Getting Started

This is a blog to contain a bunch of wild ideas that have been running through my mind. I would like to bring together gardening, cooking, and living. This is a trail and error process. A little about myself. I live in a 1951 Starter home in the middle of Miami Spring (IE..in the middle of Miami Dade County). I'm a few miles west of the beach, north of the Airport, east of the 826 and south of Hialeah. In all, that means I live in a hidden oasis in a middle of a fairly urban environment. Miami Springs is a Tree City, though Hurricane Katrina and Wilma took a good chunk of the verdant canopy.
My soil is mostly sand, with none of the notorious ridge rock. This make for easy digging but quick loss of organic material. Prior to Hurricane Wilma I had 2 magnificent 50 year old Mango trees (Hayden and Erwin). Alas...My tropical Forest was brutally transformed to a Savanna.
I have always been interested in having my backyard an edible landscape, but never really thought about the potential yield. It frequently felt more like ornamental fruit, an occasional treat. After H. Wilma I let my vegetable garden go fallow. Actually, it was buried under all the debris from the shed (which took a direct hit from my beloved Erwin.) Back in November, I finally creep out into the barren yard and started clean out the last of the homeless stuff. I "unearthed" the vegetable garden, tilled the earth, added several bags of compost and planted.
It was a small effort, but something in my heart soften. I had a reason to go back outside. It wasn't easy and so much of it look terrible. But bit by bit, I am recovering my space. The herbs are doing outstanding. The tomatoes have come and gone. The scallions are huge and tasty. Much to my surprise, I planted french radishes that were several years old and they have come out incredible.
Alas...Our cool season is coming to and end. Our dry season in here. I am in search of plants that will grow as the season changes. I have BIG plans.....