Mary Mary Quite Contrary

Here's how my garden grows:






When we first moved here there was no garden spot. I very much wanted to have a garden, so the following summer we broke sod and put in our first decent sized garden. It was so exciting! I LOVED learning to can the produce I had raised in my own back yard. I canned salsa that first year, and a few green beans. I ate delicious tomato sandwiches and Lincoln made a few quarts of pickles.



The next year, I planted more beans, and brother, did I get more beans! It was fantastic! I canned between 40 and 50 quarts of beans. I was also the happy recipient of extra tomatoes and cucumbers from friends. I pickled and canned and preserved like a mad woman. I was in heaven! In fact, I took inventory at the end of the season.

The following year, which was last year, I expanded my garden by a few feet. I tried planting a few potatoes and was excited for another banner year. But then my garden died. I went on vacation and by the time I got home, it was beyond saving. I froze a few quarts of green beans, made a stew with the potatoes and carrots and that was it. It was so disappointing.

Well, this year, I'm hoping to get back in the game. I have doubled my garden size by renting a plot at the Lands End garden. In that plot I have planted:

One pumpkin plant. This is my first attempt at growing pumpkins. This is an experiment to see how it goes.

One yellow squash

Two zucchinis

6 cucumbers

A row of onions

6 rows of potatoes

Here in the backyard garden I have planted:


A row of lettuce

A row of mixed greens

A row of carrots

green onions

cilantro

basil

20 pepper plants

3 rows of green beans

32 tomato plants

And this year, I am finally trying to grow a pea teepee. (And one row of peas in the garden.)


I am still very much a beginner, but hopefully the addition of some nice, aged horse manure this year will help provide the boost my garden needs. I am determined to get some mulch in there as well. I need all the help I can get keeping the weeds down!


A great pair of Wellies make rainy days fun!


So, fingers crossed! It's time to build up my green bean supply again! Last year my tomatoes did nothing...I really need those to produce well. Any tomato growing tips for me?