Personal Reflections of a Middle-Aged Man

This time of year is always a little sad because I have to say goodbye to my garden until next spring. We are about to get our last bit of tomatoes this weekend.

For the first time, I kept a gardening log through most of the growing season. I wanted to track what I planted (especially after the carrot fiasco two years ago), when I planted it, and how things grew overall.

Here are some things I learned:

• I probably shouldn’t plant when the days start feeling warmer because BAM!, it will snow in May.
• Only plant what the family will eat the most of, such as cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, green beans and lettuce.
• Start to stagger plantings better so everything doesn’t come to harvest at the same time.
• Learn better how to store things while waiting to can them.
• Plant cucumber and squashes after June 1 so they are not invaded by a pesky insect that loves to both lay eggs all over the plants and  suck the life out of them at the same time.
• The ants will always get to the strawberries first.
• As much as I want fresh corn, it doesn’t tend to do well in our backyard overall, and it doesn’t yield enough to make it worthwhile.
• I still want to learn how to grow garlic and onions. We eat so much of these in our daily meals.
• I also want to grow head lettuce and romaine over basic leaf lettuce.
• And, finally, grow more tomato plants to yield enough to make lots of homemade sauces. Nothing beats the taste of a tomato fresh off the vine for sauces, chili and pico de gallo.

So until next growing season, I bid my faithful fruitful plants adieu!