Saturday was one of those days in Maine…the kind of day people envision when they think of ‘vacationland’… the kind of day which makes me appreciate living here – a cloudless brilliant blue sky, the sound of warm breezes blowing through tree leaves, roses in bloom, hot sunshine, green grass, waves gently rolling in the background and most importantly no bugs. The last part is the most critical – you see, Maine is notorious for its’ mosquitos, there are LOTS of them and where I live, they are relentless – truly incomprehensible…SO, to have the entire day to myself (Michael and Finn were out for the day), absolutely stunning weather (prior to this we’d been having nothing but rain) and to not be constantly assaulted with buzzing and biting (mosquitos), well, the day was absolute perfection (for a girl in rural Maine who loves her garden)… I spent five blissful hours outside, working in my garden.

I transplanted pumpkin seedlings,  planted more beans, carrots and spinach in order to have a continuous supply…I also planted corn seeds – I love fresh corn on the cob in August.

I was also thankfully able to transplant my tomato plants – they were over 3 feet in height and desperate to get in the ground. I planted each with a few basil plants (said to enhance flavor) and marigolds (pest control) as well as borage (for the dreaded tomato worm – they were terrible last year). I’d never seen or worked with borage, but I’d learned of its’ benefits from companion planting with tomatoes, so I gave it a try – I’m curious to see what comes of it.…if all works well this year, I’ll start a few borage plants from seed next year. It’s also said to help prevent worms in corn as well.

I then mulched the new transplants with hay to help with weeds as well as prevent moisture loss. I then happily picked baby lettuce, kale and spinach and have enjoyed them every night since.

I am hopeful for a good garden season – the risk with gardening is you just never know how it will all turn out – it’s all a bit of an experiment really…we cannot control the weather, thus we cannot control what may come of all our hard work. You may know the what, where and when of planting and gardening, yet still you cannot control the outcome of your labor…We prep the soil, begin seedlings months in advance, plan the layout, plant, weed, water and continue looking after the soil and if mother nature decides not to cooperate, well, that’s just how it is…So while I hope (and work towards) an abundant season (there’s nothing better that homegrown veggies) I know in the end, its not up to me – it will just be as it is…so until then, I will eat my greens and hope for more!