Look what I found!

While turning my compost after neglecting it for a tiny bit I found some lovely plants!
A garlic bulb that sprouted; two plants that I'm nearly certain are carrots; a mystery plant.


I love this-- plants sprouting out of my compost planted in soil from said compost in recycled containers. One change-- recycling-- led to another-- compost-- which ultimately will lead to an even bigger change-- expanding the types of food I'm able to produce myself.

Their Royal Cutenesses have arrived

The carrot seeds officially sprouted!

They are, possibly, the most adorable (teeny tiny) seedlings I've dealt with yet this season. It's like they are trying to be subtle, trying to not overwhelm with their tiny charm.


They are planted in homemade soil, in a little container that once held strawberries. I'd show you pictures, but my text-from-camera-phone to email-inbox method is all whacked out with digital errors right now. Solar flares, maybe?

inspiration for garden projects at Lizard Loop

My gardening background is brief enough. I was raised (semi-nomadically) in both New York City and various spots in central Florida. I have always loved the idea of gardens, self sufficiency, and all things pastoral, but believed that I had an inherent lack of skill in handling the plant friends I love so much.

During my early adulthood, I lived in a house with a big yard, dozens of climbing rosebushes older than my husband and I combined, and ample space for new projects. But none of them seemed to take hold. For example, I tried planting a bougainvillea in a sunny spot, and even now, 6 years later, it still hasn't grown a bit.

Years passed and I left. My new home, an apartment/townhouse, came with a little slip of yard in both the front and back, but there was hardly any soil at all! Oak tree roots, sand, and gravel seemed to be the predominant ingredients in the mixture. I decided to try my hand at composting in the fall so we could have some soil on hand for potting little herbs or houseplants. My roommate suggested it, and since I do cook a lot it seemed like a good way to not waste our food scraps.

It turned out exponentially better than I thought it would be. The compost took off with a fervor and started to host new life, seedlings from our favorite foods. And, after years of playing thrifty-housewife, I saw amazing potential in my new project. Was there EVER anything more practical than a magic spot that absorbs what you can't use and gives back something you can use?

Let's start at the beginning

So I've begun a garden for a number of reasons: I have a sudden glut of time on my hands and I need to stay busy so I don't sink into depression, despair, self-pity or bad day time t.v. watching; I'm broke and growing organic veggies is (hopefully?) cheaper than buying them or, God forbid, buying jarred baby food; the weather here is amazing and I feel ungrateful if I'm not outside all the time; I have about 15 pounds of baby weight left; I need to stop dreaming about when I can have enough land to be sustainable and start doing what I can with what I can; gardening is apparently good therapy.
So far I have trimmed back the plumbago (not neccessarily garden related but helpful to my parents and immensily stress releaving) picked and dug up a plot, and begun a compost bin. Daddy wanted to use a gas powered tiller and so called Home Depot for a price quote. The man on the phone suggested we pour Round Up on the grass to kill it before tilling so the roots didn't get tangled. He claimed this wouldn't affect the soil or our future plants- I was skeptical and called the Organic nursery in Tampa who confirmed my suspions that Roundup would leach into the soil. He suggested vinegar to burn the roots or I could just go ahead and till. The gas powered tiller would cost $50/day. I neither wanted to spend the cash nor wanted to use up more fosil fuels and release more carbon into the atmosphere, so against Daddy's advice, I decided to prepare my plot just using some elbow grease and a shovel.
It took me a few days ( I only worked in short bursts while Avery was napping) but it wasn't as hard going as I thought. Depsite a few minor set backs- some pretty thick roots and a PVC pipe part of the sprinkler system - I now have a lovely little patch of dirt ready to be sown.