Raspberries

The rhythm in my garden is in motion. As the last strawberries wait to be picked, the first ripe raspberries make an appearance. And by the look of the snow peas flowers, they aren't too far behind. We've been eating leaf lettuce and baby beets for a while now. So the garden flows predicably to an extent. But I don't take it for granted; the raspberry cart or the snow pea bushel can be turned over by a whim of Nature.

The raspberries are good this year, very sweet and on the large size for my bushes. I think this year I'll have enough to freeze. Usually, we just eat 'em the same day they're picked; Nature's version of a drive-through resturant. But this year, it looks like we can have our raspberry and freeze it, too.

The great thing about raspberriy bushes is that they can be used in so many ways. First, naturally, there's the berries. Then after they are done, I add the leaves to my rabbits' food. In the fall, I cut the canes back and feed them to the rabbits who chew them up with gusto.

The raspberries are at the top of my main garden, next to the strawberries. And like strawberries, the raspberries' offshoots are springing up all over the place. I even have some poking merrily up through my lettuce and dill. So I'm thinking this fall, I might move the younger canes to the old wooden log fence that hems one side of the garden. The space by the fence always been overgrown since it is so hard to get in there to do anything. Plus I like the look of raspberries hanging over the fence. It looks so inviting and homey. So when the harvest is done and all I have left to do is look forward to a long winter, it will be nice to transplant the raspberries and know another spring is on her way.