Tomato madness

I have been trying "Square Foot Gardening" the last few years. It involves using a 4 X 4 raised bed and a soil mix of 1/3 each compost, peat moss and vermiculate, laid out 1 square-foot grids. Being lazy and in a hurry, I first converted an old garden bed in the back yard, digging 3 regulation-size grids. They all worked great the first year, but the dirt and the bed deteriorated (I failed to put a liner in before the dirt), and after a Japanese Beetle infestation in year 2 and weak year-three results, it was time to start over.

Rob built me two new spaces - one placed in service last year and one this year. I destroyed the old one (I'll replant grass one of these days) and planted the new ones this year. They are doing well. After I barely got tomatoes to grow at all last year, I have this:

They have put more effort into growing 6ft tall than into generating tomatoes, but they are starting to feed us. eight of the 12 tomato plants are odd varieties that I got from a nice hippie guy at the downtown farmers market, and the rest are shorter commercial ones I got at Earl May. These "Peach" tomatoes are my favorite so far:

Meanwhile, four okra plants struggle to emerge from the shadow of the tomato plants.

Poor things.

The other garden has already given us lettuce and radishes, and two kinds of carrots seem to be doing well.

The empty squares are spots I recently harvested and replanted.

Next year I want to add two or three new squares. More okra, some green beans, maybe melons, cukes, and in my dreams, sweet corn.

In other news, I fired up the rant blog yesterday for the first time in six years. Nothing like oppressive building permit requirements to fire me up.