Thursday, May 5, 2011

How Does Your Garden Grow...by Jessica



Look at the beautiful, freshly tilled garden bed just waiting to be filled with all sorts of veggies! (thanks Zack)

I'm going to need some serious advice. Juli told me yesterday what she found easy to grow: tomatoes, cilantro, zucchini, squash, broccoli, onions. I've also read that basil, cucumbers and green beans are supposed to be easy too. I know there should be some rhyme and reason to where / how I plant each of these and I'm going to really think about it and not just plant them willy-nilly and hope they do their thing.

The thought of sending my kids out to pick green beans for dinner, pulling a juicy red tomato off the vine and eating it warm from the sun, digging in the dirt to unearth a plump little onion...it makes me really excited...but I need to stop daydreaming about the possible veggies I may grow and focus on helping them to grow.

Because past history has proven me to not be so great at that.

Any garden advice would be appreciated.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

hmm have julie do it for u or
just go to the store and buy them
Bobby

Juliana said...

Ding, lightbulb went off! lets coordinate our gardens so we can share :) you gorw this and I'll grow tha. You should have dad help you sketch it out (on Sunday!). Think of the sun and how much sun that spot gets in a day and when. You don't want a big bushy plant cast shade on other plants. Also plants grow big, so don't plant too many that it is a jungle and you can't reach your veggies. Have a hose handy and close by or else its a hasle and you'll end up not watering them. You can plant certail plowers near certain veggies to ward of intruding bugs, like marigolds near tomatoes. Mostly dont be afraid and have fun!!!

Jessica said...

Love that idea!!!!!!! Now I'm wishing I didn't sign up for my CSA, cause I'm gonna have veggies out of my ears....uh well maybe...at least from your side of the garden :-)
Mikey and Sam are gonna get more chickens, if you get chickens, soon we can start the Troup kid CSA box. We just need someone who will get a bee box for honey. Justine has that great big yard....hellooo Justine???

Jen Hundley said...

If you're thinking of doing seeds, check out Baker Seed Bank in Petaluma. I went there last month and they gave me a TON of advice. Super nice couple runs it. I just gave them a bunch of info. like where I live, what my soil is like, that I have some raised beds and some will go straight in the ground w/ chicken wire baskets for the dumb gophers and moles, that I wanted little sweet tomatoes my son could pick, small cucumbers, blah blah. They have so many varities, so it was really overwhelming. You definitely don't want to pick 'em out from Baker if you don't know what will grow well in your area. Their seeds packets are a little skimpy on the instructions (sow directly, start inside, plant in the month of May, etc.), so I wrote their advice on the backs.
I bought a few starts at the store b/c it was simply too late to start them from seeds. Oh, and it is much easier than seeds!

Just a fun tip. The seeds are a project I have been doing w/ my 3 yr. old. I have him water the seeds w/ a medicine dropper, otherwise he decimates them! I have to tell him "hold it up high" so he doesn't damage the little seedlings.

Good luck w/ whatever you decide to do and have fun!

Jessica said...

Thanks for the tips, Jen. I heard the seed bank on the radio the other day, I will definitely have to go check them out. I love the medicine dropper idea! I have told my kids they get to choose some plants to grown and Ian says cucumbers (so we can turn them into pickles) and Anya chose tomatoes :-)