Hi everyone! Today it’s my turn to host…Valerie, that is.
I’m not sure what all of you are up to these days, but late May through early June are gardening days here on our farm. We live far enough north that our vegetable bedding plants (tomatoes and the like) don’t go in the ground until at least mid-May. In practicality, it’s even later because our soil is heavy clay and it’s impossible to work it when it’s rained recently.
However, the tomatoes are finally planted! And here is my helper (my 22-month-old granddaughter) helping her grandfather get some water on those new plants.
We also picked our first garden strawberry yesterday.
And the peas are starting to climb their trellis. Other seeds are sprouting. Now to keep ahead of the watering and the weeding!
On our farm, we believe in fresh homegrown food whenever we can, so we tend to grow a lot. Yes, this takes time away from my writing but, being as I write about characters who garden and farm, I just call it book research!
How about you? Do you grow vegetables? I’d love to hear about your gardening adventures.
So it’s been another fun week at Inspy Romance.
On Monday, Kimberly Rose Johnson talked about her brand new release A Romance Rekindled. Come find out about her new book! JENNIFER TIPTON is the winner of A Romance Rekindled from this giveaway. Congrats, Jennifer!
Ever wondered what all goes into Writing Christian Romantic Suspense? Hallee Bridgeman breaks down her newest book, A Carol for Kent on Tuesday’s post.
Carla Laureano shared Ten Things You Don’t Know about Amy Matayo on Wednesday. Come, have a chuckle, and get to know an author of inspirational romance!
Oh, Summertime! was Lynette Sowell‘s topic on Thursday. What books are you looking forward to reading at the beach this summer?
Annalisa Daughety blogged about Finding Peace in a Busy Life on Friday. Like me, she finds both peace and busyness in growing her own food. Maybe you can share some ways YOU find peace.
On Saturday, Merrillee Whren talked about The First Kiss. Want to share some memorable ones? Your own…or from a story. ;)
Coming up:
This week’s authors include:
Monday: Ginger Solomon
Tuesday: Lisa Jordan
Wednesday: Pepper Basham
Thursday: Elizabeth Maddrey
Friday: Valerie Comer (hmm, I better think up a topic…)
Saturday: Laurie Tomlinson
We hope you join us every day. Remember that every comment enters you for the monthly draw for an Amazon.com gift card. Besides that, we just love to chat with you, so don’t be shy!
Valerie Comer is a USA Today bestselling author and a two-time Word Award winner who writes where food meets faith and fiction. She injects experience laced with humor into her green clean romances. Her life on a small farm in western Canada provides the seed for stories of contemporary inspirational romance. Like many of her characters, Valerie and her family grow much of their own food and are active in the local foods movement as well as their church. She only hopes her creations enjoy their happily-ever-afters as much as she does hers, shared with her husband, adult kids, and adorable granddaughters.
Your Granddaughter is precious! Now I have a question for you. Why do you put tires around your tomato plants? I’m sure there’s a great tip here! Thanks!
Linda
One of my closest friends finds great peace and joy in outdoor work. For me, it’s just bugs and dirt, neither of which I particularly enjoy. I do, however, like to EAT fresh veggies.
Hi Linda! Isn’t she adorable? She was such a dedicated little helper.
We have a huge garden, over 1500 square feet. We tend to use black plastic (re-use for several years) in areas where we’re putting heat-loving bedding plants like tomatoes, pepper, eggplant, and the like. It has a dual purpose: conserving heat and vastly reducing the required weeding.
The tires, too, have a two-fold purpose. First and foremost, they hold the black plastic down. Second, they provide another heat sink for the plants within them. That said, only about 1/4-1/6 of the plants have tires. I space the tires out around the plastic mainly to hold down the plastic.
Each plant that’s not in a tire gets a brick on its north side. That’s mainly to prevent the wind from lifting the plastic there at a cut and snapping off the plant stem. Old planks around the edge of the plastic hold the edges down and provide a mowing strip along the lawn. I just run the tires of the mower on the planks, which helps minimize hand-edging.
The garden is so large I try to do whatever I can to minimize hand work. There’s PLENTY enough anyway. It took us three days to get the garden prepared and planted. I still have a few more plants to add. And it takes lots more than three days at the other end to harvest and preserve all that produce, but it is SO wonderful to have canning jars and freezer packages full of our own food, plus we eat VERY well all summer!
I’m very addicted to local, seasonal food and that means making use of our large garden. We also raise meat animals, keep bees, and have fruit and nut trees. The bugs (in particular) I could do without, and I’m a lazy gardener at best. The weeds often get ahead of me, but the crop usually out-competes them! Of course the characters in my books take better care of their gardens than I do. My heroes/heroines…
That’s a great idea! Thanks!
Landscaping cloth works, too, and what we plan to do when this black plastic wears completely out. I think we can get another 1-2 years out of it, though.