Veggie plot (OT)

Joy wrote:

During World War II, the idea
was that most of the food was sent to the troops, so we were encouraged to
plant "Victory Gardens". As we lived on a large lot, with the house at the
back, and nothing in front, my Dad (who grew up on a farm), took that to
heart. We grew all sorts of things - red radishes, black radishes, white
radishes and horseradish; string beans, lima beans, horse beans and wax
beans; zucchini and other kinds of squash, tomatoes, peas and I don't
remember what all. We also grew something called ground cherries. They
were about the only thing we grew that I didn't like. The best things were
the corn and the berries - raspberries, blackberries and boysenberries. He
continued to grow those long after the war ended. I got used to having Mama
put the water on to boil while Daddy, my brother and I went out and picked
the corn and Daddy shucked it. Having tasted corn that fresh I can't eat
supermarket corn that is days old.

Oh, that sounds so wonderful! It really makes me wish I had a yard so I
could grow stuff like this. On my little front balcony/walkway I have enough
room for tomatoes, green beans, lettuce, arugula and several herbs. I've
been eating really good salads this summer!

But I'd love to branch out and grow various kinds of squash and corn, plus
some more leafy greens such as kale. I also love spinach, but I never hear
about people growing that in their gardens. Maybe it's hard to manage?

Maybe sometime I'll get an apartment that has a large, sunny deck where I
can grow stuff in large pots or even a raised bed.

--
Joyce

We can have democracy in this country, or we can have great wealth
concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can't have both.
-- Louis D. Brandeis

"Bastette" wrote in message
...
Joy wrote:

During World War II, the idea
was that most of the food was sent to the troops, so we were encouraged
to
plant "Victory Gardens". As we lived on a large lot, with the house at
the
back, and nothing in front, my Dad (who grew up on a farm), took that to
heart. We grew all sorts of things - red radishes, black radishes,
white
radishes and horseradish; string beans, lima beans, horse beans and wax
beans; zucchini and other kinds of squash, tomatoes, peas and I don't
remember what all. We also grew something called ground cherries. They
were about the only thing we grew that I didn't like. The best things
were
the corn and the berries - raspberries, blackberries and boysenberries.
He
continued to grow those long after the war ended. I got used to having
Mama
put the water on to boil while Daddy, my brother and I went out and
picked
the corn and Daddy shucked it. Having tasted corn that fresh I can't
eat
supermarket corn that is days old.

Oh, that sounds so wonderful! It really makes me wish I had a yard so I
could grow stuff like this. On my little front balcony/walkway I have
enough
room for tomatoes, green beans, lettuce, arugula and several herbs. I've
been eating really good salads this summer!

But I'd love to branch out and grow various kinds of squash and corn, plus
some more leafy greens such as kale. I also love spinach, but I never hear
about people growing that in their gardens. Maybe it's hard to manage?

I've never done well with spinach. I tried several times, either it doesn't
germinate well and the plants that do disappear when they are small, or they
start to bolt to seed before they've got much leaf. They do need a lot of
watering, so that's probably the reason.

What is arugula?



Maybe sometime I'll get an apartment that has a large, sunny deck where I
can grow stuff in large pots or even a raised bed.

Let's hope so. There's nothing like harvesting fresh produce and getting it
cooked and on your plate within hours, and also knowing that no chemicals
have been involved.

Tweed

Christina Websell wrote:

Oh, that sounds so wonderful! It really makes me wish I had a yard so I
could grow stuff like this. On my little front balcony/walkway I have
enough
room for tomatoes, green beans, lettuce, arugula and several herbs. I've
been eating really good salads this summer!

But I'd love to branch out and grow various kinds of squash and corn, plus
some more leafy greens such as kale. I also love spinach, but I never hear
about people growing that in their gardens. Maybe it's hard to manage?

I've never done well with spinach. I tried several times, either it doesn't
germinate well and the plants that do disappear when they are small, or they
start to bolt to seed before they've got much leaf. They do need a lot of
watering, so that's probably the reason.

What is arugula?

Arugula = "rocket." It's considered to be a type of lettuce, but I use it
more like an herb. In other words, you don't need much of it to get a lot
of flavor. If I used it as lettuce, I might have to put a lot of it in the
salad to fill the bowl, and I think that would be *too much* flavor. I use
it pretty sparingly. I've had some growing on my balcony for about 3 months,
and it's still good. It grows slowly, but I use it pretty slowly, too.


Maybe sometime I'll get an apartment that has a large, sunny deck where I
can grow stuff in large pots or even a raised bed.

Let's hope so. There's nothing like harvesting fresh produce and getting it
cooked and on your plate within hours, and also knowing that no chemicals
have been involved.

No kidding! And no mutant genes, either.

--
Joyce

"Riveting reading that keeps readers reading."
-- The Midwest Book Review

"Bastette" wrote in message
...
Christina Websell wrote:

Oh, that sounds so wonderful! It really makes me wish I had a yard so I
could grow stuff like this. On my little front balcony/walkway I have
enough
room for tomatoes, green beans, lettuce, arugula and several herbs.
I've
been eating really good salads this summer!

But I'd love to branch out and grow various kinds of squash and corn,
plus
some more leafy greens such as kale. I also love spinach, but I never
hear
about people growing that in their gardens. Maybe it's hard to manage?

I've never done well with spinach. I tried several times, either it
doesn't
germinate well and the plants that do disappear when they are small, or
they
start to bolt to seed before they've got much leaf. They do need a lot
of
watering, so that's probably the reason.

What is arugula?

Arugula = "rocket." It's considered to be a type of lettuce, but I use it
more like an herb. In other words, you don't need much of it to get a lot
of flavor. If I used it as lettuce, I might have to put a lot of it in the
salad to fill the bowl, and I think that would be *too much* flavor. I use
it pretty sparingly. I've had some growing on my balcony for about 3
months,
and it's still good. It grows slowly, but I use it pretty slowly, too.


Ah, rocket, I do OK with growing that.