"I wake up some mornings and sit and have my coffee and look out at my beautiful garden, and I go, 'Remember how good this is. Because you can lose it.'"
- Jim Carrey
'AUBURN, Maine - All my garden needs is the churning blades of an industrial tiller, the application of natural fertilizer, the planting of vegetable seedlings, and the tender loving care of an avid gardener.
That would be me.
I finished the edging of my coveted garden, extending it three feet to the left. It is now a 20-by-30 foot square block of rich soil, giving me more space to plant an array of vegetables to feed this loving family of three.
The rising prices of produce have inspired me to plant gardens to not only eat right, but save money. Every time I go food shopping, I wonder if I will be forced to take out second mortgage on the house. Eating right costs a lot of dough, and I know fast food will shorten my life. I want to avoid the doctor, so I garden. And don't even think of waiting for an out-of-touch Congress to act on the rising cost of groceries.
I often hear the phrase, "How the hell do you find time to plant a garden." My terse response is this: "Well, shut off the TV, step away from your laptop, go without Facebook for at least a day, and stop wasting your damn time texting or twittering every damn soul on the damn planet."
I garden out of necessity and the joy of watching things grow. It gives this family the opportunity to devour the fruits of our labor as well as give back to neighbors who give a damn about us.
Spending a day with worms, snakes, spiders and the rich, dark dirt, as I listen to a Red Sox game while I pull weeds in the hot sun, is a day at the beach for me. And an ice-cold beer is sitting there with my name on it.
Right now, I will be planting tomato seedlings, which means there will be plenty of grilled-cheese-and-tomato sandwiches on the menu, and excellent pasta sauces made by a real Italian.
And that would be me — because I am the Italian Stallion of gardening
I will plant melons, broccoli, cauliflower, swiss chard, spinach, carrots, and onions by seed. But I will turn to Farmer Whitings for tomato, lettuce, cucumber, zucchini and summer squash for seedlings. This local farm knows how to raise strong, hardy seedlings, and I have never been disappointed.
This mild spring has tempted me to plant early, but I know better. Maine's chilly weather can appear at any moment. I also understand I am at the mercy of Mother Nature, and she can be pretty nasty even in the month of May.
So I patiently wait for the last weekend in May to get here. But in two weeks, I will plant my seeds in the ground to give them a head start. The new patch of broken ground will be used for most of the seedlings.
But while this rare, warm spring entices me to start planting early, I will bide my time because I know Mother Nature can pull a fast one on any farmer.
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