Thursday, July 19, 2012

A Unspoken Bond

"Just pull them up" the wife says.
"I just can't do it" I replied back.

Every year we go through he same cycle of Planting, Harvesting and Putting By. Then we start the whole thing over again.
There is one point in the circle of garden plant life I hate. It's when I have to pull up a food producing plant.

"It's just a PLANT!" the wife would tell me, but in my heart these plants have sustained life for me, given their all so I can live.
Yes, I know this sounds a little stupid and corney, but it is something I struggle with. The plants have to come out for the Fall gardens to be planted. We already have way to much food and the plants still keep giving. I am at the point where we are giving everything harvested away just so I do not have to stand in the Kitchen all day canning more.
The shelves are full with jars and jars of canned or dried foods. The freezer is over flowing with bags of produce. There is no more room. I will not be able to eat it all now.

Most of the plants are at the end of their life cycle anyway. Remember, I planted way early this year by about three months on some things and it paid off. As it is right now I don't know if I need to plant a Fall garden. I don't know where I would put it all.
I will at least do some lettuce. 

The hard part will be separating that special bond between the plant and the garden keeper, but I am sure I will get over it.       

18 comments:

  1. I know what you are feeling and I have dealt with it to some extent by saving the seed from some of these plants, especially beans and tomatoes. I didn't have to buy any bean seed this year and I know that what I have survived our climate of hot and humid summer days. It is hard work raising plants and defending them against a variety of pests only to pull them up though.

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    1. Like my cantaloups, I have not bought seeds in years.
      The plants almost become part of the family so to speak.

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  2. Nice to see you around. Enjoy the bounty of your harvest.

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    1. I already had to do a Howdy post so I thought what the heck and decided to do another one. We are still enjoying every minute of the summer that we can.
      Work was slow this morning so I did some blogging.

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  3. MDR, I know what you mean about having an attachment to a plant which has provided you with plenty of fruit/vegetables to harvest. When we pull our plants out of the garden, we chop them up and place them in our compost pile. That is as long as there not sick plants. Then the process starts all over again. You have this beautiful new rich dirt (from your compost)to place in your garden after 8 weeks. Then it's time to start planting again. It's just a thought.

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    1. Sandy, yes that is what we do. Now that the pigs and most of the animals are gone all vegetation goes into the compost pile.
      Thanks for the comment

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  4. Completely understandable. I had one bell pepper plant that I kept year after year because it still produced so great and the electric company came to our house one day and said, "We're gonna have to dig up that tree in your backyard to get to the problem."

    I asked, "What tree?"

    I walked by there with them and they pointed to my bell pepper plant, which did look like a budding tree. OH MY BELL PEPPER PLANT? They seemed relieved, I was even more upset.

    It had to come up. God Bless that little hard-working bell pepper tree of mine!

    I feel your sorrow! Hang in there!

    Lana

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  5. I feel the same i have a half dead tomato that produced nothing but blossom end rot fruit that tastes awful, but i can't pull it out

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  6. Awww :) Very cool that you could bless other though, with all that extra food.

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    1. I didn't think of it that way Stephanie, I figured I was the one blessed because they were taking it.

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  7. I wouldn't pull them but then I don't have that much produce either.

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  8. Becky if I don't then I will not have the room for the fall gardens.
    I might just pull some so I can at least plant something.

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  9. ack...that's why i love having such a big area to plant as well as having a jambaloney to dig up and make more huggie kultures...then i can leave the plants where they are and plant the fall garden in a different spot....i know exactly what you mean tho, buddy. if you have to rip stuff up then put it in the compost and make some gorgeous dirt out of your plants. lots of love to the whole MDR gang!

    your friend,
    kymber

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  10. Kymber, I do have the room to expand but not the money nor the time. I don't even know if I have the want too anymore either. The gardens produce what we need plus some and anymore I think would be a waste.
    Everything pulled up goes right into the compost. I have a three bin system that works pretty good as long as I can keep the critters out of it.

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  11. Like the others, I too feel the same way. And, mine aren't even producing that much anymore (or at all this year). but if there are still a couple of ripe or almost ripe fruits or vegetables I can't stand to just kill it.

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  12. DFW, It's too hot and the gardens are not looking as good as they did a couple of weeks ago. Top watering is just not keeping up with the demand so next year I am redesigning the watering system to be both under and above ground.
    The sprinkler system and the shade I put in place this year did wonders but still not enough.

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