our patio garden

We've got about 100 tomatoes hanging off one of the plants. They look like mini Romas. Not round, long, maybe an inch. And delicious! Little bursts of tangy sweet pulp, seed and flesh that floats around your mouth. You don't want it to end. The skins are thicker than the ones you buy in the store. Tough like the consistency you would expect from the leaf of a tulip plant.

Other things of notable mention that live on our patio are:
- a green pepper plant; two fruits harvested so far. Four more on the way and more to follow. Slow going but bountiful
- a prosperous basil plant that I made three containers of pesto from last weekend and new growth is already creeping out
- lavender that's flowered. I am thinking infused honey, tea and sachets in the future.
- a mojito mint plant from which I've frozen two baggies for the winter. Thick, chewy leaves that double as breath freshener
- Italian parsley. Harvested one thick, forest green bunch that I cooked up in my fish stew earlier this week. Looks like we'll get another batch there too
- strawberries that the cat has adopted as her litter box. FAIL. We've had those plants for two years. Bad kitty!
- dill that was used to season broiled trout, it's now gone to seed
- a wee bunch of chives that are tucked in the corner in an old recycling bin. Good for dressings.
- a thriving, twisted ficus tree we stole from the garbage of our last apartment
- a large hibiscus plant that pops out clown nose coloured flowers every few weeks. Once there were FIVE in one day. (also from the garbage...thank you lazy wasters!)
- two other varieties of tomatoes that are yielding a beefier veg than the baby Romas
- various flowers that liven up the place, including a few marigolds tucked into the tomatoes to keep the bugs away

There's also a patio lantern. It got knocked over in a storm once so now it faces the wall. It gives off a light yellow glow in the evenings when we find time to sit and watch the night fall deeper into darkness.

It's my husband who is responsible for all this. He is the gardener. I prune, learn, harvest, cook.

Patio gardening is all the rage in the city I hear. I just like knowing where my food comes from.