Veggie (Garden) Tales

Remember during Chiberia when I was planning our vegetable garden? Well, shortly after typing out that post I bundled up, went to Lowes, picked up some seed packets and potting soil, and started growing vegetables inside the house.

I had a plant stand that I purchased from IKEA awhile back that I used to start the veggies. If you have pets/kids, this is a great option to keep plants from being eaten and/or torn apart by small hands or paws.

Here's a photo of the indoor veggie garden right before they were transferred to the outdoor one. As you'll clearly see, the cucumber plants kind of took over the world. Since this is my first rodeo with cucumber, I was surprised to see how large it grew right off the bat (apparently this is perfectly normal). Tomatoes/peppers/spinach, you guys have some catching up to do!

Here's a "before" shot of the garden out back. Since we don't own the house, we shied away from doing a traditional veggie garden that's more in the middle of the yard so we wouldn't create a large bald spot for potential new owners/renters in the far off future. This way, if someone else wanted to plant flowers instead it's totally possible.

You may see a pile of dirt, but I see a blank canvas. ;)

Huge props to Brian for preparing the soil and adding a fence, despite the heat wave we got recently. If your neighborhood is prone to rabbits like ours is (or other critters that like to eat what you worked so hard to grow), I highly recommend installing a fence around your veggie garden to prevent them from being eaten/tampered with. It's not too difficult to install and isn't too pricey (I think we paid less than $20 total for ours if I'm not mistaken).

Here's a couple of "after" shots, once I transferred everything into the ground. That is, before I went back to Lowes and picked up some more tomato wire cages when I realized I only had one on hand, haha.

I'm looking forward to seeing how this little experiment pans out. I'll keep you posted on how it goes.

Anyone else growing veggie gardens? Any tips/tricks for this relative newb?

Mary Mary, Quite Contrary.

Who else is sick of this winter?! It literally will not loosen its grip - it's like a toddler who doesn't want to let go of their favorite toy. Like this morning, when Mother Nature spat yet MORE snow at us. We don't need anymore of the white stuff, 'kay? We're done, it's almost April. "Let it gooooooooo."

To tide me over until the April rain showers eventually arrive, like every department store in America I'm pretending it already feels like spring. Which means oohing and ahhing over seed packets and potting soil.

Jesus, did I really say that out loud? Cabin fever much?!

Before I get too far down the bunny trail, I guess I should back-up and tell you a dirty little secret about myself:

I have the black thumb of death.

Seriously, it's true. I kill plants. Animals and kids I'm great with, but plants?! We just never quite gelled. I (usually) never mean to kill them, it just....happens. Okay, so maaaaayyyybeee I forget to water and feed them a couple of times. That's what rain is for, right?

.....right?!?

 

Source

So, imagine my surprise last summer when I successfully tended a small veggie garden that yielded some juicy tomatoes. It wasn't much, but it did boost my confidence quite a bit that my thumb might have some green in it after all. Since we have more time and (slightly) more energy this year, we're going to try planting more veggies, and perhaps even fruit!

Even though Mother Nature is going through something akin to menopause at the moment, thanks to the power of the Interwebz we can at least begin planning what and where we would plant these fabulous vegetables. My hubby found an awesome website, SmartGardener.com, to help with planning, which includes tips like planting time, optimal placement with regards to sunlight, and harvest time. It's like FarmVille, without the annoying messages and addictive nature. And it actually serves a purpose, especially for gardening newbs like me.

It's super easy to use - you just enter your yard size, and then you decide what dimensions you want your garden to be. Once those are decided, you can drag and drop different plants to where you want to plant them. I purposely left some space between plants so they don't get overcrowded. Due to my sad past with gardening, I chose the most hardy and easy-to-maintain ones available. They also offer samples of gardens to choose from as well.

*this is not an official endorsement of SmartGardener.com, these are my own thoughts and opinions only.


Obviously this is just a sampling of what you can do - we're still researching options, and at least this way we can get a rather accurate idea of where everything will go and when we need to start planting. The best part of all of this? It's FREE.Yep, you don't have to give them anything except your name and contact information. Pretty awesome, eh?

Anyone else "up north" start planning their gardens yet? Any tips for this burgeoning green thumb?