first mini-cookout of the year!

jason and i thrifted a new mini-barbeque. i took the old cast iron one up to mccall last winter, so finding this was perfect, just in time for warm-enough weather.

we ate fingerling potatoes, zucchini, and portabella-onion kabobs. i hadn’t eaten zucchini in months. that heightened awareness of when certain veggies are in season that comes along with growing them has really put me off to eating certain things at the wrong time...mainly asparagus, zucchini, fresh corn and tomatoes, although i still eat some of those things out of season once in a while. asparagus is probably what blows me away the most. seeing it for sale in december is kind of a mindfuck.

jason’s doing an alley garden this year! i’m helping him out with seeds and planning. this is what’s in so far--three mullein and a catnip (all transplants from along the river), and a pot of rosemary from zamzow’s. most things are going to be in buckets because the soil out there is all sand and gravel. i’m hoping he’ll attach some hooks along the edge of the roof to hang baskets. inside he’s starting seeds for peppers, tomatoes and broccoli raab--he crocheted little doilies for underneath each pot, it’s adorable. this is my favorite way to garden...against-all-odds, make-it-work gardening, squeezing things into tight spaces and creating something sweet and beautiful from found materials and previously wasted, undesirable space. i like a challenge in my own garden, and i have a lot of respect for other gardeners who are stubborn enough not to let adverse conditions discourage them.