Hi everyone! Sorry I've been missing here lately! I'm feeling the lull of winter. The holiday rush is long over and the eventual rush of spring is far off. There's not too much going on right now except the normal, day-in day-out prepping.
The one prepping activity that is occupying my time these days is garden planning. For plants to go in the ground in time, the seeds need to be started early enough. The growing medium will be brought in the house to warm, grow lights will be adjusted, seeds will leave the freezer and enter the warmth of their new home in the soil. Are the seeds dreaming of what they will become the same way that I'm dreaming of it?
Do you want home canned jars of food lining your shelves? Do you want bags of frozen veggies in your freezer? Start planning now for your spring garden! Dreaming of the garden's glory can help you endure the lull that is February in Illinois!
Prep On!
Gen-IL Homesteader
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Showing posts with label garden. Show all posts
Showing posts with label garden. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
A few more thoughts on growing
I know I said I wanted to post on seed starting, but I had a few ideas floating around in my brain still on yesterday's topic. Firstly, if you have to plant in buckets and you're having trouble finding cheap pots to put plants in, think about those 5 gallon plastic buckets that you can usually get for .25-1.00 at bakeries. Wash them out well, drill some drain holes in the bottom, fill with a good mix of compost and topsoil (the bagged stuff will work fine), and you've got yourself a place to plant! I used these buckets one year to grow potatoes in when I ran out of room in my garden. Don't worry about how they'll look! We're talking about survival here, not landscaping! Survival always looks great!
Another idea I had was to look for a garden plot of someone else's that you can tend. In 1999, when we were living in a rented home, I put an ad in our church's bulletin asking if anyone had a garden plot that I could 'borrow' for the season. One family answered my ad and had a small space I was able to plant. Then, my younger sis talked with her neighbor and found out she had planted a garden (in their neighbor's garden, no less) and was looking for someone to help her as she'd 'bit off more than she could chew'. I jumped at the opportunity! Since she'd already done the planting, I met with her once a week to pull weeds, and when fall came, we harvested and canned together and split the bounty! Not only did I make a great friend that I still have to this day, but I had fun gardening with someone and had jars of security in my cupboard! Something along these lines may happen again this year as younger sis might do some planting in our garden because she has a few too many beautiful trees in her yard! (Trees that drop tasty nuts!)
The idea I'm trying to get across is that it's okay to do something out of the ordinary, something that takes a bit of extra work, something that might not look beautiful in the world's definition of the word, to be able to feed yourself. When those bright red tomatoes, or deep green cukes are growing out of your bakery buckets, you'll think they're the most beautiful things you'd ever seen! When you can go to your yard and grab some free veggies for dinner, you'll be the happiest person alive!
Okay, next time we'll take a look at seed starting as it's almost that time here in IL!! (Is that cheering I hear???)
Prep on!
Gen-IL Homesteader
Another idea I had was to look for a garden plot of someone else's that you can tend. In 1999, when we were living in a rented home, I put an ad in our church's bulletin asking if anyone had a garden plot that I could 'borrow' for the season. One family answered my ad and had a small space I was able to plant. Then, my younger sis talked with her neighbor and found out she had planted a garden (in their neighbor's garden, no less) and was looking for someone to help her as she'd 'bit off more than she could chew'. I jumped at the opportunity! Since she'd already done the planting, I met with her once a week to pull weeds, and when fall came, we harvested and canned together and split the bounty! Not only did I make a great friend that I still have to this day, but I had fun gardening with someone and had jars of security in my cupboard! Something along these lines may happen again this year as younger sis might do some planting in our garden because she has a few too many beautiful trees in her yard! (Trees that drop tasty nuts!)
The idea I'm trying to get across is that it's okay to do something out of the ordinary, something that takes a bit of extra work, something that might not look beautiful in the world's definition of the word, to be able to feed yourself. When those bright red tomatoes, or deep green cukes are growing out of your bakery buckets, you'll think they're the most beautiful things you'd ever seen! When you can go to your yard and grab some free veggies for dinner, you'll be the happiest person alive!
Okay, next time we'll take a look at seed starting as it's almost that time here in IL!! (Is that cheering I hear???)
Prep on!
Gen-IL Homesteader
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Just do this one thing......
Hi all! If you do one thing this year, I would encourage you to plant something edible! Whether you have a huge garden plot, a few raised beds, some veggies planted in with your landscape, or just a few buckets on your patio or driveway, I believe that growing some of your food this year could be one of the most important things you do! Eating is THE MOST BASIC human need. We have to eat, and yet we leave this most important need to be fulfilled by others! Well, what happens if they don't take that need as seriously as you? What happens if there are crop failures? What about the government imposed drought that's been happening in California? Do you have any idea how many crops are grown in California that are at risk of not being produced? What if there was a truckers' strike or horrid weather that stops deliveries?
