nature does as she pleases

a couple of nights ago, we had a hard frost.  and according to my almanac and a variety of other sources- we weren’t supposed to.  sigh.  so, i lost a few squash and some tomato plants but the rest of my endeavor appears to be intact.  but it’s proof positive that mother nature does what she wants.  and i think she might be pissed off at humans.  anyhoo, i figured that i would do a blurb on how i started my whole process since i bothered to take pictures this go ’round.

i don’t really want to put store bought food in my pie hole anymore- it scares me to do so.  it’s either genetically modified or shot full of hormones or antibiotics— or salmonella.  so, in desperation, i decided to take my fate into my own hands and grow my own.  now, i am networking to find local meat farmers- and have lined up a couple of local farms who raise pigs and poultry- and beef if i want it.  as for the veggies and fruits- i am going to turn my suburban yard into my own produce stand.  or that’s the plan.

i started trying out techniques a few summers ago when i lived in the city- i container gardened with large pots and window boxes- and made my own compost bin out of a rubber maid tub with a lid.  worked great.  this year i have an actual yard, so, i started in the winter poring over my books and making plans and in january, i ordered my seeds.  i like seed savers exchange and johnny’s seeds- but you can swap heirloom seeds locally.

i started as many of my seeds inside as possible- some have to be sown directly.  deciding what to put where was the challenge.  i use companion planting and louise riotte’s book ‘carrots love tomatoes’ is an invaluable tool.

the only part i found difficult was waiting until the appropriate time to plant.  i consulted an almanac to find out when the last frost date was for my area and what zone i landed in.  not an exact science as i found out.

i decided to go with a mix of raised bed and traditional row gardening- and another great resource is ’square foot gardening’ by mel bartholomew.  you can intensively garden in a small space and it’s easier to tend.  i did not make his ‘mel mix’ dirt- i went with buying about 8 bags

of dirt from the home depot.  i know, i know.  but, i enlisted my hubby’s help to make the raised bed- and i don’t think he would have appreciated me spending a million bucks on dirt.  so, the ‘garden variety’ dirt works for me.  hopefully, i will have good homemade compost next summer to use.  i hardened off the wee plants about the first week in may- meaning i put them outside on the porch and left them to the elements.  i planted about the second week of may- and things were going pretty good- although i did inadvertently pull a couple of my swiss chard plants thinking they were weeds   i have put in seed potatoes, corn, squash, beans- most of the staples.  i intend to plant my sister a garden too- i have that in a more traditional style using her own dirt- but laid out in a square foot style.  i am glad i didn’t plant over there- only a few tomatoes and peppers- because i have to start over after the frost.  tomatoes and peppers take most of the season to really get running.  but that’s ok- my inlaws got me a topsy turvy to try for my birthday

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