One Straw, One Camel

Remember that one straw that broke the camel's back, or the one little thing that pushed you over the edge. Well, I think gardens are like that. There are things that work out and there are things that don't. Some of the plants do well, and then a stressor comes along, and everything goes south.

My neighbor said she thought my spinach was doing better than any of the other gardeners's spinach--which is bolting. And she said she thought it was because it was growing in the weeds. She had a look on her face like she was telling a secret on me. Yes, my weeds are growing just fine, thank you very much. And they shade the other plants, and draw up nutrients from deep in the ground. They also do good for the plants that the deer seem to like the best, they are hidden from view.

She told me about the One-Straw Revolution theory, which keeps weeds and plants together, because that is the way it happens in nature. I'm looking into this, as I've not read about it, but why pull all the weeds and clean the dirt between the rows and then mulch, when the weeds act as mulch anyway. Well, I'm not going to argue the point as somehow I think I will lose. But weed or no weed, I've gardened this way since I was young.

If you look at the pictures you'll see that the spinach and chard is growing and so is the squash. I'm happy, that's what counts.

Ciao!