This last spring, I saw a pack of artichoke plants for sale and impulsively purchased them. I know we live in Minnesota, but I thought – heck, we had an early spring, I've got a hot spot and maybe just maybe, I could be eating artichokes in September. Nope, never happened. At least I didn't eat artichokes from MY garden.
The artichoke plant looks nothing like what I wanted to see. It looks tiny and small. It was if I intentionally planted a thistle. Sure, the foliage looked nice. But only 2 feet high, not the 6-feet I read about in my book. AND, the plant is too small for a back drop to my other flowers and certainly the color blends with my light blue siding. No vegetable, no height, no interest – nothing but a waste of nitrogen, phosphorus and pot
assium. Then let's talk about my strawberries in the same garden. It was the second year for them and I think the chipmunks got more enjoyment than I -- even though I covered them with netting.
The cannas, no blooms. I planted 6 and only two emerged.
So this front garden, which was supposed to be a beautiful example of combining food, texture, and exotic interest, was a failure.
But was it?
Tell us what you've learned this year. Your failures, your experiments and your successes.
