Dateline 8-11-2016

I spent yesterday in a foggy haze due to a combination of having a cold and being on cold medication. That being the case, I didn't have the wherewithal to photo document my first tasting of a food that I grew from scratch.

As I've pointed out in the past, I've taken up gardening and about a month ago I noticed my first successful food to be grown from a plant by way of a tomato seed kit that I bought on a whim at the Big Lots. A few days later I noticed a second green ball of homegrown food, and then a week later I found a third.

This was back when the plant was still living in a pot and the weather was warm but tolerable. I watched as the tiny tomatoes grew and changed from green to bright red. This is around the same time I built my above ground garden, which happened to be the same time the weather went from being warm to intolerably hot.

Soon after transferring my plants from their tiny planters into their spacious above ground abode, the tomatoes weren't the only part of the plants that were changing colors. I'm not sure if it is the heat to blame or if I screwed something up in the transfer process but it wasn't long until all my plants started to die.

I thought I could bring them back to life by adding more water but that didn't seem to work. There are two plants that seem to be putting up a fight but the summer sun is definitely taking its toll.

I did manage to save the three tomatoes that I think were dwarfed by my amateur/poor garden management skills at this stage of the learning process. That said, they did feel like they were ripened to perfection. 

I cut one up to taste it on its own. It may just be parents pride but it was the best tomato I've ever tasted. The flavor felt full and there were multiple textures that I can't recall from any store bought tomato I've ever purchased. We cut up the rest and though there wasn't much, it was the perfect addition to the chicken kale slaw of a salad that I had for dinner. 

Now I can't wait to grow more. 

I have a bunch of seeds that are germinating as I type. I hope that the weather levels off enough to where it's no longer an added hurdle to my learning curve because I really look forward to seeing what other foods are supposed to taste like.

I'll probably transfer said seed as soon as my sniffles are gone. Whenever I do get to it, I'll be sure to post my progress. Until then...

Talk to you tomorrow,

- The Wicker Breaker