To neighbors I introduce it as my “ghetto garden”. It presents itself unabashedly to onlookers in our DRIVEWAY. Yes, driveway. If you’ve ever been to Atlanta, you know that the majority of older neighborhoods are completely shaded with trees: Georgia Pines, specifically. The only area on our property / yard that receives full-sun exists ON OUR DRIVEWAY.
Please know I didn’t intend on planting and growing a garden ON OUR DRIVEWAY. I merely started this little gardening experiment in a few pots on the side of our house, only to find that this side of the house doesn’t receive full sun, as I originally thought. Originally I just wanted to save a buck or two with our grocery bill by planting some tomato plants. And homegrown tomatoes are ALWAYS better than store-bought!
I began hauling the pots from the side of our house to the driveway in the morning, so they could receive sun during the day. I would then haul them back to the side of the house at night, far from the judgment of our sweet and tolerant (so far!) neighbors. Thank goodness we don’t have an HOA…
The ghetto garden
As my appetite for gardening (and belly) continually grew, containers of “experiments” seemed to multiply like rabbits. After a spill down the hill (while hauling raspberry plants), I gave up and our containers now reside semi-permanently in our driveway. Fortunately our driveway is at least downhill, so the pots aren’t the most obvious thing to neighbors and those that pass by. One neighbor mentioned that another neighbor grows their tomato plants up near their mailbox. I guess at least our plants are a little more inconspicuous...
One day I hope to have a garden in a respectable place, like the GROUND. :-) A place where vegetables and fruit plants will bask in the warm, glorious, Georgia sun. For now, our plants seem to enjoy soaking it up in the driveway. In the ghetto garden. :-)
It's been fun to tinker around in the garden and monitor the progress of the plants, so far. I think we'll have lots of tomatoes and blueberries, and hopefully some strawberries soon.
Blueberries. A few look like they're ready to pick!
A few ripe blueberries...
Basil. Next year I'd like to start some from seed. We use enough of it!
The first signs of a Roma plum tomato
Grape Tomatoes - They should be ready soon! (The Big Boy tomato plants aren't showing any fruit, yet).
Doug is an amazing husband. He has definitely pacified me with my pregnancy-induced projects. Fortunate for him, the projects I dream up have been 3 hour projects or so, from start to finish... When I told him I wanted to plant grape plants on the side of our house, and come up with an easy trellis on which they could grow, he appeased me... We were also lucky to find this white plastic trellis material at Home Depot, with everything we needed but the stakes for the ground. We then bought some 2 X 2's (I think that is the size?), painted them white and screwed them to the back of two pieces of trellis. Voila! A place for grapevines to climb. Note: We had to replant the grape plant on the right... It's hanging in there, and should start climbing soon. We just planted these plants 2 1/2 weeks ago and they've already grown this much!
Left to right: Himrod (white seedless), Himrod (white seedless), Reliance (red seedless)
The other trellis
Left to right: Reliance (red seedless), Concord (seedless), Concord (seedless)
Many tiny little strawberries are finally visible
Latham Red Raspberries. These shoots grew off of what looked like a VERY bare twig. There may be hope yet for the other still-bare twig (Fall Gold Raspberries)...
These lillies came back from last year... Originally the plant had three lillies on it, now they've multipled and there are at least six bulbs...
Nikko Blue Hydrangeas. We planted these six years ago, or so. They LOVE our back yard.
Originally four little hydrangea plants six years ago, you can see the plants are huge now...
Hydrangeas in the sunlight
More pictures of hydrangeas
"Though I do not believe that a plant will spring up where no seed has been, I have great faith in a seed. Convince me that you have a seed there, and I am prepared to expect wonders." -- Henry David Thoreau
Hoping your day grows well!
Shelly
1 comment:
You are hysterical! Who has ever heard of a portable garden?? Everything looks really delicious I must say!! Molly
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