If you can't tell, we really want to be caught up so we can post on the most recent events.

This is a quick post of chronological events in our parking lot garden. Stay tuned in the near future for more videos, interactive posts, and other treats.

Here's the low down of what occurred:

1. Tyler was given a zucchini from Cam at work.

2. We transplanted the zuke and two cukes outside into pots.

(thriving)

3. Our daffodil gave up the ghost, and we gave it the axe.

4. Jordan's brother donated 4 peppers, and laid them to rest in their new stomping grounds.

5. Our broccoli is not broccoli, it is spinach, and it is also thriving.

6. We learned that daffodils are perennials, whatever that means.

7. A blast of warm air hit our little garden, and corn popped up.

8.We've put out a search warrant for the suspect of this video, who was caught on camera running his hand through our lettuce and peas.

9. No one has yet been apprehended, but Dave is a prime suspect.

More Activity than an Old Folk's Home

Now, for the sake of catching up, we're going to try to list all our recent activity, and believe me, it is extensive. You'd be surprised what can happen in two weeks (through 5/15).

To begin with, we planted our strawberries. Not only did we plant them, but within the week, we harvested our first berry. We cut it in thirds and shared it's deliciousness. It was a moment I will never forget. Ever.

Two days later, we spotted a bird chowing down on a red berry, and decided enough was enough. We figured that we needed something scary enough to keep both bird and woman away from the garden. Fortunately, our neighbor Kyle had just the thing:

Yes, its a Mustached Garden Pirate (in case you didn't recognize it)

The pirate aspect is for the birds, and the mustache for the ladies (no threats to date from the womenfolk). The next day we lost another two berries to the birds.

Our buddy Andy ("the man who can") volunteered two "signs", which I believe were part of a bathtub packing system. To date they remain blank. We are still looking to commission (for free) an artist.

Our lettuce was embarrassed due to the success of it's neighboring peas, so we planted a few plgrows of carrots to give it something to look down on. If you are wondering, the garden is about 18 inches deep, so carrots should grow in nicely.

As shown in the picture above, we implemented a professional irrigation system. Yes, we dug a furrow, with a measuring cup. The professional system did not come without costs, though. In fact, we decided to dig it right through the middle of our non-growing peppers, which were probably consumed by the worms in our soil (a small price to pay for natural aeration).

On both sides of the furrow we planted some plgrows of corn, and a few sunflowers.

The next week, we grew impatient and planted our tomatoes. We tested the irrigation system (works like a dream), and marveled at our broccoli coming up in the back right section. Life is good in the parking lot garden.

Nothing Better than Free

It was 4/27. It was 11:11. I made a wish. Just then, Cam, my co-worker, himself an avid (2nd year) gardener, turned to me and said "Are you getting the free tomato and strawberry plants?"

Now I'll be honest. This was not exactly what I had wished for... that day. But truly, 3 days previous, I had wished (at 11:11, or sometime between there and high noon) for more free plants for the garden. What this says about the timing of your 11:11 wishes is yet to be determined, but I'll just say that I'm going to keep my eye out for a 5-lb sack of SourPatch Kids in the next few days.

I listened for more details, and before the day was through, the parking lot garden crew had gathered 5 strawberry and 6 tomato plants through the wise use of coupons and networking.

Here is the complete list of the spoils:

3 x Eversweet Strawberries

2 x Quinalt Strawberries

2 x Better Boy Tomatoes

2 x Grape Tomatoes

1 x Roma Tomato (a bonus gift because it was slightly tattered and homely)

1 x Early Girl Tomato

We placed them inside, next to our 10 cups o' soil and seeds (planted on 4/21). We planted 9 cups of peppers, 1 cup of cucumbers, to be exact.

There is a good vibe coming from our kitchen table, and possibly some worms.

April 24 - 7 Days of Wonder

After the whole "daffodil" incident, we decided that we needed to sharpen our seedling recognition skills. We watched carefully for an entire week in the areas we had planted (far right), so that when something first sprouted, we would know exactly what it was.

After 7 straight days of watching our garden, two things happened:

1. Peas and lettuce sprouted and grew.

2. We were fired from our jobs for not showing up.

But it was worth it. Our skills are now superb.

April 17 - Green Shoots

Within days of our planting, we were surprised to find something actually growing (unlike the asparagus, which caused us much heartache on day 4 when it began to wilt, and we realized it had not grown naturally). These were true green shoots.

The following represents our scientifically deduced conclusions as to the nature of the shoots:

Dave: Grass

Tyler: Onion-ish

Jordan: Rutabega

By day 7, the daffodil was nearly in bloom, and we all learned how little we knew about plants.

As it turns out, it was planted by our neighbor Eric, who is indeed a great American. Bless his heart for planting the lone daffodil to brighten our homely parking lot garden.

April 10 - The Seeding

As soon as our backs recovered from all the shoveling, we set to work planting the seeds.

