Small Wonders

One of my favorite things about gardening is the little surprises: the bulbs and wildflowers that spout up in spots you didn't expect or had forgotten about, a new bloom you hadn't noticed forming.

Among the small wonders I'm enjoying these days is this feral celery (above). Last year the deliberately planted crop was bitter and I didn't (intentionally) start any this year. Wouldn't you know it, this volunteer, which has been totally neglected, is delicious. And it's growing in decomposed granite! Not that I recommend that; it's getting seepage from a nearby pot of marjoram.

We also had lettuce crop up in unusual places, including right next to nitrogen-fixing bean plants. Those greens were quite tasty; never fertilized. (I should note my entire garden is not that wet: it cropped up in places where I was watering new plants and near a water barrel.)

I mentioned earlier that my last year's basil, moved to a pot at the end of summer, had resprouted. Below is the proof of my perennial basil.

I'm also grateful for a bounteous harvest of snap peas. I love them so, I intend to try a tip I picked up from my dad the suburban farmer. (Okay, he's a college music professor, but he grows so much food he supplies his college cafeteria.) The tip: when weather warms, extend the life of your peas by placing ice cubes on the soil in the morning.

We're also enjoying spinach, scallions, lettuces, sorrel, carrots, strawberries, blueberries, and just harvested the rest of our yukon gold potatoes.

Apples on the way!