Garden Journal- Volume 1

I am so excited to get my garden planted. I have had a garden in years past but nothing super fruitful. This year I have renewed energy! Last year we were still getting our property worked on so there wasn’t an ideal space. We have since cleared many trees and knocked out lots of house projects so my time is a bit more available to dedicate to a garden, I don’t have little babies now, in years past I just didn’t have the mental capacity for the garden. I know many people have large gardens pregnant and with little babies but it just wasn’t something that lined up for me. With a pandemic going on I really would love to supplement food from our grocery shopping with my own garden.

I am aiming to journal right along with you with what I am doing to hopefully inspire and encourage those readers who are new to gardening to plant something of their own.

• 

• 

Cold sowing = Fail-

Back in March I tried some cold sowing simply because I was just so excited to get seeds into dirt. We had a fairly mild winter so it felt like spring was coming much sooner than it actually was. I saw some tid bits of information on Garden Answer (one of my favorite YouTube channels) and on Pinterest. Well it was a big fail for me. I didn’t seal the jugs enough and had them right under the eves of the house so all the water collected and just made a big mess. If I tried it again I’d seal the jugs much better and not keep them inside the tote that you see them inside. I’d perhaps tip the tote over on top of it for more protection.

I resigned myself to buy seedlings at the nursery or just direct sow everything. Well I got antsy again so I tried again with the milk jugs but used the tote inside. I had them right next to the window and even put my heating pad (the kind I use for a sore back) underneath and turned that on a bit through the day to give them a bit of warmth and encourage germination. I have contemplated about seedling heat mats but this worked out really well!

We are now much warmer through the day so I have been putting my seedlings outside when it’s nice out and they have thrived. I use the tote to carry them out each morning. The ones that are large and mature enough can be outside of the tote. Those that are still not quite ready for direct sun and air stay under the overturned tote. It makes a pretty legit greenhouse! At the end of the day I just put them all in the tote and carry them back into the house and park them by the window.

My pumpkins and cucumbers are doing great. Tomatoes are coming along as well as cosmos. Basil is slow but stead and parsley is trying.

This past weekend Mister and I built 2 4×8 raised beds. He researched the best methods and went for rough cut hemlock. I know everyone says cedar is the best option but that was a bit out of our budget. The hemlock was recommended at our local lumber yard. This hasn’t been kiln dried so it’s better to withstand the moisture.

I have the two 4×8 beds as well as 4 straw bales. I listened to an episode about the straw bale method on The Beginners Garden Podcast. It was a super cool idea and I am giving 4 bales a try for things that are big and need to sprawl. This method is great for folks who dont have good soil or have a really compact space. I dont have those issues but I like the idea of the ability to move things around from year to year more easily than a raised bed. This is our first year at this house so I want to create some flexibility as I learn as a gardener.

My compost and topsoil mixture will be delivered soon and then I will be sharing my layout plans.

If you have wisdom or advice I would love to hear it! Here in Maine I garden at a zone 5. Please give me any of your helpful tips, I am eager to learn!