Betsy's Garden

Betsy lost a big oak tree in a storm last winter. It was in her front yard but near the far left side of her property. Once all the removal work was done and carted away she was left with a bare circle 20 feet in diameter. Rather than try to plant grass and make it match, she took advantage of the nearly full sun and planted a vegetable garden.

Around the near edge is a thick row of basil - enough for all the tomatoes in Hanover! Around the rest of the perimeter is a row of peppers. They are all different kinds and fun to see. She is my kind of plant shopper. She hit a local garden center on the day the reduced the early veggies and she bought them for about 20% of their normal price... so she got lots! She has also planted nasturtiums and marigolds among the plants to help keep away some of the bugs and critters. I don't know enough about organic gardening to know if this will help, but they sure are pretty.

In the center of the garden is okra! The plant itself is pretty and Betsy has been eating from it for at least three weeks. She gives lots of stuff to her neighbors and it just keeps growing.

There is a small planter on the far left edge of this plot. It is filled with tiny radish plants that the neighboring children planted. Radishes are ready to eat in 21 days, so this is a great project for kids. The plants are large enough that they need to be thinned soon, but the kids are on vacation until next week, so that job will have to wait a while.

Betsy has other vegetables inter-planted in her back yard, too. Melon vines grow over boxwood along one fence and tomatoes are planted next to her brick house in the back (for additional heat) and behind a row of perennials. She truly makes creative use of the space she has. These are ideas that lots of folks could use.