A Green Thumb

Yesterday, in an effort to karate kick the Tuesday blues away, I decided I am going to grow a garden. I have been thinking about this for a long time, and I decided yesterday was the day to put my plan into action.

My mom has always told me that I have zero patience, and when I get a bee in my bonnet it's now or never, so this time I was bound and determined to prove her wrong. I did, but only because I had to.

First things first, I went to the only place I would trust regarding everything garden.

http://www.pikenursery.com/

 I found a very delightful woman to help me in my quest to grow, well, a garden. In case you forgot, this is what my growing space looks like:

Right, there isn't one. I have a balcony, and that's it. When the nice woman asked me what I had already, that's what I told her. I said, "Well, I have the balcony where I want to grow things!" She just stared at me, apparently my humor does not translate well to plant enthusiasts.

We walked up and down the aisles as I ooh-ed and ahh-ed over the various things I could potentially grow. First she showed me these planters that I cannot for the life of me find via Google. They looked pretty cool - automatically watered, and you grow the plants through a shield depending on the level of sun you get. Those are $59.99 a piece. Anybody know what I'm talking about?

I kind of ix-nayed that for now because I was not intending to spend $120 on planters alone without researching my other options. We looked at basins and planters like these, and they were super expensive at Pike. I think I am going to head over to Ikea when I have a spare 5 minutes and see what they have and at what price point. Ikea is like the WalMart of furniture stuff, they have everything.



So, that's the long & short of my first day in the life as a gardener. I think it's not going to get much more exciting. I am slammed for the rest of the week and through the weekend, but I think exploring my planter options has moved to the top of the priority list next week (as soon as I regain my sanity). The nice lady at Pike Nursery told me that I should probably aim to plant in early April, so I gotta secure my pots! Crucial step in the process.

I am just so excited to have another hobby (among many) and a useful one. I haven't mentioned yet, but I want to start out growing lettuces, peppers, and peas. Depending on how those fare, I want to add cucumbers and some parsley or dill. Ambitious, yes, but I think with a little help I can do it. Plus, I don't have to start from seedlings, which makes me a very happy camper.

Like I said, a little instant gratification goes a long way with me, so if I can see something poking out of the soil immediately upon being planted, I'm all set!