The kitchen garden is a pet project of mine. It has always been a one of my dreams to be able to go out the kitchen door to gather ingredients for a salad or fresh herbs for whatever dish I'm cooking.
It first began as two narrow beds on either side of the walk, then gradually expanded to its present its present size of nearly 12 feet by 12 feet. The narrow bed to the right of the walk, limited by the green picket fence and the ramp to the cellar, has become an herb garden with garlic chives, clockwise chives or onions, chives, oregano, lavender, and at least three different kinds of mint.
To prepare the garden, Tim rototilled the bed, tilling in the leaves and grass clippings I had collected from last year. Then I measured the bed and drove in stakes at the corners and center of each side and strung string in a spoke fashion. Next, I lay stones collected from Mt Apetite as well as from the property along the strings to complete the pattern.
Finally, I lay an additional layer of newspaper, leaves and grass clippings.
The newspapers, unfortunately, were ruffled by the wind. Despite that, the garden seems to be growing well, including the volunteer purslane, which I am loath to pull up as it's edible.
With Tim's help, we repaired Duane's cherub, returning the tail to its proper place. All it took was a little epoxy, duct tape, and hope.