We decided on the following:

2 1/2 plgrows of peas

1 plgrow of spinach

1 plgrow of red leaf lettuce

1 plgrow of broccoli

1 plgrow of banana peppers

Definitions:

row: a planted line of produce, approximately 50-500 ft in length.

plgrow: a planted line of produce, approximately 2-4 ft in length, usually in a parking lot garden.

As we woke up on the 11th, much to our surprise, our garden was already paying off. As seen in the picture, the un-planted asparagus had sprouted and was ready to eat.

Planting Season

Planting season was upon us. It was early April, and so far we had no garden. No pots, no dirt, no seeds... nothing.

For two weeks, we had discussed casually how we could make our "parking lot garden", but to date, no action had been taken. Wooden boxes, wheelbarrows, wagons, cars and truck beds had all been discussed, but no decision had been made.

We were sitting around watching TV on a Saturday morning, and the garden was mentioned once more. Well that was it. No longer was I about to sit around talking about this garden. I pulled up the local classified pages and began searching. Less than a minute into my search, I spotted it - a free truck-bed liner. I called the individual, arranged a time, and within the hour, we were off to get our free truck-bed liner.

We met the man at his house, and learned about the various uses for truck-bed trailers. Too bad they were out of our price range (free or less), or we would have had a portable garden. Satisfied, though, we hauled off the truck-bed liner and headed home. We drove about a block before we started asking, "now where are we going to get dirt?" No sooner had we spoken, I noticed a trailer on the side of the road piled high with dirt. We pulled over and approached the nearest home. A Latin woman in her mid-40s opened the door, and in our best Spanish, we asked about her plans for the dirt. She encouraged us to load up. Fortunately, we had borrowed some shovels, and took turns shoveling until our truck bed was full.

We arrived back at our apartment about 2 hours after our departure, and immediately began by unloading the truck-bed liner in our parking stall. As an apartment, we were allotted one parking stall behind the complex and one underground. It was obvious which one the plants would prefer. We shoveled for another half-hour and managed to find a rake hidden behind a nearby apartment.

Finally, after a half-day's work, we stood back and admired the beginnings of our "parking lot garden". (Dave in black, Jordan in white, Tyler in blue).

How It All Began

You might be wondering: "how did this come about?" It's not likely, because you're still trying to figure out what "this" is, but sit back and let me tell you.

It began in May of 2009. I had just received a "leftover" tomato plant from my parents, who are avid gardeners. Living in an apartment at college, there was little space (none to be exact) and very little (zero) natural light needed for a tomato plant to thrive. So I decided to take a risk.

I carefully transplanted the tomato into a pot, and placed it outside behind the apartment complex. Within days, I was astonished to come upon the plant lying sideways on the grass. Dirt was spilled out and the main stalk of the plant was broken and dangling. I was startled, but quickly gathered myself and the poor tomato, and placed it back where it belonged. I took a small piece of duct tape and wrapped it cautiously around the broken stalk.

A few days passed and I continued watering and caring for the plant. Much to my disdain, as I approached the plant one warm summer morning, I found what appeared to be an onion, buried deep in the soil next to my plant. Clearly someone's idea of a joke, I found no humor in the situation. I pulled the onion from the pot and tossed it as far as I could.

It was at this point that I began to wonder: does this plant stand a chance? If so, what can I do to discourage practical jokes and carelessness towards my tomato?

Then it came to me - make it a neighborhood affair. I began by moving the traumatized plant to the other side of the road, in front of a building occupied by female students. I attached a sign that read as follows: "WARNING, this tomato is equipped with a neighborhood watch system!" Then, I began to talk. Any time I saw people examining my plant, I walked out and started a conversation regarding the life of my plant, it's current status, and the lofty goals I had planned for its fruits. I often carried a bottle of Fiji water (or tap water in a Fiji bottle), and explained that it was "only the finest" for my plants. Interestingly enough, people changed. The plant was finally taken seriously, and was given an opportunity for a normal life.

That's when the miracle occurred. The tomato plant began to grow. Whether it was the sudden boost in confidence from all the women-folk inquiring about its status, or the increased amount of sunlight, water, and Miracle-Gro (probably the latter), it took root and took off. Within a couple of weeks, the blossoms had turned into small green tomatoes, that seemed to grow almost daily.

And so it was. For the rest of the summer, the plant became a means of starting a conversation, of making friends, and of enjoying my salads. True, the German Queen tomatoes looked more like Cherries, but they were nonetheless delicious and coveted by all.

Jump forward 11 months. I had just finished recounting this brief history to two of my roommates- Dave and Jordan. Both had a look in their eyes of excitement and I could see that the wheels were turning in their heads. "We need a garden," I said.

"Where?" was the response.

"I don't know, but it needs to be bigger," I said.

"How about in the parking lot?"

"In the parking lot."

The Parking Lot What?

What is that? Are you serious? Where did this come from? Why would anyone do such a thing? Are those plants? Are those real plants? I can't believe someone would actually do that. I can't believe it's not butter.

This is but a sampling of the many comments we hear daily from passer-byers of the "parking lot garden" (okay, so the last one may have been added for effect). The truth is, we have discovered that watching people's reactions is almost as satisfying as having our own garden. Almost.