Growing at the Speed of Life - A Year in the Life of My First Kitchen Garden

low trench, as clearly specifi ed. The result was

a massive jungle and less fruit! So please do

exactly as the instructions say.

The third error, another of mine, was to

leave off the plastic caps on two tomato boxes;

this greatly increased evaporation and pro­

vided an open breeding ground for unwanted

insects. The rest were covered and used much

less water and showed fewer signs of pests.

It looks so simple—and it is—so don’t cut

corners and potentially miss out on the real

thrill these boxes provide. These boxes would be especially good if you live in the

city and want to introduce your children to gardening.

6. Seed Germination and Vegetable Starts

Since this was my first year, I had, of course, no prior experience with seeds that

succeeded. While I focused my attention on finding heirloom seeds for produce

with great tastes and textures, my local knowledge pals were more concerned

with myriad sustainability issues.

A tomato, for example, had to fit our short growing season and resist certain

diseases and pests that love the Pacific Northwest as much as we do. Viva Italia

tomatoes resist blight (a common problem caused by late summer showers), but

they are a Roma (plum) that ripens en masse, unlike the Brandywine cultivar—a

large, rudely shaped fleshy tomato with a deep passionate sweetness—which

maintains its greenness until the season is almost over.

Time was against us, so we used the seeds that were known to work well—

and taste and texture were left for a time when I would have more experience.

Hence, my seed choices for next year will be made with the help of a local heir­

loom seed provider, having due regard for the microclimate we worked with this

28 • GROWING AT THE SPEED OF LIFE