Things I Missed in Brasil

While in Brasil, there were a couple of things I missed a lot. 

Peanuts.  Yep, the lowly peanut was one thing I craved after a couple of months.  One day I walked into Beira Mar and was tempted by an imported 4 ounce jar of peanut butter.  The price?  Almost $R 20,00.  That would be a little more than $10 US, and I refused to buy it on principle.  Now that I'm back home, I'm enjoying me some peanuts.

Another thing I missed when I was living in urban Niteroi was gardening.  Oh, I saw plenty of wonderful plants and flowers, for sure.  There are beautiful city gardens in front of every high-rise apartment in the neighborhood, filled with all the special tropical plants that we see in the supermarket floral section.  (You know, the ones with names you can't pronounce that you bring home and kill off within a month?)  It was great to see all that Brasilian flora, but I was ready to get down and sweat with dirt in my Crocs and a tan line from my gloves.  That's what I did when I got back to Texas in May.

Since I wasn't home to work the beds when the weather warmed up in February and March, there was a lot to do.  Only a few things were blooming in the back yard.

Vitex or Chaste Tree looked happy.

Native grasses survived Texas' mild winter.

Vitex in full bloom greeted me when I arrived home.

After all the weeks in Brasil with Little Man, my arms were pretty empty, and I had plenty of time on my hands.  My dream for a Kitchen Garden needed to take shape, so for inspiration, I made a beeline to one of my favorite spots in the universe--The Antique Rose Emporium in Independence, Texas.

The Kitchen Garden at The Antique Rose Emporium
Independence, Texas

At the ARE, I took pictures of the geometry of their garden
and breathed in the fragrance of thymes, rosemary, fennel
and some other plants that I didn't know.

Back home, I recruited Steve Jr. to help get the beds ready for summer.  Luey volunteered to help, and together they turned the soil, added cow manure, and mulched everything that didn't move.  That's 70 bags of mulch, y'all!  With blisters and sunburns, my two trusty helpers completed their mission.  Couldn't have done it without them, for sure.

Then I started laying out the new Kitchen Garden plan.

Planning over Breakfast--al fresco.

A sketch and plant guide is covered with
Post-Its

Post-It notes helped me stage the steps involved in getting the garden summer-ready.  Again with the OCD!  . . . it comes in handy at times.  Here's what the Kitchen Garden looked like when I finished.

Two (almost) square beds were divided into 5 sections each:
a circle in the middle surrounded by 4 wedges.

Bed A has (clockwise from right):
Sweet Basil, Ornamental Pepper, Lemon Grass, Rosemary

Terra Cotta Chimney Flue Liners fill the circle in the middle.
Geranium, Chocolate Mint, Fennel, and Dill (seeds)
are high enough to keep the bunnies at bay, I hope!
I plan on marigolds around the base of the flues.

The rock border and river rock swale were installed last summer.
This Kitchen Garden is right off the back patio door.

Bed B has (clockwise from right):
Spicy Globe Basil, Purple Ruffle Basil, German Thyme, and Lavender.
Flues have Apple Mint, Geranium, Dill and Chive (seeds).

After I planted, Steve came back with mulch to hold in moisture.
Hopefully everything would have a chance to get established
before the temps sky-rocketed.

Inspiration for borders between sections of this Kitchen Garden came from one broken terra cotta saucer that I didn't have the heart to discard.  I used up all the saucers in my garden stash and purchased a few more to finish the two beds.

Terra cotta saucers divide sections of each bed.
Good dividers make good neighbors of Ornamental Peppers and Basil.

12-14" saucers worked best for straight dividing lines,
while 6" saucers made a curved edge easier.

I marked a midline first in pencil.

Used my Dremmel tool to score the clay,
then knocked the saucer flat against the edge of a brick column.
Most of them broke pretty well into fourths.

Four perfect quarters were not necessary, thank goodness!

Each quarter wedge of saucer was planted point-down in the soil.
Look for Terra Cotta Chimney Flue Liners at a brick yard or masonry supply.

There were a few terra cotta wedges left after both beds were constructed.  What to do . . .?
Grab a Sharpee pen and make plant markers!

A label for each type of plant--
printed with a fat black Sharpee marker.
The marker will fade, so I'll probably use a paint pen at some point.

Each mint got its own name label.
Supposedly, Chocolate Mint was named for its dark stem,
but it definitely smells and tastes like mint chocolate.  Yummm!

I hope the Lavender thrives--
lots of folks say it's tricky to grow.

One Happy Gardener!

BTW--the Kitchen Garden has been in for about a month now.  Everything is taking hold and filling in very nicely.  On Saturday, I harvested enough Sweet Basil to make a wonderful Pesto sauce for Steve's Father's Day pasta.  And I shared bunches of Purple Ruffle Basil with the neighbors.  Even if it just sits in a paper cup full of water on the kitchen counter, it's a treat to see and smell.