waking up the garden

The weather seems to be turning here.  Not a moment too soon.

The pool is completely thawed out,

and the chives are perking up.

I had a really bad growing season last summer.  I don't know if it was because I was distracted with a new baby or if my soil was going sour. Either way, I've thought about bagging the whole idea of a back yard garden this year. I didn't order seeds. I don't plan to set up my indoor greenhouse. I can just imagine what Ian would do to that contraption!

It's all a lot of work. Can I really commit to planting and watering and weeding all summer long?  Wouldn't it be easier to just subscribe to a local CSA and let the farmers do the farming?

And yet, there is something about growing stuff yourself-- something really good.  I'm going to give it another shot.  

I had my soil tested. Wow.  What a helpful thing that was. My soil ph was way off. No wonder. The man behind the counter at the feed store took pity on me and has befriended me. He is going to help me get back on track. He told me that my soil is not hopeless. It just needs a bit of compost.

I've had help at home too. The kids have been pitching in. It feels good to work collectively outside. Sophie supervises and makes sure that we don't run off all of the quail she likes to hunt.

I've sent pictures to my "Feed Store Farmer Friend" and he is going to help me decide where to plant things this year. I think that we need to do a fair amount of crop rotating.  

We plan to stick to the basics and focus again on growing things that A) we actually eat, and B) that we can preserve.  I've been doing a lot of reading/skimming (see the sidebar) and have decided upon:

Radishes, corn, green beans, tomatoes (roma, genovese, cherry), cucumers, carrots, onions, potatoes, squash, and herbs.

Wish us luck!!