Hugh Mung Us Are Vest (say it aloud and quickly)

Matilde and I harvested a ton of mixed salad greens. If we continue to harvest, our plants will continue to produce, so we decided to share our bounty with our neighbors! Our neighbors to the left, right and directly across the street each received a gallon bag full of lettuces to enjoy. Matilde had fun delivering them and giving directions such as "please wash them before you eat them," and "if there's a yucky one just throw it in the compost!"  They each got a kick out of that. :) 

Andy and I feel that it's important to connect with our neighbors, and if sharing a little bit of salad assists in building our community then why not share. I hope they enjoyed eating it as much as we enjoyed growing it! 

Peas

We planted a ton of peas this year and only a few have survived. This little guy is growing strong, and it's growing on the trellis we built to replace the massive rhododendron. We thought our neighbor would be upset that it took some of his privacy away, but it had the opposite effect. He sits on his porch and plays his acoustic guitar while we garden. It is very nice. We are enjoying the company of our new neighbors as well. I've become quite fond of our north Delridge neighborhood. 

❤️🏠🏡🏠

Neighborhood Gardens

We passed these gardens on our walk to water the p-patch this afternoon. I'm always inspired by the planting others are doing. It's nice to see how our neighbors planned their gardens and what they have planted in them. 

Way to go Delridge!! 

The Delridge P-Patch

This spring Matilde's school was given a garden bed at the neighboring p-patch. (P-patches are lots in the city with numerous garden beds. Each bed is maintained by a different organization, person, or family. Some people grow to donate to food banks and some because they simply do not have the space at home.  We were actually on three different waitlists for years before we bought our farm.) Their garden plot is 200 sq ft AND it is less than a block away from the school.  

They expressed interest in growing edibles for their school, and I was really excited for them until I was told NO ONE in the school had any experience or knowledge of growing anything!  Somehow, I became their resident gardener. UH-OH!!  Since I will only be there another two months, I showed them a neat and free website (www.smartgardener.com) to help them plan, plant, care for, and harvest their goodies. 

Today, we were busy transplanting and planting. The kids in Matilde's class planted Yukon gold potatoes, red potatoes, tomatoes, peas, cucumbers, broccoli, radishes, and carrots. (I'm pretty sure each plant was trampled by at least one wild and crazy preschooler!) They were all over the moon to help out. I felt bad for the mom who sent her daughter to school in the fresh white pants today because they were completely brown by the time she lined up to walk back to the classroom. 

Aside from a few more veggies, I think we will be adding a digging space, a couple sunflowers, and a sign with the school's name. Any other ideas or suggestions? 

Chow Box

This beautiful box was the final welcome box that we gave to the new next door neighbors. 

It included: a curly cucumber (it grew in a circle!), lots of tomatoes, a couple potatoes, a handful of garlic, three large  green onions, two Walla Walla sweet onions, a half dozen fresh eggs, and a handmade tomato pincushion.  It was presented to them in a cute handmade veggie box from Andy with a card made by the girls. I think they enjoyed the surprise, but I think I needed to extend a hand since I've poo-poo'd the house. Like our other neighbor, Matt, I was upset with the house not the people. I needed to give the box to live my amends. 

Welcome to the neighborhood Karoline and Chris! 

FREE Blackberries

Here are a few blackberries I found today. They are from the neighbor's overgrown, out of control bush. It hangs over the fence and is growing over our rabbit hutch. I absolutely love these berries, and I cannot wait for the yummy jam that will be made from them! 

Our Neighbor's Garden

Walking through our neighborhood, I noticed this cute little spot of land.  It was so neat and tidy I had to photograph it!  It just proves that you can plant a lot in a small amount of space. They saved their yard and only opened up a few square feet, but that's enough to feed your family fresh veggies throughout the summer and maybe beyond.  A+ neighbor!