i am in love

…with my new square foot garden! i have been itching to have a vegetable garden for the past few years, but always thought we had too much shade. and in fact, we do… in our back yard. that’s why this year we bit the bullet and plopped our veggie patch right in our tiny—but very sunny—front yard.

i think it was my friend joni who introduced me to the square foot gardening method last year, and i instantly knew i wanted to give it a try. it is perfect for small spaces, and its neat appearance was also a factor for us since it would be in our front yard for all to see. besides that, it is a cinch to water and weed!

it feels good to have finally plowed through my intimidations with the whole thing (my perfectionistic tendencies sometimes slow me down because i am so afraid it won’t turn out just right). it’s a big step forward from last year’s gardening attempts. now here’s hoping the bugs and bunnies don’t snag our harvest before we do! so far, things are looking pretty good, and we have already been enjoying the lettuce. i can’t wait to make it twice as big next year!

here are some photos to document our progress so far:

though i did remove the sod from underneath, we added our own (purchased) soil inside the frame so that we know it's good stuff. matt built the frame (8' x 2' --we are not starting out overly ambitious, people), and the kids and i have had a good time this spring visiting our local seed store and putting it all together.

started a few peas, lettuce, and spinach plants in egg cartons before transferring them to the garden...

and here they are in their new home... (viewing from the side)

and here's what they look like now. (viewing from the front)

what fun to watch the little seedlings pop up! these are the bean beginnings...

and here they are today, with a tomato in the background.

and here are the zucchini, then...

and now.

one other new thing i am trying this year is a potato pot that i found instructions on how to do here.