More garden photos! AND PIZZA!

I last posted on June 16, 2012. It was about the garden. It contained 15 pictures, and descriptions, but not much else. In fact, the last three posts have been GARDEN, disqus update, GARDEN, GARDEN, GARDEN.

I hope you've liked it.

If not, you might want to click away to another blog for a while, because if you stick around, you're going to get some more garden porn, my friends. And a little homemade pizza (with veggies! from our garden! that we grew! from tiny little plantlings!) action too, because why not share the joy I felt when reaping the bounty of our first harvest?

OUR FIRST HARVEST, YOU GUYS!!!

As in, the first time I have successfully plucked fresh veggies from a garden that I created. And then eaten them. It's like magic. Long have I envied the gardens of bloggers and friends, hoping for the day I could graduate from a weak (though pretty) little patio garden to a real, live, in-the-ground, garden full of edible goodness.

Without further ado, I'm going to hoist upon you a barrage of pictures. Because I am really, really excited. For a little memory lane action, here's a photo of the day the plants hit the ground.

And now?

I mean, it's just crazy! The tomatoes and beans in the back, climbing the fence (more on that later); the marigold peeking its yellow blossoms up over the squash, who really steals the show; and the kale and beans, holding their own up front. The rainbow chard is still struggling a bit (on the left), the spinach is freaking out and growing tall instead of leafy, and the sweet peas are somehow still alive (not pictured, hidden behind the tomatoes along the fence) but aren't growing at. all. not. a. bit. Oh well. Next year in Jerusalem, as we say.

Our fantastic, fantastic landlord surprised us by having the drip system we asked about installed this weekend while we were gone. We came home on Sunday, and when I went to check on the garden, I noticed the ground was a little wet...and I noticed these little black tubes with mini sprinkler heads strategically placed around the garden - including in the half wine barrel planters (photo above is of the barrel containing our lemon tree). So awesome.

One sunflower down, two mini sprinkler heads installed!
I'm not sure what happened to the sunflower, which was
also missing its head/blossom-to-be. Maybe it'll grow back? 

HOLY COW, THAT'S A LOT OF TOMATOES!
I tried to count (this bush and the 3 others), but I gave up. 

A padron pepper, ready for picking!
Don't mind the caterpillar-eaten leaf.

It's another drip system sprinkler head!
These things are all over the place :)

So much zucchini! When should I harvest
the blossoms vs letting squash grow?
No really, I don't know.

Now that the tree isn't blocking the sun, we
have a little lemon cucumber action up in
this garden! Hell yeah! 

Oh hello, giant zuke. Nice to meet you.

A tangle of crookneck squash and blossoms. 

What remains of our original 12 sunflower
plants -- look how tall they're getting! And
why do you think the ones closest to the
lemon tree are the tallest? 

Took me a while to find, but OMG, guys!
IT'S A BEAN!!! 

Tomato plants, after I did a little pruning of
yellowed/curled leaves and tied it up to the
fence and tomato cages (they are seriously
outgrowing their cages, guys).

And now...the harvest!

Two zucchini, one crookneck squash, two
padron peppers (both turned out to be not
spicy), a handful of parsley and spinach.
Oh, and two tiny green tomatoes that fell
off the plant as I was tying. Clumsy me. 

Chopped and ready for... 

SUMMER SQUASH PIZZA!
FROM OUR FREAKING GARDEN!
(and trader joe's for dough/sauce/cheese)

You will be mine, oh pizza of nature and magic.

Don't you want to eat it?

How about now? 

Too bad. We ate it all. And it was goooood.
And we've been snacking on the leftover
squash slices. So fresh and delicious.

Nature is magic. Gardening is awesome. I am happy. The end.