Thoughts from a Dorky Gardener

There are millions of people who grow their own produce. I've never been one of those people. My thumb is not green. At least not until this year! Below you can see my very first ever bell pepper. I am in awe of this little, green guy. What started as a bit of greenery has magically turned itself into food. WOW! This to me is a miracle. Another miracle of my flower bed is this rose bush. I paid $2 or so for this rose bush at Walmart around four years ago. It was a stick with thorns at the time. I thought I was saving it from the dumpster. It was pitiful. I brought it home, stuck it in the middle of the front flower bed, talked to it, watered it and every year it has rewarded me with beautiful blooms. This rose bush is a tribute to the heartiness of nature. It has survived Hurricanes Ivan and Dennis, while other larger trees, pine, oak were taken out by the hurricane force winds(we're two and half miles inland) this dainty little rose bush stood her ground and has come back every year. This rose bush is now an official member of the family, even my boys who could careless about flowers comment on her and how pretty she is.

Would it be dorky of me to tell you that my tomato plants smell like tomatoes? I have quite a few blooms on each of my four tomato plants and they all smell nice and tomatoey. My basil plant is right by the front door and I'm pretty sure that when people come up to the door they begin craving spaghetti because the scent of the basil is so strong especially in the late afternoon when the sun is beating down on the front porch!