A sun-warmed strawberry, just picked, popped into mouth. Impromptu salad of a tender carrot (washed under the outdoor tap), two cherry tomatoes, some nasturtium leaves, handful of lettuce. Two or three ripe figs picked under the watchful gaze of a group of starlings and eaten thoughtfully, knowing the birds are awaiting their turn. Scarlet runner beans and tarragon sprigs. Corn on the cob, shucked, eaten raw. Etc!
I want to focus and expand upon a garden for snacking this year; I am beginning to realize how beneficial it is: adaptable for lifestyles from families with land, to couples with containers on deck or balcony, to singles with windowboxes - or any combination of these. It's also nutritious - food that is eaten at its freshest. It's economical. Satisfying.
These are scarlet runner bean seeds saved from a previous garden. As I poured them into my hand and was deciding where to put them to photograph them for this post, the weight, the sight, the beauty, the potential, the memory of that past garden, the thought of what sort of a support to provide them with this year .... was evident in my palm. So I took their picture there.
I am looking for red malabar climbing spinach to include in the snack garden; grew it several years ago in a large pot on a verandah; its succulent leaves provided tasty nibbling across the entire summer and I want to repeat the experience. I am having trouble finding seeds; the closest seems to be a nursery on the east coast, a whole continent away.
The adventure is just beginning and I am hoping to come across others interested in - well - planting , picking , and eating !
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