My Patch: A Beginning

I'm going to attempt to give this blog a focus. I said "attempt" because the one thing I do really well is go off on tangents. I've always wanted to accurately capture a stream of consciousness on paper so perhaps I will follow one of these tangents one day to see where it...and there I go - case in point.

I've always enjoyed viewing the blogs of those growing home vegie patches, vicariously living my dream through them whilst not having the sufficient land or conditions for my own. The idea of self-sufficiency has always been extremely attractive to me - I once planned out the ultimate in self-sufficient agendas in my petrified of a nuclear holocaust teenage years. It included becoming a Kung-Fu expert so my body would be a weapon for when starving survivors came after my patch and supplies.

The first such gardening blogs I viewed were TheCrone's and Clarinda's and they still continue to inspire and motivate me.

This time last year we had been living in a flat without much land or sun for a patch. Now, we are in a house, it is post pregnancy and the first few months of newborn baby have passed and I am slowly looking around our new house and yard and realising there is a lot more sun and growing opportunities than I at first realised and that I too might be able to achieve my dream of the home vegie garden.

Obstacles hindering completion of this dream in the past have been lack of sun, bad soil, cocaktoos, possums and sheer laziness.

But over the past few weeks I have been slowly doing a little bit here and there - perhaps the forced slower pace that comes from having a baby who feeds two hourly and never sleeps during the day is helping, knowing and accepting that it is not going to be an overnight process - no instant gratification - it took a few weeks but I am getting used to not being able to finish jobs all in one go - five minutes here and there before Baby Grub needs me. I put her in the sling as often as I can but being a heavy one, and the constant bending down that gardening requires, cannot do this for too long.

Despite the catnapping bub I have already managed to plant a small bed along the inside of our fence where we get the most sun. Here we have corn (yet to separate), cucumber and zuchini that I hope will climb the fence.
And I have containers on the balcony filled with a few herbs and lettuce and just planted rocket seeds that have already come up, bless their tiny gorgeousness - away from the cockatoos who like nothing better than to pluck seedlings and simply drop them for fun. In our old place they would pluck almost ripe lemons and roll them down the driveway. Bastards. They would look at me as they did it - daring me to shoo them - and just as I made my move, plop, down went the lemon. It was pretty funny actually.
And below we have our seed sprouting area. Little Grub is enjoying this immensely as only days ago these were nothing more than emerging shoots. Here we have climbing snow peas, bush pumpkin, squash varieties, beans, radish and carrots. These were all purchased from Bunnings (probably a sin) - but what a delight standing in front of a huge seed packet display and seeing my daughter looking more excited than if she was looking at a wall of toys.
And this is the front part of the garden that I am going to rid of its grass and put in the emergent seedlings. All the climbers will go against the fence then pumpkin, radish and carrots will go wherever I manage to throw them inbetween baby feeds.
Gardening is something that is hopefully still buried deep within me (and don't think I didn't notice the pun) - when I get going and get those grubby fingernails I feel more alive and happy than at any other time. I put this down to growing up with my grandmother who was and still is a compulsive potter. She would "strike" cuttings and pot and plant whilst I played in a mudpool she had created for me. Sometimes I remember planting little violets and things. After a long day of being outside amongst the plants and fresh air she would plonk my filthy self in the laundry tub and that's where I had my bath. She would always say "Oooh, if your mother could see you I'd be in trouble." This only made it more fun. Then her, grandpa and I would have dinner and then and only then, watch a little bit of television. Some of the happiest times of my life.

I once said to her, when we were on the topic of her death (which she had brought up herself when panicking about wills one day) that I didn't want a thing from her - except for her to live forever and perhaps maybe all her gardening knowledge. It can't just disappear into thin air right? And upon the cusp of another tangent I'll stop there.