The Accidental Farmer

For the past few years, I have enjoyed planting a few tomato plants and other vegetable plants in a small, probably 15 square foot stone-bordered garden area. The truth is, I usually buy very mature plants at a greenhouse, and don't mind if there are already tomatoes forming on them. I enjoy picking the tamotoes and watching them ripen. I just don't like the wait between planting a seed and becoming fuitful. For that I just don't have the patience. This morning I looked at the corn plants growing in my "garden". One is about 3 feet high now, and there are a few small ones, too. The thing is, about a week ago I was looking at my tomato plants and said to myself, that looks like corn. That's because I didn't plant any corn. So I was naturally surprised to see a large corn plant in its early stages. I've since verified with my father in law that it's corn. I have actually wanted and intended to plant some corn, but never got around to it. Hey, maybe I could have my own supply of ethanol. I quickly realized that this little garden patch is adjacent to the large boulder in the yard where for the past few months I have putting large and regular amounts of various seeds and bird feeds to attract birds for birdwatching (see the blog below.) What appears to have happened, I believe, is that many of the various of seed I have put out there contain corn kernels. It loks like the activities of the birds has knocked a bunch of corn kernels into the fertile area and later germinated. I say this because this week I started noticing a couple more young corn plants on the lawn side of the boulder, jutting up from where the debris pile of cracked sunflower seed shells and fallen seeds lie. Hopefully, I'll get enough corn down the road for a couple dinners. And all because my bird friends helped me start a new crop. I'll try to post pictures of the growth of the corn. One is a couple feet high, but the other 5 or 10 are only 8 to 10 inches so far.