Last weekend, Sandy and I toured the farmers market and Sunshine Community Garden plant sale together. That's Sandy in the photo.
We had a great time and bought lots of wonderful produce and some staples - granola, bread and hummus. (Is hummus a staple? Well, it is now.) I didn't really cook last week because I wasn't in town long, but I did have a great picnic lunch at the Kite Festival (rosemary ciabatta, hummus, broccoli & romanesco cauliflower and oranges - all from the market).
After the farmers market, the real adventure began at the plant sale. I have a black thumb. On occasion, I have kept the odd plant alive, but, in general, my gardening forays have been less than successful.
Despite that, I've always been intrigued by trying to raise vegetables and herbs. I'm currently reading Animal Vegetable Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver which is about her family's efforts to grow their own produce for a year. It's piqued my interest in trying to grow some of my own veggies. I live in an apartment, so for now I'm focused on herbs and small veggie plants like peppers.
Several of my friends are great gardeners so I'm turning to them for advice. Sandy used to have a plot at the Sunshine Community garden so she is gardening mentor #1. She was very patient as I asked a lot of ridiculous questions about what to grow and how. I'm now the proud mama to several herb and veggie plants - Cilantro, Lavender, Spearmint, Sweet Basil, Dill, Pepperoncini and Anaheim peppers. They have been potted, water and now the test begins - can I keep from murdering the poor things.
They managed to live through the cold weather while I was gone this week (I forgot to check the weather before I left for my trip), although the basil plant is pretty mad at me. The spent the night inside last night and seem to be happier today. Ugh, this is going to be hard work, but worth it.
Pray for the little plants.....
By the way, I'm posting today from Thunderbird Coffee at Koenig and Woodrow. It's co-owned by a former colleague who I happened to run into at the primary caucus the other night. It's a really cool little place with free wifi and good food. I didn't have any coffee because I've already caffeined-out for the day, but it's busy so the coffee must be good. Oh, and they carry pastries from Russell's Bakery, one of my other favorite spots. If you are in this next of the woods, come check it out and support Chris who is a truly great guy.
