Garden Magic

This is the garden's magic,
That through the sunny hours
The gardener who tends it,
Himself outgrows his flowers.

He grows by gift of patience,
Since he who sows must know
That only in the Lord's good time
Does any seedling grow.

He learns from buds unfolding,
From each tight leaf unfurled,
That his own heart, expanding,
Is one with all the world.

He bares his head to sunshine,
His bending back a sign
Of grace, and every shower becomes
His sacramental wine.

And when at last his labors
Bring forth the very stuff
And substance of all beauty
This is reward enough.

-MARIE NETTLETON CARROLL

My Green Thumb

After only 3 days, I have cucumber sprouting in my garden beds. I am just tickled that they are coming up so quickly. Now if I could only get the kids to keep the beagles in the dog run, my gardens may survive.

I resorted to putting some of my tomato plants into hanging baskets. At least I didn't use the Topsy Turvy that my mother gave me last year. I am experimenting with organic pest control by using scented geraniums and marigolds with my tomaotes, and planting sage with my peppers. Hopefully, this will keep some of the pests away.

Now, if I could find something to keep the worms off of my red cabbage, I would be happier.

THE Perfect Margarita

INGREDIENTS

* Salt, for rimming the glass (optional)
* Ice
* 1 1/2 ounces tequila (blanco, 100 percent agave)
* 1 ounce freshly squeezed lime juice
* 1/2 ounce Cointreau (not Triple Sec)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. If using salt, place in a shallow dish. Moisten the rim of a rocks glass with a dampened paper towel, then dip in salt.
2. Fill the glass with ice; add tequila, lime juice, and Cointreau; and stir a few times until chilled. Serve immediately.

WooHoo!! Finally Made It!

I haven't been able to do much as far as blogging since I was taking the Master Gardener's Course, but now that the classes have finished, I will be a certified Master Gardener On Wednesday, May 12th, with monogrammed clothing and name tag. I am thrilled about completing the course, and I made a bunch of new friends who understand my gardening compulsion. Maybe my next adventure will be the Master Naturalists course....

My current course of action is running tomato trials for Texas A&M, I have 22 tomato plants, of which there are 20 varieties, and I have two sets of standards for comparison. Honestly, I don't know where I am going to put them all. I did add a new planting bed which gives me an additional 32 square feet to plant in, but I really don't want to fill it up with tomatoes. I guess I will re-pot the smaller ones into larger pots, and put the larger ones in the ground.

Since my potatoes are just about ready, I can replace those plants with the tomatoes and just keep adding more and more as other things become harvest ready.