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Gardening 101: Week 3

Six weeks ago we had a patch of grass next to our pool that we converted to an organic vegetable garden.  Click here to read all about my lack of skill in the gardening department and all the help I required to get this project off the ground.

We were a little late getting the plants in the ground… I was worried the heat would prevent them from getting established, but fortunately it’s been a cooler June in LA so most of the plants survived.

Ready to plant! Woo Hoo! June 4, 2010

Not only did they survive, they thrived.  When I took the family to away to the Evolution of Women in Social Media conference in Park City, Utah we were gone for a total of 5 days.  We came home and all my itty bitty plants literally exploded!  I knew the tomatoes would need staking as soon as we got back from from the trip, but was shocked to come back and find the plants falling over only days later.

The Garden Three Weeks After Planting

Tonight we made our first salad out of lettuce, radishes and basil harvested from the garden.  The tomatoes and cucumbers are close behind!  I’m also SURE before I know it the butternut squash, zucchini are going to be overrunning my pantry.  What will I do with them all!

To give you an idea of how tall the tomatoes have gotten – I staked them on 4′ Bamboo U-Stakes – if you can’t see from the picture I’d say they are easily 2′ tall already.  And there are baby heirloom tomatoes sprouting all over the place!

More Photos from my gardening adventures to date:

The Littlist Pepper Plant

This little pepper plant has been the same size since the day I planted it!  It hasn’t died, but at the same time it refuses to grow.

This Little Pepper

This pepper is growing on a plant that is almost smaller than it is!   How is that possible?

Lettuce, Green Beans and Baby, Baby Carrots - look closely!

I think it’s almost time to thin the lettuce – not sure what that entails – but I’m sure google will be happy to help guide me through.  I also think it’s about time to plant more lettuce seeds… they say to sow every 3 weeks or so for continual harvest.

Flowering Cucumbers

I’m pretty sure this means I’ll have more cucumbers than I know what to do with very, very soon!

Fresh From the Garden

Our first Salad from the garden – Basil, Romaine Lettuce and a few radishes – or pink & whites as I called them in an attempt to get lil diva to like them! No luck BTW.

So far so good, but my gardening adventure has just begun… I’m sure there will be more stories to come!  And… if you need any Basil… I have a lot, let me know I’m happy to share!

{ 2 comments… add one }

  • Self Sagacity July 8, 2010, 6:52 pm

    We are starting a garden too, but it doesn’t look like we will have anything on the table this year! Your garden bed is fabulous, there’s lots of room!

    • Tania Reuben July 10, 2010, 3:12 pm

      I’m surprised at how quickly the garden is growing! It’s amazing.

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