The vegetable garden is located on a small farm near Wickiup Hill Learning Center, not far from Toddville. The farm was once a horse farm but the couple no longer own any horses. The garden is an allotment arrangement. I am free to plant whatever veggies I desire. The owners are free to harvest whatever they might want. They don’t take much. They harvest an occasional tomato or strawberry, but in most instances the only vegetables or berries they eat are the ones I give them. For me, it’s a sweet deal. I have this marvelous garden plot, and I don't pay a cent in property tax.
This is a large garden. I think of it as a half-acre, though it is not quite that large. Half of my garden is surrounded by a fence, the other unfenced half (which I garden jointly with another gentleman) is reserved for produce (e.g., potatoes, pumpkins, winter squash, watermelons) rarely bothered by deer. There will always be some damage from wildlife. In addition to deer, we often have to deal with rabbits, coons, rodents, Colorado potato beetles, squash borers, etc, but most years we can absorb the damage and still come out ahead.
In January nearly all my gardening is done in doors, sitting in a comfortable chair, surrounded by garden catalogs: Baker Creek, Johnny’s Seeds, Territorial, High Mowing, Seeds ‘n Such, Totally Tomatoes, Annie’s Heirlooms, Victory Seeds, John Scheepers, Southern Exposure Seed Exchange, Botanical Interests, Seeds of Italy, Pinetree Garden Seeds. In addition to old favorites, each year I experiment with new varieties or even new vegetables. Celeriac, ground cherries, tomatillos, & blackeye peas are a few I’ve tried for the first time in the last four years. What follows is a commentary on vegetables from the summer of 2022, noting both notable failures and occasional successes.
[I hope that some time this summer the commentary on ten vegetables will be posted as a pdf to this introduction. I just need a couple rainy days when it's too wet to work in the garden. When it comes to the choice between gardening and writing about gardening, the former usually prevails. ~Bob]