Ah, summer, what power you have to make us suffer and like it. ~Russell Backer

Summer is coming to a close and I chose today to be my first real blog post.  Why, you might ask, would someone start a gardening blog in August.

Well, I finally got enough guts and time to do it. (Okay, I had the time, I just put it off for a year.)

I have five great loves in my life:

• My husband
• Reading
• Cooking
• Gardening
• Crafts (currently Knitting)

While this is primarily a gardening blog, a few of my other loves will creep in from time to time.  I will share recipes and food preservation tips.  And . . . . when I figure out a use for knitted pea scapes (sweater anyone), I’ll pass that on too.

I love gardening.  I love the dirt . . . the responsibility of watering early in the morning (unless I’m tired) . . . . bees buzzing around my beautiful plants . . . . the pride of finally growing a heirloom tomato (just one, but still an accomplishment) . . . .harvest time (yum).

Despite my love of all things green and leafy, I am not a great gardener.  I make rookie mistakes (even with 15+ years of trying) and I’m easily sidetracked (particularly if shopping is involved). Until this year, it never occurred to me to grow in any configuration other than a row (square-foot what).

I’m also easily overwhelmed.  Gardening is all well and good when your planting and watering, but staring down the barrel of a tomato avalanche makes me want to hide in my house and cry.  All the canning, processing and pressuring loved ones to take one more bunch of mint (“Yes, you really need more!”) is time-consuming and never-ending (at least for now).

I just want to skip to the eating part.   (Maybe that should have been one of the great loves. hmm. . . .).

My garden is a work in progress, but I am proud of it. . . . weeds and all.

P.S.  I’m secretly trying to convince my husband to convert our whole yard (front & back) to a vegetable garden. Screw resale values.