FUN IN THE GARDEN

   There is a lot of work that goes on in the garden, but it's also a place to rest and relax when the work is done. We have a park bench at the backside of the garden so we can sit back and see over the fruits of our labor at the days end. In the middle of the field I planted rose bushes a few years ago to attract the bees and butterflys for help in pollination.

   "Big Momma" added some metal ladybugs at the end of the rows for cuteness, she said. Some where we found a mushroom shaped frog house for all the toad frogs we have hanging around when we irrigate the field. Sometimes my wife likes to bring the radio or a CD player down to listen to while we sit and talk or have a cool drink before we put the tools back in the barn for the night. It may not be a trip to Vegas, but it's pretty good for L.A. (lower Alabama).

   We got pretty side tracked this weekend, and not too much got done around the farm. I walked down to the garden before supper to check on my crops. There is a lot of hoeing that needs to be done. Dirt needs to be piled up to the potatoes. My tomatoes are almost ready to be transplanted into the ground . They have really jumped in the last few days. My squash, onions, & peppers have broke the ground in their cups.

   It's time to cut down the rest of the brush around the garden so I can till up the soil and plant some sunflowers. There's a ditch to be dug around the posts of the new henhouse so I can put chainlink fencing around the bottom half to prevent critters from digging in. A new henhouse to build, and a 20 foot run to wrap in chicken wire.

   Maybe if I can get about half my chores caught up, "Big Momma" will give me some time off for good behavior on that old park bench with a cold glass of homemade lemonaide.

   Jim Cobb Coleman.