Photo Essay: Where I've Been

As many of you know, I've been absent from these hallowed spaces for several months, since Christmas brought my mother-in-law to our town. Frustration is a favorite motivator for me, and I have used mine to create something useful and beautiful.

Our Texas winters are mild enough that gardening is a year-round passtime. In fact, it is easier to coax a crop out of the earth in the dead of winter here than it is in the dog days of summer. Our soil, however, being mainly clay is not suited for growing anything edible besides lettuce. After years of struggling with soil amendments, we finally decided to build raised beds.

Our first two raised-bed gardens were filled with soil purchased with a Gather points Home Depot gift card. I think it is beautiful, and I enjoy working in it.  Our winter crops include broccoli, garlic, carrots, lettuce, onions, and cilantro. I also managed to get a single beet to grow. Go figure.



When it was time to put in our spring and summer crops, potatoes, tomatoes and peppers,  I planted between what was already growing, but there just wasn't enough room.  The broccoli is still producing, and I didn't want to pull it up to make room for more plants. Instead, we used the big solution. We built more garden beds.

 


On Easter, my daughter and I dragged out the grubbing hoe (which is nothing like any hoe you've seen on TV) and built the third raised bed. It turns out that buying soil from Home Depot is not economical, so we contacted a local business that was able to bring us 4 yards of soil for a reasonable price. This saved considerable wear and tear on my Toyota Echo, which was not built for hauling stuff.


We planted this bed on Saturday, with jalapeño peppers, tomatoes, potatoes, and two kinds of squash. Getting to this point supplied me with exercise for several days. All the soil in this bed was moved from the pile to the bed with a shovel. I had lots of help, but I needed it.



This is the last bed we built, finished on Saturday as well. We moved the dirt for this one with a wheelbarrow. The hogwire fencing you see is for climbing plants, beans and cucumbers. I have to remember to plant some watermelon and canteloupe, or my family will exile me!.


That tiny little pile in the back right is what is left of 4 cubic yards of soil. That's a lot of soil to move.
This is the view of the whole garden from the new end. The next picture is from the opposite end.
I now have 112 square feet of garden space. I suspect that I will make many friends in the neighborhood this summer as my produce comes in.


It's a beauty, and I'm pleased with it. Thanks for joining me!
Pax.