growth

This won't come as any news to anyone over the age of about, ah, two. But we're a bit excited. Gardens grow!

First Sunday in November

three weeks later

today

We've grown a few straggling veggies before. We generally manage at least an abundance of basil over summer, thanks the lovely Herb Fair at our local Community Centre on the first Sunday of every November. But we have a lot of neighbouring gum trees, and limited time, and water restrictions, and enthusiasm that rapidly tapers. Things haven't often thrived.

Then we looked afresh at this patch down the side of our driveway. Fabulous sun. No overhanging trees to shade or suck out the nutrients from beneath. Just begging to be composted, built up and planted with productive plants. And on the first Sunday in November, we were ready for the Herb Fair, which also does a great trade in exciting vegetable seedlings.

We have eggplants, zucchini, capsicums, chillies, loads more tomatoes we grew from seed, a random marigold (companion planting) and of course, basil. Out the back we've planted more tomatoes and zucchinis, plus two varieties of pumpkin.

Every morning Andy does a little tour of the garden and usually invites me out to view some momentous unfurling of leaf or bud. We've been watching a lot of River Cottage on DVD (we discovered this fabulous series only about 10 years after the fact!) and he's fancying himself as a bit of a Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall. Well, they both wear glasses and have a penchant for really bad puns. Yay, I say.

More 'growth' also probably inspired by Mr F-W is our incubating eggs. Right now we're on Day 18 out of 21 and I'm so very excited. I've snuck some away from our broody chooks a few times to 'candle' them (i.e. shine a torch light through them). As far as I can tell, things are looking promising. It's all I can do to stop myself cracking one open for a look-see. But I read somewhere that you must not handle the eggs after Day 18 so it's all up to nature now.

And lastly, how about a bit of personal growth? Yesterday I had a small road-ragey incident. I didn't let loose any rude gestures or words, but I'm positive the lady concerned had a fair idea how I felt. Well, about an hour later I sat down in a meeting with some important new clients and it dawned on me. It could have been one of them. It wasn't, but it could have been. And I could have royally... messed it up for everyone. (I was wearing a dress in a fairly unmistakeable floral fabric!) So, I hereby vow to the world at large that I will never express anger or frustration to other road users again. No matter how bad my day, no matter how difficult it was to get the four-year-old to eat breakfast and get in the car, no matter what other drivers may do. I'm in charge of me, and I will be better than that.

Oh and I should probably add, no matter how hard it now is to reverse the car out of the driveway with the addition of our awesome new garden bed.

- Jane x