Garden Update::Ingrid

Garden season is in full swing and I am LOVING it!!  This is the first year that I have S.P.A.C.E. to really go crazy.  It is also the first spring/summer in our new home so we are learning much about our land. One of the niftiest things about it though, is that we now live next door to my husband’s parents….so we are co-gardening!  And can I just say that co-gardening is awesome!!  2 families working 1 garden.  We both chip in time, money, and produce, but we get to split the work in half.  There’s almost always someone to water, pull a few weeds, and keep an eye out for needy plants.  So far our garden hasn’t seemed like that much work. Planning and seed starting got underway many months ago.  The dreaming step of gardening. seed size Once we were able to get out in the dirt, we got to work tilling. My boys were constant “helpers” with this process as they “worm hunted.” boys size Our method this year for weed/water control is black plastic and soaker hoses. If you want to skip weeding all summer, this is the way to go!! You must get the plastic though and not that landscape fabric stuff. We tried that several years ago and just had weeds growing up underneath and pushing the fabric up. Major let -down. Plastic is not the most environmental since we throw away the plastic each year, but there are several bonuses to using it. 1)No weeding!!  2)The black warms the soil up like crazy.  3) With the soaker hoses underneath it creates warm condensation under the plastic. 2 side Planting then got underway! We grew most of our peppers, herbs, and other miscellany from seed. (Let’s just say I continue to learn a lot each year about seed starting. Next year it is my goal not to have to buy any plants!) The rest we bought from a local nursery or direct sowed the seeds in the garden. 4 block And then we sat back and waited. Spinach and lettuces were first up. If you live in the upper midwest and want to plant lettuce, you will need to wait until end of Augustish. If you planted it now, it would not taste good! The heat of summer makes it taste very bitter and more likely to bolt (aka go to seed). We are enjoying it quick before it turns. salad It is amazing what a few weeks can do in the garden! Kale, beans, snow peas, herbs, peppers, popcorn…it’s all coming up!! beans kale And the tomatoes! Did I mention I have a few tomatoes. Like 75… Oh my! Silly girl. Lots of sauces, salsa, soups…tom The cherry trees are blushing! This is so exciting for me!! 16 trees. cherries For my next garden update, I will draw you a map so you can get a better feel for our layout. It’s starting to taste like summer around here and that makes me smile!!

About Ingrid Barlow

Ingrid Barlow is hard working crafter with 2 little boys.

Comments

  1. The garden looks GREAT! Yeah, the popcorn came up!

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  1. […] garden!! It is crazy how things are changing and growing. I did a garden update two weeks ago that you can see here if you want to be reminded of where we were last time. I told you then that I would do a little […]

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