Monday, June 11, 2012

My Garden Defines Me

So this is the 3rd/4th year I have worked/expanded our family vegetable garden. I started with a pretty foundational love of plants and working in the dirt and have now turned over most of my southern facing side yard to food production. In past years I've grown some family standards and then also thrown a few "hmmmm...that would be interesting" cultivars in the mix. This year I decided to stick with only things I know my family will eat (maybe with a little coaxing). I started everything from seed (mostly using Territorial Seed Company mail order) except the tomatoes came as 3" starts. And cartwheeling greenhouse aside, this is looking like my best year ever (knock on wood). A huge thanks goes out to my dad for opening up the sky for me, with the branches gone my yard and food budget got a great face lift.

This years garden list is as follows:
Dutch Fingerling, Yukon Gold, Red and White Potatoes
Sunflowers (for seeds)
Red and Golden Raspberries
Green, Burgundy, and Yellow Bush Beans
Garlic
Storage Onions
Broccoli
Brussel Sprouts
2 Varieties of Kale
Spinach
Romaine
Salad Mix
Dual Purpose (baking and carving) Pumpkins
Sugar Snap Peas
Tomato's 8 Varieties
Zucchini
Cucumber
Purple Bell Pepper
Purple and Orange Carrots
Easter Egg Radishes
Flat and Curly Leaf Parsley
Popping Corn
Some random squash from seeds I saved from last year.

Photos of above mentioned deliciousness:

Realizing that this photo doesn't really do the space justice this is a  5x17 foot bed

4.5x15' bed

9x17' with 2 foot walkway divider



To put it all in perspective, I have a close-as-I can-get-aerial-shot of the garden. Because this is taken from the furthest perch on my deck the bed against the house is not pictured nor the popping corn rows just behind the tomatoes and wooden raised bed.


As for my goals:

  1. I really want to continue to replace and repurpose my existing ornamental beds with ones for food. I am visualizing a blueberry hedge just in front of the apple and pear trees in the front and ripping up more lawn for over-wintering raised beds.
  2. I want to save the seeds of things that we loved (just one tomato offers so many seeds!)
  3. I want to continue my investigations in succession planting to have a constant harvest.
  4. I want to do a cover crop for the first time.
  5. I really want to pay attention to what grows well on my plot and what we will eat. I have wild dreams of wheat and quinoa in years to come too. We'll see.

3 comments:

  1. So beautiful!! You should be super proud! I know you have many resources, but my best friend owns and runs an organic farm down in Orting and I know would be happy to share any knowledge if you're ever in need of advice. Tahoma Farms. It's also a super fun place to visit with kids. Well, mine love going there! Hope you're having a great week!

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  2. Your garden makes me want to hug you...

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