I started a vegetable garden!
Why did it take me so long?
It may not be clear from my recent activities, but I used to have two black thumbs. If you had given me a plant 10 years ago, I would think “gee thanks for giving me a chore,” and the plant would be dead within weeks. My perspective has totally shifted in the past several years as I’ve zeroed in on my passion for home interiors, discovered the benefits of biophilic design, and honestly as I became a parent and learned what real chores are :-D. Now I am an avid indoor plant-lover, and this year I decided to turn that love to some outdoor gardening. I was influenced by several of my friends and family that have been gardening for years. They have been invaluable fonts of information, (and have lent me important tools that I needed as well). As I took on this new activity, my main goal has been to keep it as economical and easy as possible.
Planning steps I took
Decide what to focus on. My focus this year is edible plants. (Side note: I do want to eventually convert our yard to a native flower pollinator oasis, but that’s a project for another time. If native plants are something you want to tackle, join your local Wild Ones chapter! Here is the South Bend Wild Ones Facebook page. They are an amazing group of people!)
Decide where to put the plants. I picked a spot with this criteria in mind:
6-8 hours of sun. I peaked out at the yard every couple hours to see where shadows were falling.
Large flat area that drains properly. We have some spots in the yard that pool water, and I definitely wanted to avoid those.
Away from play areas. I didn’t want to reduce the kids’ space to run around, or put the garden where it would be trampled by scooters and soccer balls.
Close to the entrance, and close to tools. I knew we would be most likely to keep up with the garden if it was right on our way in and out each day, and if all the equipment we needed was readily available. The garage is our primary entrance and all our garden tools are there, so we were able to check both off the list by putting the garden next to the garage.
Close to water access, like hose or sprinkler. I did not meet this criteria. We have a spigot in our garage that I thought we could attach a hose to. However, when I went to set it up, I couldn’t get the spigot to turn on! So I rigged a work-around.
Decide structure of the garden (e.g. raised bed, in the ground, types of borders, etc.). My parents had boards and some corner brackets that they were able to give me, so that made the decision for me to plant our veggie garden right on the ground. My dad was able to cut the boards to the size we needed. When in doubt, work with what you have on hand!
Carry out the plan
Here’s what I did and photos are below of the process.
Rototill the area to convert the grass to a suitable vegetable bed. I borrowed a rototiller from a friend and watched YouTube videos for how to start and use it.
Build edging. This required screwing the boards into the corner brackets.
Layer in compost and soil. I got compost from our local Organic Resources for free. I went on a rainy day by myself (not pictured), so I didn’t get quite the volume that I needed, and filled in with an organic soil/ compost mix from Costco. Next year I’ll plan for more manpower.
Pick seeds and layout. I got my seeds from Purple Porch Co-op then read the labels for directions which I very loosely followed. I also picked up a tomato plant and jalapeno plant that were already started, since my understanding is that those should be started indoors, which I did not do.
Assemble hammock and take a break. (Make it easy, remember?)
Set up irrigation. Since my original water source didn’t work, I ran a second hose from our backyard spigot, along our house to reach the garden. I hooked up an impact sprinkler head, and set up a planter full of dirt to raise the sprinkler a little bit and make sure that when it ran, it hit all of the garden. Now when we need to water the garden, I go to the backyard spigot, switch over to this hose, turn it on and let it run for a bit.
Add fencing. We have lots of bunnies that I expect will try to steal our veggies. I used metal stakes and deer fencing on the recommendation of a friend. I borrowed a post driver to get the stakes in really deep, and attached the fencing with zip ties.
I hung herb planters on the side of our house. I had these planters from years ago, and we hadn’t ever used them. I still need to plant the herbs.
Create a compost bin. We had an extra garbage bin due to a change in our garbage company, so I drilled holes all over the bin to turn it into a compost bin. This will help promote some circularity in our gardening, and reduce our household contribution to the waste stream. Wins all around.
Celebrate! The seeds have started to sprout. Once they are a bit established, I will add mulch around them to maintain moisture and prevent weeds. (I got mulch for free from Organic Resources.)
Rototill
2. Build edging
3. Fill the bed
4. Map out the layout
5. Take a break
6 and 7. Set up irrigation and install fence
8. Hang herb planters
9. Create a compost bin
10. Celebrate the sprouts!
So that’s it! BTW I’m not sharing this as a “how to” guide, and I’m sure that my process is riddled with mistakes that will become apparent with time. But I started something, I made it easy and fun, and I am proud of it. My kids are excited about it too, so we will spend the summer working, observing, tending, experimenting, succeeding, failing, and learning together. What could be better?
~Rachel
