The title comes from a 1950’s responsive poem for elementary classes. The rest of the line says, “Makin’ things to grow, Doin’ what I can, Nature’s hired man.” I’m not a master gardener; however, genetically, one of my favorite places is outside “tending” whatever that means at the moment. I had two daddies for whom the morning activity was checking the garden, and they brought me along for the morning lecture. The love I have has been passed on. The three year old I planted anemone bulbs with as she patted the dirt and said, “Sleep tight,” now has pots of cacti and succulents. Middle son as a teen had a ficus begamina tree in his bedroom until the cat tried to climb it. Elder son took me shopping for summer plants on a recent trip to Steamboat.
I have a plot by the back porch that hasn’t quite defined itself: mint, parsley, dill for butterflies, and some amaryllis that needed dividing. This spring was the time to try eatables. I chose spineless okra and Japanese eggplant. Okra and tomatoes are a favorite summer dish and the eggplant was the experiment. Weather matters. High heat and extreme dryness slowed the whole growing process. Forget the eggplant. Squirrels must have out spies. Almost enough length to harvest one day and gone the next morning. The okra has been a learning curve that could require several paragraphs as it is just now coming into its own. I’ve had one side dish and have cut and frozen others for future delight. The most unusual revelation is that okra grows from the back of the flower, pushing the bloom forward until it finally falls off. Apples and peaches come from the center of the blossom as the stem still holds to the tree. Think about that and draw a picture if necessary.
Okra is one of those vegetables that divide the world. The word itself can bring smiles or a stuck out tongue and a gagging sound. A subdivision are those who like it prepared some ways, yet they have an overwhelming dislike for the slimy boiled presentation. Gumbo and mixes with other vegetables are my preference. If I move beyond my resolution for less fried food then a bowl of breaded crispy circles are as good to me as popcorn. Okra needs a summer growing season. The grocery stores of my childhood just had a bin with various sizes dumped all together for you to pick what you wanted. Now they come in plastic boxes; some you will keep and some you will toss. While this experiment in backyard growing may not have been the success I envisioned, I will probably try again next May. After all, even in the desert on the way to freedom, the Israelites still missed the food of what had been home.
We remember the fish we ate in Egypt at no cost—also the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic.
Numbers 11:5
Let Me Tell Ya 