Before we learned that carcass really is bad for us, we loved gardening. I love gardening for so many reasons it would be impossible to write them all in this space. It’s like an outlet for my soul. Watching something grow is soothing and revitalizing and reminds me that there are cycles to everything and every life. The awesome taste of the offerings are a huge bonus, too.
January is always my thought month. I think about gardening, read about gardening and seeds and just think about what I want to grow. It’s also the time I check my soil and make sure it’s not crying for nutrients like a baby that hasn’t been fed. If you’ve never checked your soil, you should. It’s probably the most important part of gardening and your efforts will be mostly in vain if your soil is crap. (Unless it’s garden appropriate manure, then you’re totally good.)
February and March are the serious planning months! What, where, how, when and how much are the right questions to ask in these months! Check a planning chart to see what Zone you live in. They are all over the internet, and this will help you know when to plant.
March and April are the time that I start my little babies (seeds) in indoor pots. I’m thinking about making newspaper pots. Anyone ever done those? They are little pots of made of newspapers that you can plant directly into the soil and it’s GOOD for it and the plants aren’t sent into shock when they are transplanted because you don’t have to jerk them out to plant them. Awesomeness. (I’m easily pleased, OK?)
Here’s an image from cottagehill.blogspot.com for those that need a visual!
I think those are pure coolness!
April and May also bring tilling and adding in the soil nutrients. We are 100% organic gardeners, so no pesticides touch our soil. Ever. We use manure, compost made by us and organic fertilizers only! They aren’t terribly hard to find and composting is the easiest thing ever. We built our compost holder out of old wood and some chicken wire. We pounded some wood and sticks into a squarish shape and circled it with chicken wire. We dump our grass cuttings, leaves, food, coffee grounds, etc…into it and flip it about once a month. (Do NOT add dog/cat manure…ever) We also toss earthworms we find around the yard in it to help the process along. Doesn’t get easier than that, right? It’s ugly, but it works wonderfully.
We transplant and plant in early to mid-May and by the end of May we see a beautiful view of little shoots and blossoms starting to form. We also have a 50 gal drum placed at the corner of my husband’s work garage that catches rain water. If you’ve never done this, it’s a great way to catch rainwater and use it later for better watering and less hauling.
I’ll be posting pics as we start, so if you’ve never gardened, or are an avid gardener, join us and feel free to comment with suggestions or encouragement. Gardening is one of the most rewarding things that I do and the food simply can’t be beat. A home grown tomato is like ambrosia, people, and I may have eaten one or two (or three) like an apple, while standing in the middle of the garden.
Kristi 🙂
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