Garden Delights

I come from a long line of gardeners. Both of my Grandparents planted a garden to expand their variety of fruits and veggies. Grandpa Heatley would plant beans, cucumbers and tomatoes training them to grow and hang from strings hung on the back fence. His garden resembled a small jungle.
Grandpa Turnbull was more organized and had more room to separate each crop. He liked to keep a salt shaker in an old bird house near the gate. He would pick a ripe tomato and use the shaker to dust his treat saying,”Fresh is best.”
My family continued to have a garden of our own. In addition to the annuals of Swiss Chard, lettuce and beens , we grew Strawberries and had a raspberry section near the fence line. We shared the chore of picking the berries. Because I was small, I picked the berries near the bottom of each bush. I would crawl into the middle of the patch to pick the biggest berries and fill my stomach as well as my pail. The patch of bushes was thick enough to hide in.
After the time to pick asparagus, the plants were allowed to grow to four feet. The feathery plant tops were one of my favorite spots to hide from chores.
Even today, we still have a small garden area. We grow, green beans, cucumbers and asparagus. Sadly, tomatoes and peppers are attacked by blight before setting fruit.
A summer without a garden is like a summer without the sun.

Hidden fruit,
seeds are planted
With hope they will grow
weed with care
all in a row.

Waiting with patience
for the new crop
green beans grow to the top
berry or bean
all taste great
Hidden treasures
never make the plate.

carolaspot@aol.com. July 18th 2022