Shinesalot: My First Garden

Sounds like the title of a book in the easy reader section of my school library. :) And yet, it is mostly the truth. When Bill and I bought our first house, I did have a tiny little garden...but this...this is a whole new world. First of all, this is my dream house AND my dream garden. I am giving this my all. And the best part is that Finn and Liam are totally 'in' it with me. Well...Finn on a limited level - he will bring a bucket and fill it with rocks and dump them outside the garden (our soil is super rocky). Liam weeds, fills up the water cans from the rain barrel and waters...he's totally psyched that we are growing "FOOD." (He always says it real loud and with enthusiasm, hence the caps.) Anyway, here are some pics of what we got done yesterday and today.

Today we painted rocks to label all the things we planted...interestingly, we have not planted carrots yet and we forgot to make markers for broccoli, snow peas, and green beans. It's kinda hard to paint with Finn around...you should see my deck...it's...er...very colorful now. (Bill is going to power wash and stain it this summer, so I'm not concerned.)

This is my favorite one, the pumpkin patch. It's a totally separate little side garden. We literally hope to have a pumpkin patch for the pumpkin carving party in October. We are SO cool.

I am pretty proud of this watermelon marker. Got luck finding a rock in just the right shape.

Yeah...the watermelon 'patch' doesn't look so impressive just yet.

We found a few strawberry plants growing on the edge of the garden...at least, I sure hope that's what they are. We also added a few more plants. So, we'll see what the summer and sunshine bring.

To the right of my two tomato rows is a great big patch of weeds. I just have not made it that far over yet. I think, when I get to it, it will be lettuce and more herbs.

Here's a view of the whole garden. There's the watermelon 'patch' to the left. The green veggies are in rows in the upper right. And I'm taking the picture from the tomato section. There was no real plan here...just sort of winging it this year. It's kind of fun and exciting. In the back you can see the chicken run Bill made. It's nearly finished and then we can get our chickens!

This is my "kitchen garden." On our deck outside the kitchen I have our favorite herbs growing. It's been a busy couple of days...and I am sure I'll be weeding like a crazy woman all summer long. Hopefully the salads and fresh melons will make it all worth while!

By the way, pointers, tips, shared gardening secrets are ALL welcome! I can't promise I'll follow - I was recently told that any planting done before Memorial Day is a crap shoot....but...I just couldn't wait any longer. This weather is too good to pass up.