Monday, March 22

My 2010 (Gardening) Adventure

I am notoriously bad at keeping New Year's Resolutions.  (Even when I (grudgingly) make them, I admit that they are going to be broken immediately, as you see here.)  So while I was toying with the idea of making a resolution on growing more edibles in January, something held me back:  The idea that this was one thing at which I actually wanted to succeed.

And then, I had my eureka moment:  I need to think of it not as a resolution... but as an experiment!

Experiments, now there are things that I can get into.  A quick search of my blog shows that I have pages worth of posts that contain the word "experiment."  They cover things like growing currants as topiaries in a semi-shaded spot that needed some structural plants... which had the added benefit of resulting in a delicious tart, made from these:

I'm just such a fan of melding form AND function... and of eating from my own backyard... that this makes sense on all kinds of levels.  So my EXPERIMENT for this gardening year will be as follows:

In 2010, I will limit my plant, seed and corm/root purchases to things that are actually edible.  Because I am all-too-aware of my weakness for pretty plants (and already had a couple of plans concocted) I will allow myself 3 exceptions to the above rule... and will strive for everything else to be both pretty AND tasty.  I will also consume, share and/or put up as much of my garden's produce as humanly possible this year.

I hope that you all will follow along with this gardening adventure of mine. I'm sure that there are going to be some bumps in the road, a few inventive recipes, LOADS of temptations, and lots of dirty fingernails along the way.  Stay tuned!
Beautiful AND functional:   Peach tree blossoms from the 2009 garden.

13 comments:

Kerri said...

That's quite a practical goal you've set for yourself, Kim. It'll be fun following along to see how your experiment pans out. Don't be too hard on yourself if you give into a few of those pretty plant temptations. A gardener's gotta have her fix, you know!

Heavy Petal said...

Yay! I love it. For me, gardening is all about the experimentation. No matter how much you plan, it's all just educated guess, anyway. Experimenting is most of the fun. And I love that you're going edible this year :)

Garden Lily said...

I love edibles, and there is much beauty in them also, especially when loaded with blossoms or fruit!

Lisa at Greenbow said...

I already have the dirty fingernails to go along with you. I also have some lettuce popping up already. A first for me.

growingagardenindavis said...

This will be interesting and a great experiment! I know you will have a lot of interesting combos and innovative ideas.Looking forward to the journey!

Heather's Garden said...

Wow, you could go absolutely nuts with herbs that way! I can't wait to see how this one turns out.

Albert the Gardener said...

Thank you for sharing this great gardening information

Grtz Albert

Unknown said...

Kerri, I think I need to add a little more "practicality" into my life! And yeah, I built in three "give into temptation" clauses because I figured I couldn't go cold turkey... lol. (Right now, I'm figuring that those three spaces will be taken up by a canna with dramatic leaves, tall red snapdragons, and 'Black & Blue' salvia.)

Heavy Petal, me too! I personally love the fact that when I "fail," I can still consider it a win--because, hey, experimental data was gathered, right?! ;)

Garden Lily, very true. And the leaves--I haven't planted 'Ruby' Swiss Chard for a few years, but I was completely fascinated by the light streaming through its gorgeous leaves the last time I grew it.

Greenbow Lisa, YAY for dirty fingernails!!! I need to go along with you, now, and get my lettuce into the ground. I always seem to forget those cold-weather lovers until it's too late.

Leslie, thank you so much for the words of encouragement... I think I may need more of those along the way. :)

Heather, I KNOW! As a fellow lover of herb foliage, I know you get how geeked I am at THAT thought! (And I plan to steal a few container combo ideas from your garden last year. Fair warning! lol.)

Albert, thank you for stopping by and saying hello. :)

Gail said...

Kim, Are you saying you have yet to order corms, seeds tubers etc...How have to fought off the catalog pressure!

This is an absolutely splendid plan...I totally get not wanting to set yourself up with 'resolutions'~~they aren't flexible enough for me either.

Gail

Layanee said...

I will be following your exploits....uhummm...experiments with interest. Thinking of currents for the garden also.

joey said...

Oh you temptress, Kim! I think this project sounds delightful. Good luck and count me in to try some of your recipes! (Are you growing garlic :)

Mr. McGregor's Daughter said...

I like experimenting in the garden too. That way, if it ends up a mess, you can declare the experiment a success even if it didn't work out the way you'd have liked. Good luck. I have virtually no restraint.

Pam said...

I'm quite fond of experiments too - excellent.

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