Laid By

By Vickilane

I spent Friday and Saturday getting the garden hoed...
. . . the tomatoes suckered and tied up ( these are Cherokee Purples -- there are two long rows of Romas lower down) . . . and the lettuce thinned.
John has been hoeing and tilling the potato patch and the garden is in good shape -- 'laid by,' as farmers used to call that point at which one could relax a little and just let things grow.  

When the crops were laid by was the traditional time for week long revivals with brush arbors and dinner on the grounds. For me, it's a time to go to grown up camp at J. C. Campbell Folk School where I'm teaching a class in writing fiction and my friend Shelia -- the one who helped me plant the maters -- is taking a herb-crafting class.

(I don't know what access I'll have to the Internet there so I'm scheduling these ahead.)