For years and years I’ve wanted to plant a garden and grow flowers and produce. When we lived in Seattle we always knew that our house was temporary, so I never invested the time to make it happen. Now, we’re firmly planted and have plenty of space to work with for a garden.
As we’ve been living through a pandemic now for over two years it’s come to light that Alex and I really value self-sufficiency. It sure was tricky navigating those first months of Covid times, not knowing if there would be any flour or bananas at the store, and trying to stretch our groceries two weeks or more.
We learned a lot about our capabilities and creativities living through that and it’s been inspirational in planning this garden.
I have a lot of goals and hopes for the garden. I’m hopeful my kids will be invested in it, learn from it and take a lot of joy and pride from the work we put into it. I also hope that it’s a productive garden. I’m sure there will be some epic flops and we will learn a ton.
We aren’t set up to do this yet, but ultimately, I’d love to have some fruit trees and be able to freeze fruits and vegetables for the winter. Hannah asked me recently if we could make jam sometime – a resounding yes! was the answer.
I envision this year as a massive trial. We wanted to see how the space and size of the garden worked out and make sure we can maintain everything okay. Eventually I’d love to expand on it and maybe one day add some chickens. We’ve already learned so much from the process and it’s not even fully done yet. Close!
This year we’re growing some random produce – I ordered plant starts through Azure Standard, which is a bulk food delivery service we participate in. If you live in a rural community, this is a godsend. We planted a couple varieties of strawberries, bell peppers, tomatoes, squash and peas, along with green beans, watermelon and pumpkins.
During the beginning of the pandemic we built a couple of garden boxes, which we’ve now relocated into the garden enclosure. Those will be our flower boxes. We have tons of zinnias and dahlias, mixed with some lavender and other flowers to attract pollinators.
The creation of the garden has been a massive investment in time and a labor of love. It has been so much work. Alex and I both had our own parts in the process and it’s been really fun to execute on such a big project together.
Hannah, especially, has been eager to help out and be extremely involved. I think once it comes time to harvest, Ben will be right there. Hopefully waiting until everything is actually ready to be harvested, though! So far it’s been a wonderful family project and I’m hoping it will stay that way for years to come.
We have everything in the ground {!!!}, the irrigation is hooked up and working and all of the trellises are up and ready to support the plants as they need it. Now, we wait!