Garden Greens a la Randy

Our new garden is now tilled, hilled and planted thanks to Sir Randy, our resident horticulturist.

The tilling was contentious, and not because the soil is virgin Georgia red clay. It is an existing garden, soft and loamy. After the months of rain and wet conditions, the tiller sinks right in. And stays in one place. So after fighting that for an hour or so, it was time for a break.

As a reward for his physical labors (he'd also trimmed back our pampas and maiden hair grasses, a photina, the white oak, a leyland cypress and several pines), I took him downtown for a big, juicy cheeseburger at The Poolroom. After a trip to Home Depot for more seed, and Kroger for food and petrol, we were home again.

I settled in to the armchair to watch one of my favorites, The African Queen, with Bugsy curled up behind me (as he is now). The landscaper dude went back out to attack the freshly tilled soil. Two hours later, Charlie and Rosie had fallen in love. Bogey was clowning with hippos and monkeys, and they were spending their last hours of bliss before heading back down the Ulanga.

I hadn't heard the tiller in a very long time, and there is no window on the garden (east) side of our trailer. I took a time-out from movieland, donned my shoes and went outside to check on my man. And, wow. There he was, straddling a row, rake in hand, patting down the soil over freshly-sown seed. The garden plot was rowed in raised hills, each row neatly labeled.

Duly impressed, I said, "Wow!".

He stopped momentarily to step out and take a breath, and put his long arm around me. I nestled in (he's a foot taller than me: 6'3" to my 5'3") as we surveyed his handiwork with pride.

We now have 17 rows of greens; two varieties of spinach, several of lettuce, mustard, kale, turnip, rape (a novelty we'll both be trying for the first time) and carrots. It's the end of a cold winter, tomorrow is the first day of March, so greens are in order. Hopefully, they'll all come up and be spared by the plentiful neighborhood rabbits. (Where's Queenie, the beagle, when ya need her?) And, Bugsy won't mistake the neat rows for his own private litter box.

Today is Randy's home day. Me? I'll be shuffling off soon to paint. I'm staying in the food category, though. One room will be painted an eggplant-y color, another, deep, dark avocado.