Lest you get the impression that My Earth Garden HQ is some sort of Eden or Zen palace, I just want to tell you that I am sitting here at 2:00 a.m. in my underwear watching an episode of “The Sopranos” and chain smoking. First one who gives me a lecture gets a nice warm cup of STFU (please don’t make me define that one, just look it up).

Sometimes I get so caught up in daily life that I forget to stop long enough to look around. The weather has been fantastic lately and the plants are growing like crazy. Squash will be the first homegrown delicacy to grace my table, followed soon thereafter by my green bean choice for the year, Kentucky Wonder. I am ecstatic about my cucumber plants though – they are both covered in tiny cukes!

Yesterday I put down a few rows of corn. I know it is late in the season, but come August things will be looking and tasting great in my kitchen. It was a good deal on fresh corn at the grocery store last week that gave me my hankering. So I’m impulsive. Sue me.

The tomatoes are going strong, but I’ve yet to see any blooms. I can be patient though. My heirloom tomatoes are always worth the extra effort and the extra wait. The two new varieties I’m experimenting with this year are Mr. Stripey and Russian Black and they are doing incredibly well so far.

While I’m thinking about it, I recently wrote about a trip to see my Aunt Margaret in Tuscaloosa (my partner’s Great Aunt, actually), and how she seems to be a tomato charmer or something. Check the story out at Tomato Casual.

Sometimes I sit back in amazement at just how lucky I am. I am living what by all accounts would be a comfortable life, limited only by a lack of spendable funds here and there but enjoyable and happy regardless of my financial state of affairs.

I learned yesterday that I was declared the winner of a short story writing competition I entered last month, and that my prize - a new Dell Inspiron 1720 laptop - would be delivered to my home in less than a week. This is the laptop that writers dream about, or at least this one does since it will allow me to write anywhere, anytime and (provided I have a wireless access point available) I could conceivably work from just about anywhere as well. I’m not sure which aspect of this surprising information pleased me most; the fact that I am getting a new laptop or the fact that I am getting it for free.

It made me consider the situation in my writing room (or the vulgar term my well-meaning partner uses for it, ‘office’). I have a homemade L-shaped desk area that serves as home base for not one but two desktop systems (both with flat panel monitors that were given to us), a rather decrepit laptop that hasn’t been powered up in months, and two printers.

It has me thinking. I have a lot.

Last night as I was driving home J called to ask if I knew that an adorable rabbit had begun to enjoy my garden. A bit perplexed, I asked what he meant, only to have a play-by-play description of the beautiful adult rabbit he had just seen a few feet from my cucumber plants. I must be rubbing off on him at least a little, since he turned off his headlights and avoided pulling into the drive for a few minutes so he could watch nature, all while describing the scene to me as best he could. It was one of the moments that I can look back on fondly - that is, unless I have no cucumbers in a few weeks - even though I should probably have been concerned that the local wildlife are partaking of the fruits of my labors before I can.

Then I thought about it. I really do have a lot.

I’m growing more than enough cucumbers this year. J doesn’t even care for them and I will have plenty for salads, casual snacking and pickling even if Greyboy (the rabbit) decides he wants to visit again tonight. Even after something ate / dug up / pooped in and destroyed several of my heirloom tomato seedlings left out overnight for hardening, I still have a lot.

I have two heirloom tomato plants that are growing quite well in large containers on the front porch. I have a basement full of squash and zucchini plants that will be planted in the garden today after several weeks of tornado warnings (don’t worry, I’m not going to get on that topic today) and 1-2 inch rainfall in a few hours time threatened their fragile existence.

It reminds me of something a fellow blogger taught me a few years ago - the practice of being thankful and showing it. Therefore, for my inaugural “being thankful” post here at My Earth Garden, I present these seven things for which I am thankful this week:

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A Note from Michael: This post was originally made several weeks ago on an older website that I have since abandoned in favor of this one. I am reposting it here because it has been one of the most popular things I have written in a long time, and I wanted it to have a more permanent home.

