We are trying to sell our house this summer, and the thought of NO garden for a season spooked me. What if we sell early, and I don’t have any cucumbers to watch, no buds to enjoy, nothing to water or weed? I need a garden. And the boys really need a garden for the same reasons, PLUS a place to use some energy and learn about growing things.

So, this season, we rented two plots at the Altoona Community Garden. One plot is for us, for our cucumbers, tomatoes, and so on, just in case we would sell our home early. And the other plot is for donating to the Food Bank or Senior Center. I thought the boys might like giving some of their great grows to others who will enjoy them.

I expect we will also learn a lot from other gardeners, as every gardener has their own tricks, preferences, and ideas.

We’re keeping it pretty simple in these gardens and basically planting the same things in each plot: three tomatoes (early girl and roma), many green bean plants (Who doesn’t love green beans in summer?), and two cucumber plants. Our garden has a hot pepper plant and a zucchini. The plot for donations has two eggplant plants. We are to weigh and record any amounts we donate this growing season, so more of that to come.