We got a late start to planting our veggie garden this year. With all of the research of and preparation for RV living, I tried not to put energy into anything that would keep my focus on staying in this house. I felt like rooting plants here and becoming attached to seeing them through to harvest might alter the flow of energy toward our life on the road- not to mention that we were just plain busy. When the first house deal fell through, I was on a mission. It was too late in the season to start seeds so I marched off to the market and picked up seedlings in peet pots. So how to address the issue of rooting here and potentially missing the fruit? Even after our recent tremendous clean-out, I was able to find five random plastic tubs in which to plant mobile veggies - a container garden. I have had issues in the past being able to maintain moisture in containers in Texas. It hasn’t been a problem this year, however. I was inspired by this article in Mother Earth News and decided to try again.
- Green beans in re-purposed cat litter bin*
- Green bell peppers in small, re-purposed concrete container*
- Cherry tomatoes in large, plastic pot that once housed a bush that was planted
- Some kind of tiny, bitter peppers in an old, plastic pot
- Cucumbers in an old, plastic pail*
*holes made in the bottom for drainage by banging a large nail through in several places*
The pots are hiding a bit amongst the moon flowers whose seeds must have blown in from the one I had potted on the patio last year. The kids get a kick out of the traveling moon flowers and it helps to bring meaning to books like The Tiny Seed by Eric Carle which is one of my kids’ favorites. I don’t know if it has to do with starting seedlings rather than seeds, the smaller containers that contain the roots and encourage top growth, the occasional shade lent by the moonflowers, or some other variable entirely but all of our plants are burgeoning wildly. We have eaten many peppers, tomatoes, and green beans already. While last year we waited all season for one, lonely (yet outrageously delicious) cucumber, this year promises a record-breaking cuke yield.
The kids and I have already talked so much about re-purposing household items, companion planting, helpful insects, garden pests, plant reproduction, etc. that it has been absolutely worth planting and having this time even if we end up not being able to bring our buckets with us on the road. The cukes are coming, though. Mark my words. I will not miss out on that delicious harvest. The kids have been hoping to make pickles. What better way than with our very own homegrown cucumbers?
Mary Bright
June 8, 2010 at 4:25 pm
I’m glad you are having better luck (skill?) with your garden than mine. The extraordinary rainfall amounts the past two years (lots of flooding in our area) have made my garden into mostly a pit of mud for the boys to play in. I’m still holding out hope that it will dry out this year:)