Field of Dreams

"Oh, what to plant in the back garden" has been a major question as I worked closer to it. Ever since planning what veggies to grow began, corn has been looming in my thoughts. Corn needs to cross pollinate so it is recommended to plant a minimum of four rows square, 12-18" apart for good corn production. Linda, who has grown corn for several years, told me she had planted corn as late as the end of June and had a good harvest late September, early October. Time was flying past. Hey, I want good corn, but would I have enough room remained the question. As the veggie plan evolved, I realized I had plenty of room to plant other vegetables in the planter beds along the side of the yard, It was settled, the back garden would become my very own field of dreams..oh, come on, how can you think of a corn field without the reference coming to mind. And such a pleasant reference at that, I love that movie.

I took this shot a couple of weeks ago. Most of what you see here is wild sunflowers that came back from last year. Apparently the birds bury seeds all over the place to insure next year's food. The birds are a whole different blog...moving on. Besides the sunflowers, there is a potato plant that came back from last year, as well as a Thompson seedless grape vine growing against the garage wall on the right. I moved the sunflowers to make space for the corn. I put 5 of them along the fence in the front yard (separate blog to come) and the rest along the fence of this space. There is one sunflower right in the middle of the potato plant that I just left alone, figuring I could not move it without the risk of damaging the potato. Hey, I want good potatoes too, hehehe. In the very bottom of the right hand corner is a strawberry plant which is actually planted in the farthest corner of the brick planter bed. This strawberry also came back from last year and it already starting to flower and show signs of fruit.

Last Saturday I was ready to turn the soil and plant the corn.

I used the 12"apart plan and managed to squeeze in 7 x4 rows. The potato plant kind of encroaches on the last corn row, but I figured what the heck, we'll see how it goes. I had exactly enough seeds for 2 in a hole, which Linda said helps to insure no gaps in your rows and if both stalks grow, it does not hurt anything, you just get more ears. Cool, right? I put a rock next to the places seeds are planted, so I can easily see where to look for new growth. Plus, the addition of river rock to the yard as artistic expression is becoming part of the process. I do have a lot of rocks in the yard to work with, plus I've started picking up a few rocks every where I go, I just can't help myself. Uh, rock collecting, no big surprise for anyone who knows me. I call them Reno Rocks and think of them as a symbolic reminder of my resonance with this place and time.

I am so excited about my corn! Stay tuned for updates.

Enjoy your beauty filled day