"It's for you, Mommy!!" he beamed as he proudly showed me the cup of dirt.
I pasted a proud, but confused smile on my face and said, "Oh! Wow, Bubba!! A nice...cup...of dirt?"
"Noooo. It's a sunflower! We planted sunflower seeds in the cup," he explained.
"And I have to put it in the sunlight and water it everyday and a big sunflower will grow!!"
I pretended to be excited for him as he ran into the house and proudly placed the cup of dirt front and center in our living room for the whole neighborhood to see...and for it to get sunlight. Truth was, it...was...a...cup...of...dirt. At least in my eyes. And I don't do dirt. Dust? Yeah, sure. Dirt? Soil? Mud? That belongs OUTSIDE.
I don't keep plants, except a cactus that we have in our dining room. I tried the whole plant thing. They died. And I was left with pots of dirt. And pots of dirt freak me out. What if there's bugs in it? Worms? A SNAKE????
But, I ignored my very rationals fears of having a cup of dirt displayed in my house. I figured my son would forget about it after a day or two. Maybe a week. Then I could toss it.
But...then...a funny thing happened. Greenery began to unfold from the soil. Then it grew. We were so impressed that we decided to try a little .99 cent tomato plant the kids had gotten for Easter. And that began to grow too.
Soon, the sunflower was too big for the little dixie cup, as was the tomato plant that was growing in a bag. So, my husband found a little corner in the yard and replanted them. Then he built of barrier of broomsticks and wire and chairs to keep the dogs from running into them.
By the end of the summer, there were three sunflowers and a lovely little tomato plant. The tallest sunflower towered over eight feet. I was amazed. Everyone who came over spotted them and commented.
Now, summertime is when I do my best and favorite cooking. It's also my most expensive time with cooking. As I made my marinades and chopped up veggies and herbs, I began to realize how much money I could save by growing my own little garden.
And since it was so easy with the sunflower, how hard could it be to grow just a couple little things? Mainly herbs. Maybe a tomato plant or two. But wouldn't it be nice to have eggplants? And cucumbers?
I talked it over with Mr. Movie Junkie, and we agreed. That in the spring, we would start a little garden. It should be fun. After all, we were practically farmers now with that sunflower!!
And like a kid in a candy store, we went to the local garden center...and I went nuts.
I went from irrational fear of a cup of dirt in the house, to this:
and this:
It is a sickness. It has taken over my living room window and my entire dining room. I have things growing in cups and containers and lids from hero sandwiches I had catered a couple of weeks ago. Anything that will hold dirt, I put dirt and seeds in 'em!!
Little seeds, like the broccoli.
Big seeds, like the sunflower that began it all.
And I'm playing with this:
Dirt. Right in my kitchen.
And I am absolutely in love with my little patches of dirt, because from them comes these little lovelies:
and these:
and these:
and these:
and so on and so on and so on....
I am dreaming of the day where I can make a fresh salad or salsa or marinades or grilled veggies. I can't wait to use the eggplant, the lettuce, the dill, the cilantro, the cucumbers, the sugar snap peas, the bell peppers, the jalapenos, and so on.
I went so crazy, I ordered strawberry plants and a couple of blueberry bushes!! I have turned into a monster!!!
But, who knows. It all looks good now...but there is a VERY good chance I will fail at this. Because, the truth is....I have NO FRICKIN CLUE what I'm doing. I just went all willy nilly, throwing seeds in dirt everywhere. Then, every morning, I water them and sing "Grow! Grow! Grow! Grow for me, my little babies. I want to eat you!" And then my husband yells for me to stop that because it's kinda creepy. But they say singing and talking to plants help them grow, no?
No comments:
Post a Comment