Garden Update 23 May 2008
It’s been awhile since my last garden update and I don’t think we ever posted pictures of our herb garden that Bob got J. for his birthday in April. We weren’t sure if we would be able to grow anything on our balcony because we don’t get a lot of light but as the days get longer we are getting more and more. We also figure that since the Colorado sun can be quite deadly it’s probably better for our plants that they don’t get high noon sun. What they do get is a nice view of Cheyenne Mountain. These herbs have flavored a couple of dishes and eventually we want to harvest and dry the leaves out and then we can give our mortar and pestle a test drive. In the meantime we’ll continue to buy our organic spices in bulk.
I can barely stand to see the slaughter… we had to kill some zucchini and bean plants that we just don’t have a place for and prune the bee balm so that the strongest had room and nutrients to grow. As you can see bee balm, while unassuming on the topside, is a pretty purple on it’s underside.
Our sunflowers were also a wash but then we didn’t have big enough containers so it’s our own fault. For our wedding reception we are going to stick with organic lollipops we are having custom made. If for some reason that doesn’t work out then we will probably hit the nearest nursery up a couple days before the wedding and put our parents to work 
.
Overall, we are pretty proud of our garden. The experience is unfortunately bittersweet since we will be moving across the country in July/August and the 5 gallon containers with cages are not going to be able to make the trip with us. At least we will start our new garden armed with a couple tools and some invaluable personal experience.
I feel your pain. I had to thin out my lettuces the other day – nearly broke my heart….
I agree, I can’t ever find the heart to kill something. Unfortunately this means the poor plant suffers a long death from neglect instead
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Your garden looks great, btw! You should definately be proud.
What if your thinnings (at least those too small to make up a mini-salad for you) were replanted in something give-away-able like newspaper peat pots and given to your favorite vendor at the farmer’s market, who could then give them away to people who might like to try growing their own?
I know that big-city farmer’s markets have all kinds of rules that might preclude that, but it seems worth a shot — it would keep at least some of the trimmings from going to waste/compost, and it might encourage some new gardeners at the same time! Even more important if your trimmings are heirloom/OP varieties!
Just a thought.
Hmmm…I posted a comment a second ago, but it kind of disappeared…so I’ll try again.
I thought I was the only one who felt guilty when I thinned my radishes, celery, tomatoes, etc..it’s really good to know that I’m not the only CRAZY around here!
Who is going to be the lucky recipient of your containers when you make the move? And…forgive me for not knowing this already (or possibly forgetting)..where are you moving to?
-danni
I think I used the same seed-starting formula as you did. I think it was some sort of palm mixture that was great for jalapenos and basil, but seemed to lack what tomatoes need. I grew two varieties of tomatoes and both came up stringy and limp like yours. As soon as I transplanted them into cowpots and standard seed starting soil they began to thrive.
Good luck with the move!