In response to the heavy impact of World War II on the U.S. economy, Americans were urged to grow a victory garden (also called a war garden) in 1943. The gardens were planted by about 20 million families and would eventually provide nearly half of the fresh produce consumed during this troubled time. On rooftops, in back yards and even in containers on front porches, Americans produced eight million tons of fruit, vegetables and herbs in their own households.

In 2008, we are once again taking part in a devastating war and once again our economy is in crisis. Our administration still seems oblivious to the profound financial problems with our country as thousands of hard working people are threatened with foreclosure.

New home sales have plummeted more than 26 percent since 2006 and more than 405,000 people lost their homes in 2007 alone. The seemingly never ending rise in the price of oil is may be making oil companies record-breaking profits but it is pushing our country’s economy closer and closer toward another Depression.

The cost of nearly everything on the market these days has increased so much that many families are forced to do without the basic necessities in a vain attempt at making ends meet.

The situation may be complicated, but the average American doesn’t want to understand the politics behind why they can’t afford to feed their families, they just want to eat. It is for this very reason that I offer this solution – Bring Back the Victory Gardens.

If you consider it for a moment, it makes perfect sense. Seeds are inexpensively purchased and with the power of the Internet at our disposal, seed exchanging can be done for just the cost of a stamp. I am personally growing a huge variety of heirloom tomatoes from seeds that I received through my local Freecycle mailing list as well as cucumbers, carrots, onions, green beans and several other easy-to-grow vegetables.

You might think that you need a large amount of space or a lot of money to grow your own vegetables, but I’m here to tell you that it doesn’t have to cost much at all. So far this year I have spent less than $25 on my gardening endeavors and I could have actually done it for much less than that.

While I do have a good sized back yard, I am growing the majority of this year’s produce in containers in order to not only better educate myself about container gardening, but to conserve water as my state of Alabama has been in a state of drought conditions for two years now.

Grow what you use
As I mentioned previously, I am growing a lot of tomatoes this year. Tomatoes happen to be my favorite produce item and I go through several pounds a week. With the average price for a pound of tomatoes at about $2.00, you can imagine how much money I’ll be saving over the course of the year. The tomatoes that are not immediately used will be canned or frozen for use during the winter and early spring months, when others will be paying incredibly high prices for the anemic, pale and tasteless hot house tomatoes offered by the supermarkets during the off season.

If you are new to gardening, start small by picking just one or two of your favorite vegetables and growing them in a container. My tomatoes this year will be grown in 5-gallon buckets that I also acquired for free from Freecycle. If you have limited space, two or three container plants on your back porch will be easy and inexpensive to maintain and won’t take up much of your precious square footage either.

For an expenditure of less than $10.00, you could grow enough produce to feed you and your family throughout the season and for an average sized family of four, that could quickly equate to hundreds of dollars in savings over the course of the year.

It is an election year and the economy may be a primary issue in the stump speeches we see and hear all over the news, but while the politicians are busy talking it is time that we stop talking and get something done.

Another day, another tornado warning. Thankfully there was some advanced warning of the near-monsoon and high winds so I was able to move my precious container-bound vegetable plants into the basement or otherwise protect them from the onslaught. The storms have passed and now all is reasonably quiet at MEG HQ, save for the ever-present playfulness of the resident animals.

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how I can transform this property into a living, breathing green space - even if it is temporary. My partner’s family sold the property to a developer a few months ago who is allowing us to stay here for a reasonable price, for as long as we like. (in other words, he has no immediate development plans and doubts that it will change in the next few years).

I’ve been beating myself up for weeks about not doing enough with the tremendous space available in the back yard while the front yard remains largely untouched (save for the aforementioned dogs’ regular ‘gifts’). Perhaps I have devoted too much time to talking about it and not enough to doing something about it. As the saying goes, “When all is said and done, more is said than done.” Truer words were never spoken, my friends.

