Progress on the new vegetable garden....

Three raised beds

My fingernails are covered in dirt and I've got a bit of a tan but I can proudly say that our raised garden beds are up and ready to go. Many of the seeds we had planted were well on there way and needing to get out and in the ground. So, we finished off the raised beds and will now work to slowly move plants outside. Clay pots and recycled milk jugs will help prevent against any night time drops in temperature.

When I first discovered Mel Bartholomew's book "Square Foot Gardening" I thought I was discovering a very new technique. Little did I realize that the book I was clutching at the used book store was written in 1981. Never the less the technique is widely popular and Mel has since written more updated versions. As you can see from our beds, we have divided them up by 12" sections. This will allow us to plant more in less space. I highly recommend the book as it's full of useful information.

Every farmer needs a windmill

 With our three raised garden beds we hope to produce enough vegetables for our family but also enough to share. We'll have a separate area of the garden for watermelons, cantaloupe and pumpkins. We've never planted such a large amount before. Barring our single tomato plant last year and a meager windowsill herb container, we really have never grown food. This is all an experiment, one which I hope will be fruitful.