Tuesday, April 26, 2016

First of the Season

Garden Party 2016 First Zinnia Bouquet

First zinnia blooms of 2016

In 1963, a young man of 37 took his harvested cotton

to the Kleberg County Farmers Co-op gin in Ricardo, Texas.


I wonder if he knew that morning that his cotton would produce the first bale of the season?

The newspaper clipping I found recently said ,

“The bale weighing 540 pounds was grown by Jim Mills, whose farm is located between Ricardo and Riviera.”

That young man was my father.
 

I so enjoy knowing deep down in my heart that I am a farmer’s daughter.

I too have some of my own season firsts happening right now in my yard.

Garden Party 2016 Zinnias Raised Beds
These are my first zinnia blooms of the season , and these are my tomatoes.

Garden Party 2016 Tomatoes

And If the two tomatoes I spotted today that are slightly pink ripen this weekend,

I am going to have my first one of these for the season.

Tomato sandwich
Best Sandwich Ever

*Spread Hellman’s Mayonnaise on a slice of bread

*Add a slice of cheddar cheese

*Top with slices of vine ripened tomatoes

* Sprinkle with sea salt

Enjoy!

**********

Linking to:

Share Your Cup Thursday

 

 

28 comments:

Connie said...

Laura, the photos of your garden sure show that you are the daughter of a farmer. Absolutely beautiful!

Blondie's Journal said...

Beautiful! You are so far ahead of us. I'm green with envy!

Jane

Manu said...

Laura your flowers are wonferful and your sandwich looks yummy as well.
Have a nice day

Stacey said...

Hello tomato sandwich! One of my favorite delicacies.

I love your flowers and your reminiscing. You make us appreciate the sweet simple things. :)

Carol @Comfort Spring Station said...

Love your beautiful blue vase with the zinnias and your thoughtful memories. Thanks for sharing both with us.

Theresa said...

Gorgeous flowers! I would love a bouquet for my table, purty pleeze:) I only have blooms on my tomato plants but I'll have tomatoes before too long! I SO love them! Have a blessed day dear Laura, BIG HUGS!

Jeanie said...

Zinnias are one of my favorite flowers and I rarely seem to be able to grow them well, though I'm going to try again this year. They make me smile. And they look so lovely in the single vases. (And so does the sandwich! I love tomato sandwiches!)

What's so special is the story about your dad. I've been digging into family history and while I'm finding the dates and lineage interesting (I have us back to 1500s Switzerland -- who knew?!), what matters most to me are the stories, the little bits like that precious clipping. Treasure that one. Make sure it's safe. It's a gem.

Debra She Who Seeks said...

What a great photo you took of the flowers, tomatoes and sandwich all together!

Cecilia said...

Laura,
Zinnias are such happy flowers! I just planted some and I'm eagerly waiting for them to grow and bloom! And garden fresh tomatoes! Nothing like them...my yard is too shady but I have a cherry tomato in a pot where I can place it in the sun. Here's hoping! :-) Your flowers are stunning in the blue vase!

Laurie said...

Laura, you are one lucky girl! You have great memories of your dad and blooming zinnias. My zinnias are only a couple of inches tall, at the moment. I can't wait for them to bloom. I, too, look forward to my first tomato sandwich of the summer. But, I prefer Dukes mayo. Do y'all have Dukes mayo in Texas?

Nancy's Notes said...

You are your daddy's daughter, no doubt about it! What a neat story about him, he was one remarkable gentleman and farmer! I know you must be thrilled to have your first zinnia's up and tomatoes looking so beautiful. What a wonderful setting, you know how to do this, my friend.

Nancy

JB said...

So beautiful! I can not wait for mine to bloom! Love the story about your dad. And there is nothing better than a tomato sandwich!
JB

Elizabethd said...

You are so far ahead of us in UK. My tomato plants are only a foot tall, and as for flowering plants...very few yet. Summer will come one day. I think!

Nikki said...

Oh I MUST getting my cutting garden set up and started!! I love your zinnias. And I cannot believe you have tomatoes already.
:)
https://gwingal.blogspot.com/

Deanna Rabe - Creekside Cottage Blog said...

I love homegrown tomatoes! They are the best!

You are way ahead of us here in Pennsylvania! Your Zinnias and tomatoes are making me excited for this summer!

Amy at love made my home said...

How wonderful that you have such beautiful flowers already!

Jemma@athomewithjemma said...

Your home blooms with colorful goodness and yummies too!
Wish I could have a homegrown tomato sandwich with you:)
Jemma

Lisa said...

Laura I forget you're in south Texas! You get everything first!

Celestina Marie said...

Hi Laura, wow what a beautiful garden. I love your raised beds. The flowers and veggies are wonderful. Thanks for sharing this inspiration. xo

Tracey Lee Cassin said...

Zinnas are such a beautiful flower and so underrated. They are a wonderful vase flower that lasts well. Your garden is beautiful. :)

Carole West said...

Your flowers look amazing - I have some that are about two inches high, I'm hoping in May they will take off. Feels like everything is slow going up north so I'm loving this post because it's giving me some hope. You have a beautiful garden.

Carole @ Garden Up Green

Bonnie said...

What a special heritage you have from your parents.

I've always admired your zinnias. Wish I could grow them. My mother had great success with them too. I had success in the summer with them in Fairbanks, Alaska. We had so much sunlight they were as big as bread and butter plates and I promise I'm not exaggerating!

I'm envious of your tomatoes too. Fresh grown are so delicious.
Have a great weekend.

Anne's Attic - Design said...

Thank you for sharing at SYC!

Bargain Decorating with Laurie said...

Oh Laura,my mouth is watering for that tomato cheese sandwich. As soon as we get good tomatoes, I'll be eating those every day for lunch. I miss them so much when they are gone. I stopped trying to grow them because the squirrels always took bites before I picked them. Your Zinnias look beautiful. You definitely have some farmer in you.

Botanic Bleu said...

Laura,
I don't even need the cheese on my tomato sandwich. Love just eating mayonnaise and tomato on white bread sandwiches! Provided the tomatoes have some flavor... :)

P.S. For some reason your comments to my blog do not go to my email box for gmail. Strange...since we are both using Google.
Does anyone have any suggestions?

Judith

September Violets said...

Your flowers are beautiful! So much further along than anything here in Ontario. Those are nice raised beds you have for your gardens. I LOVE tomato sandwiches, and just fresh tomatoes generally. Sadly I became allergic to them one summer years ago and haven't eaten one since. I so miss them, especially those really juicy beefsteak tomatoes :)

Wendy

Art and Sand said...

Your garden must be amazing!

Thanks for sharing with SYC.

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