it went in the ground) and am trying to keep it happy.

My tomato plant now has little flowers where I can expect some tomatoes soon. I cannot wait to eat a tomato grown in my garden! I also bought two flowering shrubs and two leafy plants. Okay, here is where my inexperience as a gardener comes out. I do not for the life of me remember what they are called. All I know is that they thrive in full sun, which is why I bought them to begin with. My basil plant still lives in its pot, but I moved him into the flower bed so it would be surrounded by "friends" and also have the full effect of the sun.

In addition to the plants, I also extended the bed so that it is now an additional two feet from the house. The little bush/tree thing (don't know what that is either or what purpose it has- it came with the house) used to just stick out into the lawn. Now there is a gradual curve to the flower bed. The day I did that, I asked my cousin who was visiting, to watch Addie for me so I could go out and work on the yard. I didn't want my newly bought plants to spend another day in the garage, and, with all of the rain we had been getting, I didn't know how long the sun would be out. I went out and got right to work. There were clouds in the distance, and I could hear a very muffled rumble. I began praying and asking God to hold back the rain until I finished. I explained that I really did want my plants to get rain instead of the water hose, but I needed just a little time to finish. I kid you not, there were clouds to the west and east of us for quite a while but no rain clouds over our area. I finished everything I had wanted to do, and, after about an hour and a half, it began to rain continuously for the rest of the day.

Now everyday, we go out as a family when Brian gets home from work to water the plants. We are playing around with different methods of watering- watering can, hose without a nozzle, hose with the Miracle-Gro sprayer nozzle minus the Miracle-Gro. It is alot of fun doing that as a family. Addie gets to run around while one of us follows her and the other waters. We talk about the plants, the seeds, and what we hope to grow. Our garden is growing more that just flowers, plants, herbs, and vegetables. It is growing memories and time shared. It is growing a family.