Have I Told You About My Garden?

Gardening, it's in my blood! My father, grandfather and great grandfather were amazing gardeners, they had the most beautifully amazing, sculptured, and prolific gardens I have ever seen or eaten from!

To feel the earth in my hands and beneath my feet is everything! Oh, how I love to sit in the middle of my garden, be still, and enjoy the beauty, life, and nourishing food that comes from a single seed that has been nestled in the warm earth, then fed, watered, tended and harvested. Really, there's nothing like it.

The photo is of my cucumber vine and the tendrils that reach out and grab hold of anything they can to climb, and climb, and climb. I find it so interesting how a single seed can produce a plant that produces a single (think pineapple) or a multitude of fruit or vegetables, and within that fruit or vegetable is a seed or seeds that hold the miracle of plant life. But it get's even more intriguing ... A seed must die in the earth in order to give birth to the sprout, which is where its life begins. Really, it's a beautifully fascinating cycle.

From seed to sprout, to seedling, to vegetative, to budding, to flowering, to ripening, that single, solitary seed provides food for our table and more! We are able to share with friends, neighbors, and even the occasional rabbit or field mouse, we all enjoy a meal or two.

We can also harvest seed or seeds from the fruit of our plants for next season, or if left untended, the fruit or vegetable will fall to the ground, die and decompose. But that seed, that tiny little seed has life in it and once it nestles into the soil and the time is right, the cycle will begin again!

But where do I get my seeds? First I have to say that I plant only non-GMO, organic

seed and lean heavily toward open pollinated, heirloom seed. I have been collecting and harvesting seeds for years and keep them in their own little envelopes in a cool, dry space in my garage for the next season or seasons to come, which isn't an easy feat in Texas - think insane humidity. Nevertheless, I do have my favorite online places to purchase seed and find that there is always something new. Eden Brothers has a great variety and they ship quickly www.edenbrothers.com, but Seed Savers Exchange is my favorite go to www.seedsavers.org.

Because I am picky I keep an organic garden and will not use pesticides. We started from scratch in this home and had to bring in 7 yards of organic mushroom planting mix to fill the raised beds. I am super blessed that my husband and I work as a team and together we get a ton done!

Two weekends ago I pulled out my summer garden and planted my fall garden which is full of squash, pumpkins, cucumbers, tomatoes, and beans; these

seeds have quickly sprouted and are well, growing like weeds. I know I am a bit behind in the season, but that's okay, it all works out!

Stay tuned, there's sure to be pumpkins galore (and oh, how I love pumpkins ) as well as other delicious vine ripened vegetables.

From my fabulous home to yours, live blissfully!