Behold the beauty of the first heirloom tomato from my garden this year. It’s an exquisite, lopsided 2lb beauty from a variety called Goliath. I’m going to have a tomato sandwich today. White bread. Mayonnaise. And that sweet, sweet vine-ripened tomato. The first one from the vine.
The first thing I do when I get home from work is to check on my tomatoes. I planted 5 heirloom tomato plants, the oldest one an 1863 Amish variety. And we were just getting a few little tomatoes going. Each day they were getting bigger. Until last night, apparently.
When I got home today Sheryl walked outside as I was heading to admire the day’s growth. “I think something got to your tomatoes last night.” You bet your sweet bippy they did. All the new little green tomatoes were gone, along with a few branches from the plants. And the chewing was up high. Deer.
I swear, this has been a year for wild animals. We’re going through a second round of squirrels in the attic. Rabbits are chewing our daylilies to the ground. And bucks have rubbed a few of our tress raw and even killed one of our 3-year-old maples. And now they’re eating my tomatoes. Enough is enough.
I was thinking that if I try to chase them away I’m going to end up like the guy in the video. So I did the only safe thing and coated my precious plants in Liquid Fence. The deer will stay away, but so will everyone else. Ever smell Liquid Fence? It smells like something died in the bottle. Oh, and then mix in some wolf urine to add some top notes.
I add deer to obligations and gravity as things that are not my friends.
I’ve had a couple of walks through Bryn Mawr this past week because of my dental trial and tribulations. While going to the dentist isn’t something I like, seeing all the English gardens in that town made it a lot nicer.
I’ve liked that style of gardening since I’ve been a kid. Back then, city people put in a lot of flowers and ground cover and not much in the way of grass. I’d love to do something like this with a section of our garden. If I had my druthers, I’d come up with a plan to do the entire front of the house like this. It would stick out like a sore thumb in our cookie cutter neighborhood, but it would be cool. I’d start with a privet hedge along the street to frame in the yard. I’d plant pachysandra underneath. I’d put in lavender, salvia, bluebells, hyacinths, jasmine, and catmint. And I’d pack in those plants so that no grass would grow underneath.
It’s just an idea. But with most actions, they have to start with a dream.
Social Media
Be bold, and mighty forces will come to your aid. –Goethe
