This seems to be the the common statement between James and I as we assess our gardens.
“In the future we will…
… think of ways to protect before planting.”
… just go to a greenhouse for healthy baby plants, rather than try our own seedlings.”
… fence in the flower bed.”
… use containers for the sunflowers by the front fence.”
… build a second raised bed.”
… build an elevated bed so we can bring the tomatoes and carrots off the ground.”
… find a cage-thing to cover the carrots, so we can harvest them easily.”
… buy an existing lattice for snap peas to climb, rather than my makeshift baling twine jungle.”
… stock up on cayenne and gravel.”
We’ve learned a lot, and when you never know what will greet you when you go outside, it can be overwhelming. My last post expressed all my raw truths, and I cannot pretend to move on so quickly, but there is a lot to say for the support that we received in our honesty. I’ve taken it to heart, and we have already begun to work with the suggestions (the best we can without living at Home Depot).
At this point, it’s the lessons that are important.
That is what this summer should be about.
And, this is something that I need to be reminded of.
We have come a long way from where we started this spring – with a power washer, a busted raised bed, and broken glass on an old cement pad. The main goal of having a comfortable place to relax outside has happened. We have a comfortable place to sit and have dinner (which we do). We have pretty flowers that we have learned to enjoy while they last. We have a lovely fountain that downs out the noise of living in the city. And, today, James and I shared 6 snap peas that were ready to be snacked on! There are so many positives.
And tomorrow, maybe we will go outside and the groundhog will have found a way through the screen to eat our new summer squash plants.
We are learning, and at this point we are strapped in for the ride.
At this point, we have agreed that we cannot keep pushing funds toward this unpredictable world of urban gardening. Not this year. Rather, we will have to hope that we have done enough, for now, and be lucky enough to get a few nice, warm tomatoes from our efforts. (And, peppers, broccoli, summer squash, green beans and snap peas – I’m not greedy, haha).
That is why this blog has become so important. To save our hard lessons to review next spring when we try to create a more educated garden. To get feedback from all of you for what has worked to solve the same issues we are dealing with today. To remember, that if we did it once, we can do it again and – always better.
Now, we need to invest in a home office space, as 4 months into working from home (with no end in sight) we really need to be more organized. Will I blog about this? Probably, not… but, I am sure we will learn more lessons there too!
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