Garden-ia

I am getting enthused about the Spring 2010 gardening aspects! I read a few garderners' blogs (some in the Southern Hemisphere).  This, in addition to the seed catalogues clogging my mailbox this month, (those companies have me pegged - I must have a funny asterisk or three by my name.) are causing me to mentally sit up and take attention to the coming fun.

Fun.  Now, in this household, gardening and fun are synonymous only the first two weeks or so of gardening season.  That spouse o' mine and I determined early on in our marriage that we are not compatible in the dirt and seeds department.  It might have a lot to do with the fact that he is a biosystems engineer (read: agriculture/horticulture), and that I am plain old lazy.  Or, that he is deaf and I am not.  Or, that he is flexible and I am stubborn.  Or, maybe this is just an arena in our lives that we do best with His and Hers.  Anyway, that's how we've tried to play it in our nearly 26 long years of wedded bliss.  His garden is nearly geometrically perfect according to whatever he intends to nurture throughout the growing season.  I have what I affectionately refer to as my ignorant garden - because I plant it, ignore it, and often am surprised to amble out one day and find food for that evening's table!  Like a miracle of nature!  I love surprises.  I tell myself and others that I am adhering to the methods of Darwinism:  whatever tomatoes and other produce survive the weeds and sometimes drought - because I might forget to water -  create a more viable plant for whatever purpose one might imagine.  Sounds lofty, at least.  But I have to say, it was really really fun to wander out one day towards Thanksgiving and discover that I still had onions and fennel bulbs ready to eat, right out of the ground.  Who knew?!  I do love surprises.  Ignorance is bliss, that's my motto.

And so I am mentally planning this spring's garden, artistically plotted according to my whim of the moment.

Because if I want the tomatoes arranged in a circle surrounding the bok choy and spinach, then that's the way we're gonna do it, by gum.