When we purchased our home in the Spring of 2010, having room for a garden wasn’t on my mind. Even after living here for almost two years, I never thought a real garden was possible. That may be due to most of our back yard looking like this:
Pool and cement take up most of the property and we are only left with small areas of grass on either side of the house. I just assumed a garden was out of the question. I did try my hand at the Topsy Turvy fad for a couple of years.
It was a fun experiment, but the yield was quite disappointing. I assumed this was the most gardening I would be able to do, but oh how wrong I was.
Through the wonder that is Pinterest, I discovered the amazing world of square foot gardening. A raised garden bed that allows you to grow a bountiful garden in a small, contained space? Count me in!
The East side of our home was a blank slate and the perfect space. The only one to even use this side of the house was the dog! I figured she wouldn’t mind sharing as long as we left her enough grass.
After discussing plans with my husband, Ed, we decided it would be best to start out with just one 4′ x 8′ bed. We could always add an additional ben in the future, but wanted to start small and see what came about. Just a few days later, I had this:
I started my seedlings indoors, so after the last frost, I hardened off my plants, the bed was filled with dirt and all my little babies were transplanted.
And several weeks later, we had success!
I wish I snapped pictures when the garden had completely matured. Regardless, my first year was a lot of fun and I learned SO much. We enjoyed hot peppers, tomatoes, basil, zucchini, broccoli, lettuce, and more for many months.
Seeds for 2013 are arriving in the mail and I’m beginning to lay out my plans. I’m not afraid to try new things so in addition to the raised bed, there will be plenty of potted plants, some upside down beans, potatoes in trash cans, and who knows what else! I’m itching to start my seedlings but will hold out a few more weeks.
Do you have a home garden? Any new experiments planned for this year?
That’s great, Lisa! Katie has been really into gardening the past five years or so, and I’m trying to talk her into starting from seed. Have you seen heirloom seeds? Check it out!!
Thanks, Mandy! Yes – I’m actually growing some heirloom tomatoes this year. I love starting everything from seed. It’s fun and rewarding and a lot cheaper! I’ll be writing a lot about my garden, what I’m planting, what techniques or methods I’m using, etc. I only wish I had more space to plant larger crops!
Great blog so far Lisa! You have always been so creative and into trying out anything so I am sure you will have a great blog. I can learn a lot from you! –Jennifer
Aw, thanks! I really need to catch up on your blog!