Wild And Wonderful
by Jamuna dd
Raghunath and Jamuna’s garden is a fairly large enclosure (approx. 50 by 80ft), located next to their kitchen. This is their 3rd garden in NV and it has expanded and contracted over the years in relation to their enthusiasm and/or spare time. The current garden is 10 years old. It has taken many years to try and build up the health of the soil. They had to deal with heavy clay and an abundance of rocks. This year they grew potatoes for the first time in years, which was quite a treat. They also added a bed of asparagus. Everyone in the family agrees that there is nothing quite a delicious as new baby potatoes picked fresh from the garden.
Half of the garden space is taken by fruit trees. They have plum, apricot, pear and cherry trees, along with 2 blueberry bushes, 2 blackcurrant bushes and 1 hazelnut tree. There are also grapes and kiwis that grow on the fence. The kiwis produced for the first time this year, but they are still small. Jamuna is hoping to plant more blackcurrant, hazelnut and grapes next year. Black current are her favorite as they are very hardy and produce an abundance of fruit. They also possess the highest vitamin C content of any fruit.
The vegetable section has kale, tomatoes, beets, asparagus, potatoes, red beans, soybeans, urad beans, carrots, bitter melon, squash, zucchini, broccoli, sorrel, lettuce, amaranth, basil and coriander. This year they have finally had success with broccoli. In past years the young broccoli plants have almost always been devoured by groundhogs before they could produce. Even though the fence keeps the deer out, the groundhogs dig under the fence. Last year one even made its home in the garden. This year the groundhog ate all the beets, but fortunately the second planting is doing OK.
They both find that gardening is a very satisfying experience, and are happy to have more time for it now that they no longer have to take care of the store in the summer months. They would like to make the following request. If there is anyone on the farm who knows how to prune fruit trees, please stop by and give them some tips.
