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Want to know where you can buy seeds for your home garden? Check out the new resource page on my website “Where to Buy Seeds List for Home Gardeners.” I’ve compiled a list of places where you can purchase seed packets in stores, by seed catalogs or online. Get ahead of the seed rush and plan your next year’s abundant garden!
Though the summer garden is winding down, there is still plenty to harvest. Tomatoes continue to ripen on the heirlooms and succession planted determinates. The second wave of bean crops were ready, and the hot peppers hit their peak. Summer herbs are still fresh for picking, while cilantro and parsley are slowly making their return. New fall plantings were late, but worth the experiment. Preparing for winter is a joy in the cool weather. There is much work to be done.
After living in our house for over 20 years, we finally decided to do a complete landscape makeover. It will take dozens of DIY projects to finish the job. To get things started, I dusted off my old power tools and made these two planter boxes, a perfect project for a beginning woodworker. Find out how I did it!
We made an unexpected trip back to Missouri this month to say goodbye to a dear, sweet gardener – my mother-in-law. She represented an era gone by of rural farming during the Great Depression. While away, the garden flourished without me. Fall plantings began to emerge, while some summer crops and flowers found new life once the temperature cooled, bringing my heirloom tomatoes to peak production. Succession planted veggies continue to fill our baskets. I can’t believe how quickly the season went!
Leaving the garden unattended for two weeks while visiting family and friends out of town presented some challenges and opportunities. Pests and diseases left unchecked destroyed some plants, while unharvested crops opened up more seed saving opportunities. Steady rainfall kept the garden well-watered, and overall the garden flourished without me! It was a testament to the power of nature.
Our tomato plants are overflowing their cages and producing a bountiful harvest. Sharing it with family and friends elevates the joy. The onset of summer diseases and pests presented challenges, but they did not outpace the beautiful fruits that came off our vines. While we worked to rid the garden of the destructive insects, we welcomed another in the name of conservation – the monarch butterfly. A second planting of summer veggies and a little DIY kept us busy throughout the month. Never did hard work feel so rewarding!
Summer crops are filling our plates! Tomatoes are finally ripening, cucumbers come almost daily, beans are coming in batches, and fresh herbs flavor our meals. Flowers are bright and colorful, and the garden is full and lush. The season has been a joy. Our backyard makeover and DIY projects are still in the works. It feels good to be industrious again!
The summer harvest has begun! Veggies and herbs sown from seed in the springtime are finally coming to fruition. We’ve had mostly successes and some failures. There’s always room to learn. Brightly colored summer flowers are providing a spectacular backdrop. While the kitchen garden thrives on its own, we’ve been busy implementing more organic gardening practices to improve the health of our soil. Our long-term plans to remodel the backyard shade garden are underway, which involved two massive loads of free arborist wood chips. We’re getting better at learning how to let nature take care of itself.
My garden is exploding! Warm weather, soaking rain and a foundation of healthy, organic soil have made my kitchen garden burst! I have a continuous supply of some favorite herbs, fresh blueberries are steps away, and the some of the veggies are setting fruit. Summer flowers are bringing beneficial insects, in addition to color and beauty. And of course, the garden restoration projects continue.
I was doing a stock photo shoot of my homegrown, organic strawberries when my kitty discovered they were more fun to play with than toy mice! He just couldn’t keep his paws off the props!