Dahlia Diary (And other news from the garden.)

I ventured out to photograph my dahlias this weekend because I know I’ve been promising an update.  But you know what?  Nothing much is happening.  They’ve broken through the earth and they’re big and green and bushy… but that’s about all.  No blooms, not even a bud.  My camera literally yawned with each click of the shutter.

So I photographed everything else there was to photograph… marigolds, lobelia, tomatoes (now blooming!), squash (with tiny baby squashes sprouting!), and my sunflower seedlings.  Yes, I realize I’ve gone a little wild in the gardening department this summer; I’m determined to make good use of the terraced beds in my backyard that have sat empty since my landlord tore out the landscaping two years ago.

It feels good!  Growing the stuff you eat is really pretty amazing.  And having fresh flowers to cut is a real treat.  Every day I come home excited to get outside and see what’s blooming.  (Am I total garden nerd or what?)

When I was growing up, we had apple trees and a pear tree and even grape vines in our yard.  My dad kept a vegetable garden and grew many of the same things I’m growing this year: tomatoes, beans, lettuce, and carrots are what I remember.  I know it’s because I had an early exposure to gardening that I find so much pleasure in it now.  Literally, the smell of a tomato vine takes me back in time.  And it doesn’t hurt that my aunt, who lives within walking distance of where I live now, is also a devoted gardener with a lush garden that looks like it belongs in a magazine.  She’s always starting seeds in small pots and then handing the young plants out for adoption, and many of them come to me.

I hope you’re keeping a garden this summer, even if it’s just a pot of herbs on your windowsill.  What are you growing, and what do you wish you could grow if you had more time, more space, or better weather?