A Neighborhood, What a Concept!

Apologies in advance if I'm a bit gushy in this post -- I'm just reveling in the afterglow of a Really Great Weekend. It began with some gardening/blogging geekery: we had a visit from our friend in Dallas who was into gardening (and raising chickens!) way, way before anyone else we knew. I would go so far as to say that our friend's passion for gardening was a harbinger of what was to come. She's really experienced by now -- she was able to quickly identify almost every plant in our garden without any assistance whatsover, and in the dark. While we were awed by her expertise and her adventurous spirit (she's growing hops in her backyard in Texas!), she was excited about our gardening blog. She started her own (carrying on the "[neighborhood]farmreport" meme) and we'll be linking to it soon.

Saturday was a momentous day for us - we'd been talking about visiting Elizabeth Street Brewery since the day we moved to Noe Valley from over the hill in The Castro 2 years ago. We finally got around to it. A short review: the beer was delicious, and the company and conversation were refreshing. We were particularly excited (dare I say "inspired") by Richard and Ali and the way in which they're creating a neighborhood community and making great headway towards living out their dreams. We hope to go back -- if they'll have us! -- soon, and often. I think Brad's going to talk more about our day at ESB over on Food Crusader.

Back on the farm, we have some exciting developments:

The butternut squash, written off as dead for weeks now, popped up out of nowhere this weekend. That's a minor problem because we planted potatoes very close-by, but I suppose it will all work out. I'm pretty excited since BNS (we actually have an acronym for it, because we eat it so often) is one of my very favorite foods on the planet. It's out of season right now, but the Butternut Squash Ravioli with Brown Butter and Sage at Lupa is the pasta version of crack.

 

Late to the party, but better late than never?

 

The tomatoes outgrew their cage, so we switched to bamboo sticks instead. These guys are planted way too close together, so brace yourself for a disappointment later this season when the tomatoes are few and/or small. For now though, it seems like nothing is stopping them from being all they can be.

 

Carefully removing the cage, which the plants had firmly wrapped themselves around.

 

 

It was a struggle.  I won. 

 

Tomatoes, freed from the constrictive cage and given a clear career path to which they can aspire.

 

 

All taped up and ready to grow.

Finally, while some plants are just getting started, others must now die. The sage has grown to gargantuan proportions, eclipsing many of the other plants from the sunshine and producing sage leaves that are cartoonishly large. It's also produced some beautiful lavender and pink blossoms that look great in a vase. 

 

That's all for now - I think it's time to head out for a check on the garden and a walk through the neighborhood. A neighborhood that is increasingly feeling like it's full of actual, you know, neighbors.