Monday, October 15, 2012

The Beginning of a Passion

 This was the first garden bed.
 And Then there were two :-)
 My Attempt at growing cucumbers, and tomatoes.
 This was the best crop, last year.  The beans were delicious, and really produced until the mold got to them.

Ok, here are a few pictures of my first 3.5 X 7 raised garden bed.  As you can see, this was placed in the middle of my vacant lot, and I had a horrible time controlling the weeds, not to mention the bugs were just relentless.

My Edible Garden

Since beginning my love for gardening, I have decided to venture out into the world of an edible garden.  My gardening experience has primarily consisted of flowers and some herbs, however for some unknown reason I feel that I need a challenge and vegetable gardening in SW Florida will surely fill that void.

I began two years ago with one simple raised box/bed, purchased from SAM's Club for about $40.  I filled it with the traditional Miracle Grow garden soil, with some minor amendments such as manure compost.  I did very well, and once my efforts started to show production, well that was it I was hooked.  The satisfaction you receive when you can sit down at the table with your family and say, "I really did grow this myself", well it just cannot be compared.  As a woman, I felt that I was truly nourishing my family, and helping them to eat healthier and simply that was an extra bonus!

Of course there was a LOT to learn from that day forward.  What started off as one 3.5 X 7 foot bed, bloomed into the gardens I have today, just two years later.  It's hard to believe what my husband and I have accomplished, in the way of hardscaping, however the art of actually growing the vegetables is a never ending process.  I've tried to surf the web to find insightful inspiration, called my local extension office for their guidance, and have even journeyed to Epcot during their Flower and Garden show for the UF assistance of the Master Gardeners.

I am NOT an expert by any means, and just decided after being coaxed by a friend to start my blog on the journey of vegetable gardening.

I plan to keep you up to date on what and when I plant, along with any helpful tips I find along the way.  So lets learn together, and I hope that by sharing this blog, I can inspire others to begin their own gardens too!

Katherine