-t, corn must be planted in multiple rows so it will cross-pollinate or something, otherwise the stalks won't bear ears. If you have a small space make three or four short rows--even two or three plants per row--rather than a single longer one.

Now I want some vegetables. And fortunately we have zucchini and broccoli in the fridge.

Amy, Matilda just came out wearing the mermaid dress which was previously Sara's. Very cute. Now she's going to watch the Little Mermaid possibly with a side of mermaid sauce just to cover all bases.

I tried growing corn for several years when I had more land. I grew a lot of corn earworms; corn smut; and fat deer and raccoons.

I read this:

I have never in my entire life stuck a fork in a vegetable dish and said, "OMG, this is GOOD!" and I eye with suspicion anybody who does. There's just this vast disconnect between what I know, and my own experience.

And thought to myself, I am pretty sure I have been one of those suspicious people! So I checked out some food reviews from my trip to Northern CA in October:

Coi:

Slow roasted lamb with chard leaves and stems, garum, and rosemary, paired with Bonny Doon "Le Cigare Volant" California 2004. OH MY GOD. Oh my god! So good. Oddly enough, the chard stems might have been my favorite ingredient of the night. The lamb was wonderful as well, but those chard stems just melted in your mouth and had the most amazing flavor.

Ubuntu (vegetarian restaurant in Napa)

After that, we had the roasted and glazed sunchokes (aligote style) with "slow borage condimento, mutsu apple, and albino beet thinnings." basically, it had a mushroom sauce and truffled pecorino. It was completely and 100% umami tastes and so satisfying on the palate.

Tom likes to get vegetable/vegetarian tasting menus when they are available, I was just reading about his tasting of vegetables at French Laundry. Mmm.

I think amych is right, it's all about the love shown in growing the vegetable and in preparing it.

I just had some awesome beets in a golden beet salad and grilled asparagus with housemade ricotta and mushrooms as part of my dinner tonight, so I'm still suspiciously aglow from it.

I love vegetables and eat lots and lots and lots of them.

Also, I have two bottles of Le Cigare Volant left over from a case I bought a couple of years ago. It's the reason I am a member of Bonny Doon.

cereal to add: I also didn't eat/like vegetables till relatively recently, and things didn't rachet up to "love" until we joined the CSA and had all these veggies we had to use. As brenda and other have pointed out, working around the veggie for meal planning brings a whole new attitude into play!

My farmer's market is FINALLY getting spring veggies and I am over the moon about it. Only downside is it means I have to start leaving the house way earlier on Saturday mornings to make sure I don't miss things. (I did manage to snag some awesome young carrots and skinny asparagus today, but when I got to the salad greens people, I was greeted by a bin labeled "pea shoots" that just sat there mocking me with its emptiness. So sad!)

I have never in my entire life stuck a fork in a vegetable dish and said, "OMG, this is GOOD!" and I eye with suspicion anybody who does.

I'm still Beverly. I'm facing the apparent necessity of a veg-oriented diet with dread and sulking. They are *better* from a farmer's market or home garden, but they still aren't *good*.

but sometimes heartburn has referred pain in the back

I did not know that. That's really weird.

Thanks for the melon info, Trudy. I like cantaloupe, but it's hard to find it in stores at its proper moment for eating, and now I know why!

Roasting and grilling, noted. I'll try it, I promise. And I just remembered there's a big farmer's market on my way to my sister's place.

edit to fix shitty formatting

My farmer's market does not yet have too many good spring veggies. The goat cheese people were there, however, so I have a couple of varieties to nom over the next week.

By 9:30, the empanada lady is sold out of her best empanada- the spinach one. And she's been making more every week, and every week, they're gone. Our market runs 7-12, and stuff moves. The crazy asparagus guy was already getting thin at that time too, and he started with basically a pickup truck bed full. Did I mention he's a hoot? A viking-hippy cross, mountain of a man with long blond hair, usually dressed in full camo hunting gear. Organic farmer, and quite the talker. He was teasing a kid insisting she preferred water to lemonade with "You know what fish do in water, right?) Booming voice, local B'more accent. And his asparagus is awesome. And he sells praying mantis nests. For real.