Homesteading, part 1

Today I took a giant leap (ok, maybe more of a step) forward into my commitment to be a homesteader. Elsa and I (in an attempt partially motivated by a need to get a screaming baby out of the house and distracted) took a trip to the Bruce Company in Middleton. Even in the heat of early July, I decided it was time to add to our little garden plot rather than wait close to a year for prime planting season. So, the wonderful people at the Bruce Company hooked me up with all the supplies to grow lettuce in hanging baskets, add a few beans to one of our raised beds (keeping the pumpkins and raspberries company), and extend my herb collection to include basil, rosemary, oregano, thyme, and parsley (the latter herb to replace its poor brethren, gone to seed, in a desperate attempt to procreate before perishing in the heat of an unseasonably warm late spring - I think parsley might be the diva of the herb world).

I think seed packets should come with a bit more instructional information. Really. The helpful Bruce Company lady said the lettuces were "heat resistant", but I didn't see that anywhere on the package. And, the planting season doesn't match up with the calendar, but I guess that's why novice gardeners should shop at local places where the employees know what they're talking about (I hope).

After dinner (which was made by cutting fresh parsley and thyme - half of a Simon & Garfunkel song! - from my herb garden; totally worth all the money spent today!), I re-potted the herbs (rosemary by itself - I was advised that it likes things a little drier than its fellow herbs; the annuals - cilantro and basil - and biennial - parsley, including the [mostly] dead first attempt [maybe it'll resurrect itself in its new herb-tastic environment] - in a planter box; and the perennials - oregano, thyme, and mint - in another planter box), filled two hanging baskets for the lettuce varieties (Ruby & Emerald Duet and Sweetie Romaine), and added beans to our pumpkin and raspberry raised bed. Forty-five minutes later, I had created a very respectable extension to our garden and an extreme need to take a shower. Keeping my (soon-to-be) green thumbs crossed!