When I was browsing Uncle Orson's old reviews to reference in my post about Everwild, I got a little lost rereading more and remembering just why I think Orson Scott Card is fantastic. I mean, not only does he write and review books wonderfully, he waxes eloquent about rogue tomatoes, and boy does my yard have a case of them right now.

I didn't plant any tomato seeds in my garden boxes this year, just one lone plant. So I was a bit surprised when dozens of what looked remarkably like tiny tomato seedlings sprang up in every single box. I was sure it had to be some eerie lookalike, but when I started to pull them up, I was assaulted by the delicious aroma of fresh tomato plants. I couldn't kill them, and besides, some of my other seeds had never sprouted. So I let the little seedlings run wild.

And wild they did run. They spill out of boxes into other boxes, sprawling across the yard and reaching desperate scrawny arms for the house. I didn't realize where they had come from until I noticed that they were growing in the front yard too, in the pot of a vine I had refilled with dirt from my compost bins. Apparently those tomatoes I had tossed into the worm house survived in part, disguised in rich worm castings, and after they infiltrated my boxes and pots, they reincarnated in a very different form and a wide array of colors. I'm not complaining much, because they have produced a lovely and constant harvest that has been greatly enjoyed by us, guests, and the chickens.

Hopefully you can learn from my mistake though. Next year I'll be a little more careful, since it'd be kind of nice to grow something other than tomatoes.