Planting a Garden

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Each year we have strived to make better use of our bountiful garden area. Last year marked the best efforts, with about two thirds of the space planted and maintained throughout the growing season. We've learned some tough lessons along the way that have helped us better understand weed control and how to better control watering with a heavy, clay based, soil. What we were unable to plan in time, we covered with a tarp, black side up, in order to nuke any weed seeds that might be waiting underneath with the heat of the hot summer sun.

This year, however, we have finally hit the mark and all of our garden has been planted, or has seedlings waiting to be hardened before moving to their allocated positions. Not only that, but we have moved outside of our large garden area and have put a few raised beds together. These beds are the new homes of salad greens and radishes, potatoes, and raspberries. I've also got an order of sweet potato starts on the way!

I am in the process of standing up a bean trellis along a portion of our white vinyl fence to contrast with a plentiful wall of green foliage and succulent beans for use in stews, soups, salads, and all other sorts of delectable dishes. Garden fresh green bean casserole, anyone? We are growing five types of beans this year: the standard green bean, a purple bean (which will turn green when cooked), a yellow bean, an Italian flat bean, and the prize of the lot, Dragon Tongue (link to Burpee, the producer of our original seeds)- an heirloom bean we hope to propagate through the years to come.

The project has gone so well that we will likely duplicate the effort along another section of fence for a cucumber jungle gym of sorts. Anyone who has ever grown cucumbers before can attest to their natural ability to climb and elbow their way through a garden. Giving them their own space to climb seems like a sensible notion. Besides, we can always rotate them with the beans in the years to come.

With most of the mulch down and the the majority of our seeds in the ground, I can rest my hands on my hips, take a deep breath, and allow my chest to swell with a bit of pride. We've learned so much in these past years and we've worked so hard this season. Sure, it isn't over yet and there are still obstacles to overcome, but we can be proud of everything we've managed to accomplish as a family.

If you would like to read an article I recently published about starting a garden, click here. Also, we'd be honored if you would bookmark this blog and return to join us on our green adventure. I am currently putting together a video detailing some of our specific gardening efforts and a few of the lessons we have learned. There are several more posts a-brewin', including a glimpse into my recent homebrewing efforts - so stay tuned!

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