I should tell you a little about the property… (more…)

The weather has been more that cooperative for a few days here at Earth Garden Central, and now that the writing deadlines I was working under are a thing of the past thanks to a late night at the computer, I can finally get to some outdoor tasks that I’d been unwillingly putting off recently. With that in mind, here are a few random bullet points in lieu of a real post for now:

• Today is the day to pot my African Beefsteak and German Queen heirloom tomato seedlings so I can begin the hardening process and get them ready for their outdoor debut.

• I color myself a pretty simple and natural kinda guy for the most part (excluding the bleach job I did on my hair last week), but I have to admit that every once in a while, something comes out of left field that blows me away. When it comes to DIY simple living, there are some things you just don’t think about - at least I don’t. Well after a visit to The Herbwife’s Kitchen today I can no longer say that, because it was on Rebecca’s blog today that I learned how to make my own personal lubricant from flax seeds. Then it hit me…I have a jar full of flax seeds in the kitchen. I’m not sure I will ever be the same. Thanks a lot, Rebecca! Talk about a slick idea…
• I am in love with my new manual push reel lawnmower. I got it on sale and at a discount because it showed evidence of having been used before. I paid about $75 for it and it won’t ever need gas. That appeals to the thrifty/frugal side as well as my environmentally sound side. Two sides! YAY!

I hope this day is as beautiful and productive for you as it has been (and will be) for me.  Don’t ever forget that the most beautiful place in the world might just be in your own back yard.

I have come to the conclusion that the likelihood of rain is in direct proportion to whether or not I watered my plants on any given day. No watering by me, the weather is clear as a bell. Sure as the world, as soon as I fill the watering can and have my nightly chat with the veggie babies - the deluge begins within hours.

A few nights ago I watered and fertilized my as-yet-pot bound veggies and within a few hours, Mother Nature told me to sit back and watch an expert at work.

Thankfully I didn’t over water them and they are all set as far as drainage goes, so it isn’t a big concern. It’s just one of those little practical jokes that the universe enjoys playing with those of us who dare to take part in this thing we call life.

Yesterday being my partner’s 33rd birthday I had intended to completely avoid my beautiful plants, but he decided that we should go to a local garden center because I needed a few supplies. It wasn’t my fault that I discovered two heirloom tomato plants there that I had never directly experienced. It wasn’t my fault that he put them in the cart. It really wasn’t.

Now though, we are sitting back and preparing ourselves to enjoy the bounty of Mr Stripey and Russian Black tomatoes for the first time from our own garden. Life is good.

I have potted a few of the seedlings I started last month in preparation for the hardening process. A single solitary Mortgage Lifter seed sprouted this time around, along with Red Brandywine (2) and Abraham Lincoln Original (2), African Beefsteak (2) and German Queen (2). For those of you keeping a tally, that makes a total of seven tomato varieties and a total of eleven tomato plants.

The seedlings will stay in the warm basement for the next few weeks until they are ready for the great outdoors, but the two heirlooms we purchased today will fill the gap in time, since I started my tomato seeds a bit later in the season than perhaps I should have.

It has been years in the making, but I am absolutely giddy to introduce my new website, My Earth Garden.  My name is Michael Nolan and I am a freelance writer and avid gardener.  After years of writing on gardening and self-reliance for my clients, I finally decided to create this website - a dream of mine for quite a long time.

My Earth Garden is going to be my personal repository for all of the interesting tidbits and tips that I have learned throughout my nearly thirty years of experience with growing, whether in an urban garden setting or in the more rural acres-large gardens of my younger days.  I plan to share information about all of my favorite heirloom plants as well as my own ongoing journal of triumphs and tragedies.

I hope you’ll bookmark this site and visit often, as well as sharing it with your friends.  I welcome any comments, questions and suggestions you may have!