What I Learned From My Garden...Part 1

My whole purpose for gardening each year is not just for the produce, but more importantly for the knowledge I gain. Some of it I gain from my successes, but more often than not I learn from my failures. So, this week I thought I tell you what I learned from my gardening failures...the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Lesson #1:

Do not plant anything in a Topsy Turvy.

This is what has become of my cherry tomato plant that I planted in a Topsy Turvy. I have a good handful of ripe tomatoes...but do you notice the large brown section in the middle. Yeah, that's where it is dieing...slowly.

Here is a closer shot, just so I know you believe me.

Now, I am not dissing the Topsy Turvy. I am sure there are many people who have had a successful run with one of these things, I am just not one of them. My problem is that I got tired of watering it everyday...day in and day out. I would forget and you CAN'T forget...it gets brown and dies if you forget. Not good.

So, first of all, I must apologize to my neighbor Danielle, who stood on a chair in her yard and hung over our shared fence to water this thing the whole time I was in Lake Powell. I tried to take care of it Danielle, I really did, it is just so high maintenance!

Second of all, I am going to promise Danielle that I will never again grow any produce in a hanging basket. They dry out too fast and therefore are too much work for me...or for my neighbors.

If you have had a different experience please let me know...otherwise, I am giving this growing method a thumbs down...with a cherry tomato on top.