[insert garden pun here]

working really hard

I was at my breaking point, it had been cold and wet and rainy long enough.  Last Saturday was beautiful but I was sick and lost the entire day on the couch.  By Sunday the rain had returned.  For the first time in my adult life I had a back yard of my own and the only one who was able to enjoy it was my dog.

Well, the weather gods blessed us with another beautiful weekend (a chilly weekend for Los Angeles) Sunday I took the full advantage of the day.

i even taught jaime to garden

The morning began with a trip to Garden Sphere in Tacoma, thanks to Groupon who ran a deal: $20 for a $40 gift card.  This was exactly the opportunity I’d been waiting for, to finally stock up on everything in needed for the garden; seeds, starters, and supplies.

chocolate tomato plant with hidden marigold seeds

I’m not well experienced in what gardening stores look like or should look like, but in my opinion Garden Sphere is a great place.  Knowledgable staff, nice selection, perhaps a little pricy but all in all it was a fun experience.  Also they had chickens and baby chicks in the back.

Most of my planters and pots were ready, I needed only to get the starters planted and seeds in the ground.  So here is a list of what I planted.

-cilantro (starter)

-moroccan spearmint (starter)

-sage (starter)

-walla walla onions (starters)

-broccoli (seeds)

-carrots (seeds)

-cucumber (seeds)

-pole beans (seeds)

artichoke and two chinese cabbages

I combined these with what my Guru had given me the previous evening.

-artichoke (starter)

-chinese cabbage (starter)

-chocolate tomato plant (starter)

-more lettuce (starter)

I also bought a few flowers at Garden Sphere, I didn’t choose them for any reason other than I just liked how they looked in the pictures.  I also bought some Marigolds which were to be planted along with the Chocolate tomatoes.  My Guru informed me that planting marigolds will help keep bugs off the tomatoes as they do not have an appealing smell to them.

olive, not working hard at all

The beautiful turned into a fantastic evening. I invited my parents over for dinner, and it stayed warm long enough to sit on the patio and enjoy a barbecued dinner (flank steak, bok choy, and asparagus).  The lights I hung earlier in the afternoon shown like stars as the sun began to set.  I could not have asked for a better day to lift me from my depression and fill me with excitement for what I hope are many more similar days this summer.

posted by: brian snider