The salad days. I never knew, really, what that meant until I moved to the country and started gardening.

First we got basil, easily mistaken for a weed but for its lovely smell. The stems bled pale

Harvesting basil leaves such a delicious smell on my hands that it’s one of my favorite moments in gardening.

green sapwater when Cheri harvested them, lay them into her basket and brought them in the house. Moist leaves beginning to dimple, young plants yet to flower.

Pesto. She made thick pungent pe...