What if there is food on the shelf but you can't afford it???? Planting a garden allows you to do something proactive to fulfill that basic human need of feeding yourself.
Did you know that you can buy a packet of seeds for around .99 and you could get tens of plants from it, yielding pounds and pounds of tomatoes! Or, you could go to the store and buy a tasteless tomato for .99/lb. I know which option sounds better to me! There is an overabundance of companies selling veggie seeds by mail, or you can buy the seeds (very often Burpee) that will be sold in your local grocery, hardware store, or Walmart. Look for seeds whose plants do well in your area with your growing conditions.
You know, if you put a garden in you may have failures! Some seeds might not sprout, a late frost or soggy weather may get them, bugs may eat your food before you can get it. Even so, gardening is still an incredible, satisfying, self-sufficient thing to do. And in spite of the failures, you're bound to have some successes! The satisfaction of raising your own food, of not having to go to a store for what you need, is beyond compare! The food is cheaper, healthier, tastier, safer, and it's yours! It is something you did for yourself!
Some friends of our planted their first veggie garden last year. The husband remarked that he thought gardening was good for a marriage. The garden gave them something to do together, from picking out seeds, to planting and weeding, and then the excitement of checking the garden to see what was growing. He would call her at times and say, "Guess how many tomatoes I picked today"? Feeding themselves became something that interested them both and brought them together!
So, I would ask you, encourage you, beg you to plant something for yourself this year! Take an active and, I believe, necessary role in feeding yourself and your family. The potential problems in our economy could be greatly relieved if we were able to use our monies on other important things because the task of feeding ourselves had been taken care of by ourselves! It's nearing time to start seeds indoors for some veggies. We'll discuss some of those plants, and how to start seeds in another post. For now, get out pencil and paper and figure out what you can grow and where! Get ready!
Prep on!
Gen-IL Homesteader
What if there is food on the shelf but you can't afford it???? Planting a garden allows you to do something proactive to fulfill that basic human need of feeding yourself.
Did you know that you can buy a packet of seeds for around .99 and you could get tens of plants from it, yielding pounds and pounds of tomatoes! Or, you could go to the store and buy a tasteless tomato for .99/lb. I know which option sounds better to me! There is an overabundance of companies selling veggie seeds by mail, or you can buy the seeds (very often Burpee) that will be sold in your local grocery, hardware store, or Walmart. Look for seeds whose plants do well in your area with your growing conditions.
You know, if you put a garden in you may have failures! Some seeds might not sprout, a late frost or soggy weather may get them, bugs may eat your food before you can get it. Even so, gardening is still an incredible, satisfying, self-sufficient thing to do. And in spite of the failures, you're bound to have some successes! The satisfaction of raising your own food, of not having to go to a store for what you need, is beyond compare! The food is cheaper, healthier, tastier, safer, and it's yours! It is something you did for yourself!
Some friends of our planted their first veggie garden last year. The husband remarked that he thought gardening was good for a marriage. The garden gave them something to do together, from picking out seeds, to planting and weeding, and then the excitement of checking the garden to see what was growing. He would call her at times and say, "Guess how many tomatoes I picked today"? Feeding themselves became something that interested them both and brought them together!
So, I would ask you, encourage you, beg you to plant something for yourself this year! Take an active and, I believe, necessary role in feeding yourself and your family. The potential problems in our economy could be greatly relieved if we were able to use our monies on other important things because the task of feeding ourselves had been taken care of by ourselves! It's nearing time to start seeds indoors for some veggies. We'll discuss some of those plants, and how to start seeds in another post. For now, get out pencil and paper and figure out what you can grow and where! Get ready!
Prep on!
Gen-IL Homesteader
Saturday, January 9, 2010
The catalogs are coming, the catalogs are coming!
*sorry about the sideways pic. not sure what happened!*If your house is anything like ours is, then your mailbox has been filled with seed catalogs lately! Plus, we were in Menards tonight and they have their seed packets out for sale already! This is one of the most exciting times in the garden, even though you're not in the garden! Drooling over new plants, dreaming of the weed-free, pest-free garden you want to see! It's all so fun!
If you're going to have a garden for the first time this year, then now is the time to look through those catalogs and decide what you want to plant. Pull out the seeds you have stored in your freezer and see what you're in need of. Are you going to try a few new heirloom seeds this year? Is there a new tomato variety you'd like to try? How about an heirloom pumpkin? (I tried one last year and loved it!) Get your garden planned out on paper, and then buy those seeds! We've got a few months before we can start our seeds indoors in preparation for spring planting.
Prep on!
Gen--IL Homesteader
Gen--IL Homesteader
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