We have strawberries!

This is the first year that we’ve ever grown strawberries. I can not tell you how exciting it is to see that they are actually growing.

The lettuce is coming along very nicely too. We cut a few of the outer leaves from each plant for a lovely mixed-lettuce tuna salad on Wednesday, and had fresh strawberries for dessert – all eaten outdoors, of course! Everything tastes better fresh from the garden and eaten outside.

The children and I were just talking about how amazing it really is. You plant a seed or a tiny plant in the ground, give it a little water and care, and God does the rest. I’m starting to see why people love gardening! In the past, I was never really able to get into the hobby, probably because I find weeding to be so unpleasant. The “square foot gardening” method has made weeding rather manageable, though, and all of us (kids included) now find gardening to be quite enjoyable.

 

Gardening Day

Today we went to a local nursery to buy transplants and seeds for our gardens, then came home and planted them all. I love our gardens! This is our second year, and they have provided delicious vegetables as well as a wonderful hobby for our family. The children are also more inclined to eat the vegetables when they have taken an active role in planting them, caring for them, and watching them grow.

Here are the two books that are indispensable in my garden planning:

The first is the book, Square Foot Gardening, by Mel Bartholomew. This is the book that inspired Iron Man and me to start a garden to begin with. We used the methods in the book for everything related to our two gardens: building them, preparing the soil, planting and spacing, and protecting them. Last year the gardens required a bit of time and effort to build and prepare the soil, but not even a fraction of the work a traditional garden would take (ie: no tilling!) Maintenance has also been minimal.

The second book is my Anne of Green Gables Journal. A “kindred spirit,” who happens to be from Anne-Country, gave me this lovely book a year ago, and I thought that it would make the perfect garden journal. I began by drawing and writing our plans for the layout of our gardens, so I can remember what we planted and where. Then I wrote down notes for each plant that we are growing, with tips on planting, maintaining, and harvesting. I couldn’t resist taking a few pictures from inside the book, not because of my notes, but because of the beautiful pictures. Who could not be in the mood to garden with such a wonderful journal to remind and inspire? Thanks again, my friend!

This year, we planted tomatoes, peppers, onions, potatoes, carrots, green beans, peas, cilantro, strawberries, cucumbers, parsley, spinach, and lettuce. We also bought some blackberry plants, but we will not be putting them in the square foot gardens because I hear they go crazy and take over. I’m excited by this prospect, but we need to decide on the best place to allow them to roam.

In addition to our square foot vegetable gardens, we also planted marigolds in our planters. Aren’t they pretty? So bright and cheery.

If you have been reading our blog for a while,  you’ve probably realized that life is never boring for our family. Gardening day was no different. We discovered a frog in one of the gardens, and you know how kids are with frogs, don’t you? Completely enthralled and excited. The children helped him hop into a sand bucket so they could observe him for a few minutes.

Floyd was a big hit. Yes, Floyd. They named him. Our kids don’t have pets, so they consider our various backyard visitors to be their pets. Remind me to blog about Graybeard the Squirrel sometime.

Cute little thing, isn’t he? I thought Floyd was very sweet to look right into the camera to let me take his picture.

George took a special liking to the frog. He wanted to keep him. When the children released Floyd from the bucket, George chased him down our driveway. When Floyd stopped hopping, George seemed to lose his nerve a little. You can see that he wouldn’t get too close.

But he did bend down for a closer look!