Garden of Neglect and Prosperity

It has been almost a month since my last post. Did you miss me? Did you even notice I was away? If you are like my children, you may think I have picked up house and relocated to an entirely different planet altogether, the one populated by full-time working moms. A month into the school year, I feel like a mama bird who has left the nest prematurely.


But at the heart of motherhood lies self-sacrifice, and we do what we must to provide for our families. Hi ho, hi ho, it's off to work I go... Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. Repeat.

Aside from my human children, there are a few other dependents who have been nearly-abandoned in the transition: my vegetables. After a month of uncharacteristic neglect, my beds were overgrown into a tangled mess. Some seedlings had been lost, victims of our recent heat wave. "Pocket Square Farm is dying!" I wailed dramatically to my book club gals.


This weekend, however, I finally etched out some time for myself--and my garden. With shears gripped firmly in my gloved hand and nervous apprehension in my heart, I trudged out to my raised beds to take a closer look.


First I spied the carrots hiding patiently, bunched together in the dark, damp soil...

...waiting to be pulled from the earth. These will be scrubbed, chopped, and tossed into a hearty vegetable soup on this balmy autumn evening.


In front of and behind the carrots, squash blossoms and marigolds punctuate the sea of green with their energetic bursts of rust and gold.

From the mid-section of the farm, pumpkin vines stampede hurriedly over gravel, bark mulch, and boxes, racing to the edges of the garden. Pumpkins of all shapes and sizes, still quite green, rest sporadically strewn here and there. We are hoping they will change color by the end of the month, just in time for a Homegrown Halloween.


Seedless watermelon and Twice as Nice Cantaloupe lounge--heavy, round, and full--among their browning vines and foliage. They need to ripen quickly before the colder weather hits.



Just next to them, I uncover a few of my warm-weather friends, the ones I planted hastily at the end of August, just in case we experienced an unseasonably warm fall. We did, and they grew: Neon Purple eggplant, Early Girl tomatoes, slicing cucumbers, and Big Daddy bell peppers are sprinkled here and there amidst my scribbly garden mess, like diamonds in the rough.



Much to my children's surprise, our recent hot weather brought yet another round of strawberries. They were few and far between, and they were rather small, but they were delicious; we were delighted.


Meanwhile, in another section of the garden, I discover that my cool-weather crops are taking hold. Furry emerald artichoke leaves fan out like prehistoric ferns. I planted three of these this year, though we haven't had any artichokes yet.

Swiss chard, something I've never tried before, decorates a small, sunny patch with its colorful, crimson stems and veins. Flavor aside, I think this leafy green is worth growing for its sheer beauty.

Our first baby cauliflower presents its delicate, white head...

... and Eureka lemons and limes swell, weighing down their tender branches. The limes hadn't even begun to grow the last time I had time to tour my garden.


And towering over it all like sentinels, in stark contrast against the seething blue sky, mammoth sunflowers seem to touch the fleeting clouds. They must be protecting the rest of the garden while I am away.
This bloom is just beginning to open, inviting cheer with its buttery petals, reassuring me that my family and my garden are going to be just fine.

It has been a month since school has started. My family has survived. I have survived. I realize that Pocket Square Farm has survived, too. I guess I can be a full time mother, and a full time teacher, and a full time farmer!

At last, I feel peaceful.