As we discussed in part 1 of the green thumb series soil can almost always be amended to make it viable for growing a garden. What is more difficult is finding the right location for your garden. While gardening of some type can be done almost anywhere, there are plenty of variables that can affect where and what you grow. Plants need 3 things in order to grow, light, water, and good dirt. The location you choose for your garden can be watered, the soil can be amended but you must consider ... [ Read More ]
Green Thumb Series – Part 1 Making Sure You Have Good Soil
I hear the term I have a brown thumb from people all the time. I would hear it a lot when people would stop to admire my gardens, and ask me how I did it. I never really knew what to say to them, and when people would comment on what a green thumb I had, I would wonder what makes me different than everyone else. I suspect that growing plants is a lot like art, the secret is that anyone can do it, if they take the time to learn how. This series is dedicated to all of the things that ... [ Read More ]
Garden Planning Series – Getting Organized
This article is part 2 in a series about getting ready for gardening season, you can find part 1 here - Making Sure you have the Right Tools and Resources I am not a very organized person, never have been, but I have found over the years that a bit of organization can easily make the task of planning the garden easier but it can also make it more cost effective and efficient. Planning a garden demands a certain amount of organization and planning. I don’t care if ... [ Read More ]
Weekend Homestead Windup – School is In!
School starts tomorrow and with it a lot of thoughts about this past season and plans for the days ahead. School starting means fall is on its way and that leaves time for new projects. It has been a while since I have done a homestead update, and a couple of weeks ago I decided that I need to try to make weekly updates as long as there was something for me to say each week. To that end I have decided to do a weekend homestead windup which will encompass all of my ... [ Read More ]
Our Harvest is Starting to Come In
All the effort that I made to getting my garden put in early is really paying off, our harvest is starting to arrive in and most cases it is a few weeks earlier that most around here. We have had all the usual spring crops and also have baby carrots, zucchini, cabbage and Cauliflower and the first signs of cukes and tomatoes. Our corn is waist high already and I have baby peas and green beans that we are anxiously awaiting. The onions have reached the stage where we can start ... [ Read More ]
Planning your First Vegetable Garden
My First Vegetable Garden I can remember my first vegetable garden very clearly I was probably 10 or 12 years old and I had been tormenting my mother about letting me put in a garden forever. I do not know what fascinated me so much about watching vegetables grow; I did not even like them that much at that age, but something about watching seeds germinate and grow into food fascinated me. My first garden was a flop, I only had a tiny plot that was maybe 5ft by 10ft and it was right next to ... [ Read More ]