Gardening seemed like the perfect thing to do this summer with plenty of room in our backyard, a little girl that loved to eat vegetables and a little boy that loved to work outside ... there was just one hitch: parents that were clueless when it came to gardening.
We searched for books, googled internet sites and asked advice from more experienced gardeners, but most things we had to learn on our own. I learned alot through each stage and actually found myself googling things like "What is a hill and how big should it be?", "What are the white spots on pumpkin leaves" and "How do I know when to pick corn or green beans or peas"! Here are just some of the other things I learned:
1. The kiddos aren't the only ones that need to be protected from getting a virus.
2. Pumpkins planted in mid-May are beautiful and ready to carve in to Jack-O-Lanterns at the beginning of August.
3. Seventeen tomato plants really do produce a lot of tomatoes.
3. Seventeen tomato plants really do produce a lot of tomatoes.
4. Don't plant vegetables you don't like ... they will be the ones that grow the best.
5. Visions of hiding among your corn stalks don't work for sweet corn varieties (sorry Ron).
6. Weeds don't stop growing ... even if you take a week of vacation.
7. If you think certain veggies are ready to pick they probably aren't really ready for another 2 weeks.
8. Gardening is not for perfectionists!
9. My family would not survive if our garden was our sole source of nourishment.
10. We can't wait to take everything we've learned this year and try again next year. The little girl that loved vegetables also decided she liked to work outside and the little boy that loved to work outside also decided he loved to eat vegetables. And thanks to lots of trial and error this year ... the parents don't feel quite so clueless.
