Apr 10, 2012

My Urban Garden

Meet Molly and Jake. Molly is a Labrador Retriever, and Jake is a West Highland Terror Terrier. They are my daughter's dogs who occasionally come over to play with Tucker. I love 'em a lot and am a little embarrassed to admit I may have been known to call them my granddogs. 


Last year I didn't plant a veggie garden other than two tomato plants. I was disappointed and a little mystified that the tomatoes were still not ripening by August, but I supposed it was because it was a late spring last year. 

Then, one summer evening when we were all eating dinner out on the deck, Molly rounded the corner from the garden with a juicy ripe red tomato in her mouth. The little stinker had been eating all my tomatoes just as they ripened! 

So my husband put up this temporary (and less-than attractive) wire gate to keep sneaky Molly out of the side yard vegetable garden. 


Last weekend he built a nice new permanent gate to replace it.






Thanks, Hon!

Under the new gate are my daughter's hand prints, made when we  poured the cement sidewalk back in 1996. (Seems like just yesterday.)  Who could have foreseen back then that this little girl would grow up to be a young woman with a tomato eating dog of her own. 


It appears to me like Spring is more advanced in blogland than here in the Northwest high desert. We're just now starting to see blossoms and daffodils, and I still have the winter view over the neighbors' fences that divide our tiny city backyards. 


 The lilacs, like this one, and other bushes and trees that will screen our neighbor's houses later this spring and summer are just beginning to get their new leaves. (That's the white church from yesterday's post peaking out behind that big fir tree.)


Some violets, a few tulips, and this Bleeding Heart that I planted last year are the only signs of new life in my backyard still. 


 In the narrow side yard the new growth on my clematis vines is slowly climbing up the wire supports to the trellis above. I'm still thrilled that they made it through the dry winter.
 

What I'm happiest to see today are the tiny new radish plants that I planted from seeds  a couple weeks ago in my new raised garden beds


I love to go outside and walk around my small yard each morning now that Spring has arrived to see what new plant is emerging from the soil and which new leaves are starting to grow on the bare tree branches. Along with autumn leaves, I think this is the best part of living where there is such a pronounced changing of the seasons.


8 comments:

  1. Your "granddogs" are darling and that Molly sounds like quite the character! Labs and goldens seem very similar in personality!
    -Shelley

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  2. Die Hunde sind so süß. Und dein Garten ist wunderbar.
    Ich habe die Blume "Tränendes Mädchenherz" gesehen, sie wächst auch bei mir im Garten.
    Ich liebe diese schöne Blume, die schon meine Oma hatte.
    Und ich muss sagen, du beschreibst und schreibst so herrlich lustig, dass ich gleich lachen muss.
    Da geht mir richtig das Herz auf.
    Danke, für diese schönen Geschichten.
    Liebe Grüße von Sophie

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  3. Molly knows a good thing! What a smartie! I just love your blog! I am a new follower!
    I know I will get lots of inspiration here!
    Yvonne

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  4. How funny! Love your new gate. That is super sweet that your daughters hand prints on on the walk way. I love that idea to pieces. Glad to hear that spring is starting to head your way. It has been here for awhile and most days it reaches 87.

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  5. Hopefully your tomato crop will be plentiful this year, now that Molly has a gate :)

    blessings,
    karianne

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  6. Awe! They are so sweet! Love the new gate and sending the same sentiments as Karianne! We have had some strange hot then frost then warm weather here in the NE...still waiting to plant.

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  7. Hello there! What a delightful, peaceful blog you keep! It's a nice place to refresh one's spirit, take a break from the craziness of blogging, and just generally relax. And thank you so much for your nice comment over at our sister blog, Steam Tea Travels. You now have our Follow!
    :)
    Rose (Plush Possum Studio)

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  8. Your story about the tomato's was to funny, I smiled when I saw the handprints cause we did the same thing at our former home, gee I miss that house.
    also thanks for including me in your Friday Finds last week :)

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