The Joys of Gardening
After much work, our Oakland garden is looking glorious. Last year, we had the best, most fantastic tomatoes ever. And, they lasted until early December! We decided to re-plant two of the varieties this year: Caspian pink and Brandywine red (also comes in other colors). The new addition is Mortgage Lifter. All are large heirlooms, at least 12 ounces.
Caspian pink and Mortgage Lifter went in the ground the third week of March; I planted Brandywine this weekend, so we do not get the entire crop at once (see photos of these and other tomato varieties at Tomato Fest).
A good, local nursery for heirloom tomatoes is Berkeley Horticulture. The Ace Garden Center, 4001 Grand Ave, Oakland, also has a plentiful tomato selection in season.
Aside from looking fabulous, our backyard smells delicious. The jasmine is still going after almost two months; blooming roses such as Chrysler Imperial and Angel Face have an aroma like perfume, and the honeysuckle flowers have a heavenly scent.
For my complete article on how a beautiful garden adds market value to your home, read Great Gardens Add Pleasure Plus Value