Sunday, June 01, 2008

Garden??


Vegetable gardens.
I don't like them.

Why? Well, I think I spent too many hours in them as a kid to really learn to enjoy them. To me it was hot, unsatisfying work. Time spent away from the sandbox, time spent away from the swimming hole, time spent away from doing all the things kids think they ought to be doing during those hot summer endless days.

Yesterday found me planting vegetable seeds. Green onions, beets, green beans...
tomatoes and peppers will come soon.

I'm starting out small, very small. I looked over my crooked rows and actually felt some satisfaction. The dirt was warm on my bare feet. It smelled good and it felt warm in my hands. Maybe this is how I was supposed to experience it as a child.

This morning I went out to water the mares in the meadow. I stood rather bored, watching the hose pour water into the 100 gallon tank.
I looked around me and saw...

Lamb's Quarters.

I knew I have them all around me. Heck I was standing in old pasture land and along with the lamb's quarters was horse nettles and dandelions.

I stooped down and began picking them.
As a kid I was fascinated with these. Grandma would take us back by the woodshed and we would pick 'weeds' to go along with our supper. Grandma Lind would say 'they taste just like spinach'.
I liked spinach.

'Weeds'

I smiled with the memory of picking them with my boys and cooking them years ago. Yes they are tasty weeds, just steam them and eat them with some butter, salt, and pepper.
Tonight I'm going to eat my veggies from my 'wild' garden.

I just walked by my itty bitty veggie garden. It hasn't sprouted yet.
Guess I should be patient, right?

2 comments:

  1. Anonymous9:40 AM

    I love nettles. Such a wonderful taste and texture....extremely nutritious! Picking out of nature is the best but I have a garden for those things I hate to spend for at the store. Eggplant, burdock, squash...the list goes on. We worked hard in the garden this weekend to keep the mice out. Darn things like my garden too.

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  2. I've never heard of such but I bet my hubby would just love it. :)

    I can't wait to see how your garden grows.

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