AFRIEND of ours put out some tomato plants the other day. He’s had some luck growing his own before, but it had been a few years. Why now ? Not because he was worried about the economy and figured he needed his own Victory Garden. It might come to that someday, our cautious friend admitted. But these tomato plants were just a way to make sure he got his fill of an annual pleasure: gen-you-wine, home-grown Arkansas tomatoes. And what could be more home-grown than raising some in his own back yard ? Like many folks, our friend looks forward to the Arkansas tomato crop every summer. What a pity the season lasts only a couple of months. But what glorious months they are ! Sure, some years are better than others. But even when the crop in general is a disappointment, the good ones are still worth waiting for. So our friend picked out a likely spot in the yard, someplace that gets plenty of sun. He found the plants at the farmers’ market, hurried home with his treasures, and dug them into the ground. Then he got them a good long drink of water to start them growing. He even put up some twine on short stakes around the plants, to be sure no careless grass mowers got close enough to hurt his babies.
And that’s the story so far. Like all Arkies, he’s got to be patient. Good tomatoes don’t happen overnight. He’s ready for a couple of months of tending before reaping the fruits of his enjoyable labor.
Meanwhile, the idea of raising his own stuff keeps getting more attractive. He’s thinking of adding some lettuce to the garden, too. Maybe some cucumbers and peppers. These days, more and more folks are starting gardens. For some, it might be a way of fighting those rising grocery prices. For others, like our friend, it’s just a way to get fresh, tasty stuff for the table. And save the gas it would otherwise take for more of those drives to the farmers’ market, where he has an idea he’ll end up anyway.
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