This year is the first year I've felt we have enough space devoted to food growing to make it really worthwhile. Previously I've had one or two tomato plants, a zucchini plant (which failed to fruit) and a punnet of lettuces. It has been a luxury to have four different vegetable gardens, plus pots to hold the tomato seedlings which sprang up spontaneously. Our back corner is a riot of tomatoes, particularly the cherry variety. As some of them were 'volunteers', we had no control over what size they are, so we have all shapes of both large and tiny tomatoes. Gives me an ambition to get into some heirloom multicoloured varieties next year!
What surprises me is that some vegetables take ages to grow, and others spring up literally overnight. So we had one zucchini which I lovingly watch flower and then suddenly (after a particularly large downpour) it was ready to pick. After only one day! But the cucumbers, which began to flower long before the zucchini, are growing at a snails' pace. Maybe it's because they are planted under the passionfruit vine and there is a lot of competition.
Speaking of snails, though. We've had a lot of wet weather lately, and not a single snail in sight. I put that down to vigilance bordering on obsession in the past two years. At first I used to just encourage the snails away from the garden, but after my fourth attempt at growing basil was thwarted by slimey gourmets, I took more decisive measures. I used to go out with a torch and collect the snails in a bucket, then cover them in salt and water. I'm not sure it's the best method, but it certainly killed them. I got so obsessed with the snails I was searching the backs of all the leaves in the garden looking for the babies and squishing them with vigour.
Then suddenly, there were no more. It's like word got out by snail mail (heh) that our place was dangerous. Not a single snail this spring/summer, even with the recent rain.
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