About Dana

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I'm a dichotomy of blue jeans, pretty jewelry, frugalista, and Southern girl living the simple rural life. I want to live my life holistically, thoughtfully, economically, and most of all gratefully, and encourage other women to do the same.

Saturday, April 13, 2013

Spring Planting Time

It's time for spring garden planting. I am still using the"square foot gardening" method I used the last couple of years. That may seem strange considering we have land to spare living in a rural area, but somewhere along the way I got tired of fighting weeds and deer. Plus, our family is small, so a couple of square-foot gardens are perfect for our needs.

The beauty of a contained, raised garden bed is that once you mix your soil the first year, there is really not much follow-up for subsequent years. Just a trowel-full of compost into each "square" before planting, and you're ready to go.

This year, I mixed commercial mushroom compost with my own backyard compost, made from decomposed fruit and vegetable scraps, yard debris, and chicken manure. (Those chickens are good for something besides eggs. It's a 2-for-1 deal).

Doesn't that look like rich soil?

I'm into simple. This bed contains herbs - rosemary, lemon balm, and thyme with a space left for basil - and vegetables - broccoli and squash. The screen contraption is the only way I can keep out deer and rabbits and supposedly domesticated critters like cats.


This bed is all about the tomatoes - four different kinds. The best part of summer is home-grown tomatoes. I squeezed in a little cilantro and parsley. I love herbs for cooking and fresh ones make a big difference. They are expensive at the grocery store but so easy to grow!

Hope this inspires you to plant a garden even if you only have a small patio. Herbs and tomatoes will grow wonderfully there!

Happy Spring,
TCB

Related Posts:

Spoils of the Day
My Secret to Easy-Does-It Spring Gardening