I have the day off today, and so far, it's shaping up to be one of those amazingly great days. I woke up early, drank a lot of strong coffee, and read blogs and e-mails. Then I mowed the lawn, and then I had a great lunch at Beaner's (Peter Piper wrap and terrific harvest grain soup).

The rest of the day has been spent on the garden. This garden is HUGE. I've divided it into several sections, which go as follows:

1. The Partially Shaded Section | This section is closest to the house and has lighter crops such as lettuce (which did not sprout -- I've reseeded), spinach, parsnips and radishes. I mixed carrot seeds in with the radishes, because I understand that's a smart thing to do.

2. Peppers, Onions and Peas | There's no actual reason for these to go next to each other -- they just are. I'm hoping that planting the onions next to the peas, etc. will help keep the rabbits out. But I'm not holding my breath. Basil also makes an appearance in this section.

3. Tomatoes | These have not gone in yet since I'm waiting for a shipment of seedlings from Ca-chee's friend Pamela, who grows 'em good.

4. The "Experimental" Section | This is my favorite section. It contains stuff that I've never seen growing in northern Minnesota. Eggplant and leeks appear in this section. I put rosemary in here, too, because whenever I've tried to grow it, it has died. Acorn squash is there, too, but that's just a matter of space.

This is just the vegetable garden. There is another huge flower garden in the front of the house (mainly perennials), along with about 7-9 tractor-tire gardens full of flowers. Plus rose bushes and a few more random flower zones throughout the yard. The people who lived here before were garden maniacs.

I'm trying not to become one myself.
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