The first Summer after we moved here, I tried to grow a few things like bell peppers and lettuce. Things didn’t do very well – the peppers got beetles in them and I don’t think the lettuce ever did very well. Part of the problem was that back then, I wasn’t on any medication to help control various things like the constant heavy bleeding, the PCOS and its various symptoms, the fibromyalgia pain… so some days, I wouldn’t even have the energy to get outside to water or check on things. Back then, Bryan wasn’t very into gardening either (he still doesn’t love it, but he seems to be getting into at least helping me with my garden).
I pine for seeds and plants, raised beds, the act of growing my own herbs and food. It’s actually an ache I experience every year – to get outside and plant things and watch them grow. So this year, Bryan actually got behind my desire to have a vegetable garden. I bought my pots and grow bags, seeds, soil, vegetable starts, and everything else I knew I’d need. I had the same fear he did – that at some point, my energy would fade and I’d lose interest or just neglect the garden, thus letting it die and wasting everything. But I also knew that the Cymbalta, tramadol, and progesterone I’m on, medications that help control all the symptoms I experience, plus taking a daily vitamin pack, would help. Ever since starting on cycled progesterone, things in the female department have been a lot more reliable. No more months of heavy bleeding and cramps. Now, it’s under a week and is relatively light compared to before… the Vitex I take helps a lot in the heaviness department.
So I started some seeds back in May – various herbs, a bunch of heirloom tomatoes, peppers, and a few other things. I admit, it was ambitious, but that’s how I get with this stuff – I want to grow way more than I have space for! BUT… you know what? I made it work. I planted every one of my 10 heirloom tomato plants and all my herbs. The peppers are still pretty small – even the ones I transplanted and the ones that were starts. They just never seem to grow well up here. But everything else is doing so well. Our zucchini is almost ready to harvest, our pickling cucumber plants have tons of fruit growing plus even more blossoms (and the bees seem to love it). Our tomato plants are covered in blossoms and a few are growing fruit that should be ready in about a week, maybe two. Our two huge herb planters are filled out with herbs like dill, basil, thai basil, tarragon, cilantro, mint (! the mint has taken over), and sage with newly planted chives and parsley growing.
Here are some pictures we took last week for a contest for the company from which I get my seeds, Seedsnow.com:
The Domestic Artisan 