Wednesday, January 24, 2007

Vegetable Garden

There is a definite history with me and vegetable gardening. First of all, I'm extremely afraid of bugs. Everything I learned about gardening, was learned in Colorado - very different from the south. And, I've tried twice to have a successful vegetable garden and done very poorly twice.

So, when a friend suggested a group of us getting together to plant gardens, I was excited by the mutual encouragement and learning this would provide! We plan to each work at a few veggies and share all of our produce with each other.

Here's what we've done so far:
* Visited our local extension office for information. This yielded a treasure of a book that is filled with EVERYTHING we need to know for gardening in our area.
* Tested our soil. We now know our pH and what minerals we are each deficient in and how to amend our soil.
* Tilled the ground. Praise the Lord for a husband who is willing to do this part for me!
* This Saturday, we'll be fertilizing with horse manure. Friends with horses are usually willing to part with this wonderful stuff for free!
* Ordered the seeds! I chose to go heirloom seeds because I wanted the most natural and non-genetically engineered seeds we could get. I ordered from Johnny's seeds, Heirloom seeds and Burpee.

I've been thinking of Proverbs 31:16, "She looks over a field and buys it, then with money she's put aside plants a garden." I'm excited because gardening seems to me like such a pure and wholesome activity and one that enriches our lives and our tummies!

So, I'll be posting updates on the garden progress as we go along. The photo above is the ground freshly fertilized and tilled!

7 comments:

Wendi said...

My husband tills the ground for me every year, but he hates to do it. I love my veggie garden, now I have the itch to get started (not anytime soon since we have snow on the ground!) Bugs are worst part of gardening, especially the spiders I find in the green beans! Yuck!

Anonymous said...

I'm hoping to actually get a garden in this year. We don't even have a plot dug up yet. :-) When we were first married, I did lots of containers, which for veggies worked and some didn't. Last year, I was on the late train, so planted some beans in pots and the flowerbeds. They did ok. The squash I planted did nothing. I had luck with some fresh basil though. I grew up in the Pacific Northwest where the soil is just so right for gardening! I'm hoping to learn how to garden successfully in the South as well. I'm looking forward to learning along with you!

Milehimama @ Mama Says said...

I learned to garden in Denver, and moved near Lake Moultrie also in SC recently... I'm in the stages of my first garden down here. I'm really afraid of the bugs - I'm sure they'll be a huge problem here!
I'm too lazy to till... my first project is a lasagna garden for lettuce, spinach, and herbs.
I think the other problem I'll have is figuring out what grows down here - a horticulturist friend told me that tomatoes don't do well at all, which is a big disappointment!
I love the idea of a gardening group - wish I knew some people in my area to do that with!
Mama Says

Kathryn said...

I'm with you---everything is different here in the South. I learned to garden in Oregon, and the soil is just lovely out there! I struggled for a couple of years up here in Upstate SC and then the last two years I have only done pots of herbs and flowersbeds.
A number of families in our church go the Square Foot Gardening route with wonderful success, so I got the books for Christmas and am getting set to get the boxes built in the next several weeks.
I love to garden, but the critters and bugs here are so annoying. Our ground hogs just mow everything down except for the tomatoes. So we are putting up a temp. fence to keep my little boy in and critters out. We will see how it all works out.

Monica Wilkinson said...

Ok, for all you SC ladies ~ I HIGHLY recommend the book available through the Clemson extension office. It is $15 but worth every penny.

It has sections for each part of SC. What varities of each veggie grow in SC, when to plant in each section of SC, and on and on. I cannot say enough good things about the invaluable resource this has been so far.

I'm just going to have to do a lot of praying about the bugs! Let me tell you! But, my Mom got me this great shirt for my bday that has bug spray in the fabric and it lasts through 25 washings - I won't need to wash it every day - so this is going to become my gardening shirt!

I've had people tell me certain things won't work also - like a cottage flower garden, etc... I have found that I need to try it for myself. My cottagey garden is doing great - so don't always believe people who say you CAN'T do something.

Milehimama - maybe ask around at your church and see if anyone is interested in starting a gardening group - that is kind of how ours got started.

Kathryn - My parents do Square Foot and it has worked really well for them. I'm hoping to incorporate this as well.

My biggest change of thinking is this: in the West planting is MUCH later. Here, we're talking in the next few weeks with most of it going in throughout March.

I'll keep posting my adventures!

Anonymous said...

I'm eager to hear how this goes! I have a hard time keeping a houseplant alive and the outdoor plants had better be hardy or they just wither away. My mom is an avid gardener and we worked in the garden growing up, so I can't figure out why I have such a black thumb. I'm hoping that will change. I know I'll get helpful info hearing about your progress ... and hopefully get inspired, too!

Anonymous said...

Dear Monica -- what fun to read about your gardening adventures and those of your blog buddies. :)

One of the things I love about gardening is there is such a tangible result of your efforts (at least we hope there will be!) - - truly enjoying the fruit of your labor!

I remember a Family Circus cartoon where the little girl says that if you want your garden to grow, you have to say a prayer to your "gardening angel." :)

Happy gardening!
Love, Mom