Digging in the Dirt . . . and Lovin' it!!!

This past weekend marked the beginning of planting season for us. We kicked it off by venturing on down to Detroit’s historic Eastern Market. Sunday was their 43rd annual “Flower Day”, but we got a jump on things by going on Saturday, when the vibe is still great but there are about 100,000 fewer people in the market. After a few hours of shopping, we ended up with a vanload of annuals and perennials. Some of it went to my parent’s home ~ they came on the trip too. Lucky for us, Sunday was an absolutely perfect day for planting ~ sunny, low humidity and not too warm. Thanks to our time spent digging in the dirt, in a few months we will have a harvest of tomatoes (three varieties), hot peppers (six varieties), and nine different types of herbs. It’s amazing how much you can fit in a small, suburban, backyard garden :) Aside from those veggies and herbs, I now have beautiful scenery to gaze at from a patio lounge chair as I sip cold beverages on a warm day ~ one of my favorite summertime activities.

Here are some of our beautiful finds . . .

I love to buy my bedding plants from this flower stand, which is located roughly one mile from where I live. As you can see from the photo, there is now an office building next door, however this area used to be nothing but farmland at one time. The family still owns a farm about 20 miles away, where they grow everything that is sold at this market. In late July they have the best sweet corn in the world. My PSA for the day is to support your local farmers whenever you can! You can learn more about how to do that here.