Derek Neary
Northern News Services

FORT SIMPSON (Sep 04/98) - When tour buses pull to a stop in front of your home to allow passengers to admire and photograph your garden, you've got to be doing something right.

Such is the case for John and Sharon Herring, who have been planting flowers and vegetables along Fort Simpson's Antoine Drive for the past 26 years.

"It's kind of neat. I'm glad we can give pleasure to people because I love beautiful things," Sharon said.

Each year the Herrings produce an astounding assortment of vegetables, such as: potatoes, carrots, peas, beans, onions, beets, cabbage, lettuce, kohlrabi, cucumbers, tomatoes, swiss chard, zucchini, spaghetti squash, rhubarb and lovage, an herb which tastes like a minty celery.

"Usually I try for at least that much variety," said Sharon, a resource technician with the Dehcho education council. "When you do it yourself, it gives you great pleasure...You really enjoy the produce."

Together, the Herrings share in the gardening duties. John does the rototilling in the fall and again the in spring, not only for their garden but for some others around the community. They acquire most of their seeds locally -- except for the lavatera seeds which came from John's mother -- and usually plant them during the first long weekend in May.

Throughout the summer, they share much of their harvest with neighbors. They also depend on neighbors to tend to their crop when they go on vacation. This year, Zita Norwegian did a splendid job of keeping things healthy while they were absent, they said.

The Herrings also plant several types of flowers. Among them are: white and pink lavatera, petunias, marigolds, bachelor buttons, wildflowers, poppies and sunflowers.

"People don't think you can grow gardens here," acknowledged a smiling Sharon when asked if any of their southern acquaintances are surprised by their magnificent yield.

The garden is a real treat for local critters as well. It's not uncommon for John and Sharon to find cats and squirrels inspecting the area. Once, they even watched a bear sniffing through their rows of vegetables.

Of course, the growing season doesn't last for long in the North. Many of the Herring's vegetables have ripened and the flowers are beginning to wilt.

"I wish fall would last till November," Sharon said.