The Bean Wall

So last summer I built (all by myself I might add!) two planter beds that go the full length of our back deck. It was hard work, I had to dig out all of the grass and create space for where the two boxes would be and then slave away in the hot summer sun with power tools and a level in order to create the perfect custom boxes.
Last year I had a lot of fun with our garden. In the first box I placed: Roma tomatoes, beef-stake tomatoes, heirloom tomatoes (will never do these again!), and cherry tomatoes. In box number two I planted: green bell peppers, jalapenos, banana peppers, and a ton of tomatillos! We had an excellent harvest and more tomatillos than we initially knew what to do with - they make great verde!

Grab yourself a blender! You can also char the tomatillos first for a smoky taste in your salsa.
Tomatillo Verde:
8 medium tomatillo's husked, washed, quartered
1 fresh lime juiced
1 jalapeno sliced and seeds removed
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 C. fresh cilantro
pinch of salt

Blend and serve! Season to taste, add more jalapeno's if you like it hotter.

Well this year I wanted to change things up a bit, and do snow peas, and green beans (I love them fresh but hate it when they're canned!)  But more than just that, I wanted a wall of greenery to offer more shade to my deck and a slight amount of privacy from the eyes of the neighbors. -- What can I say I value my quiet time, and nothing beats a lovely summer afternoon with a daiquiri in one hand while you sit in your favorite chair soaking up the rays... Ahhh....I can picture it now...

Back to the boxes..
In the first box went the snow peas along with some cilantro and basil in the front row, the second box contains a few more snow pea plants and then a whole bunch of climbing green beans! Dante got to join me in picking out the plants at our local feed store. He was of course a charmer with all the ladies at the store.

After planting the beans, my wonderful husband helped me string twine for them to climb, from the planter box to the deck roof just under the gutters. We took the twine up and down in two sections (one for each box in case we needed to fix anything) and let mother nature work her magic with the plants.

Here is stage 1: They are starting to climb! The taller skinnier ones are the peas (located on right).