The Garden Experiment

So last summer CARE tried doing a vegetable garden at Meadowbrook Park. For all of our hours spent weeding and putting up with cranky kids and trying to devise a deerproof fence on a budget -- we failed big time. It was a flop. A flop for the kids, a flop for the parents -- a flop for the vegetables. The only thing that really benefited appeared to be the deer that got into the garden, the cucumber bugs that heartily ate anything squash related and the birds who stole away the cherry tomatoes an sunflower seeds. Aaahhh nature.

What was more frustrating was that last year I planted a garden box that is 8x4. I did nothing to it besides occasionally water. And because I spent all the free gardening time I did have in Urbana, I barely weeded it. I had cilantro, basil, tomatoes and potatoes coming out of my ears -- and I did nothing. At the very last moment I put in some acorn squash seeds below my bay window in my crap soil (no top soil and mushroom compost for those bad boys). I had squash until December. 

So, I decided this year, I'd plant more seeds. I'd actually work with some intention. I turned the dirt in my existing garden boxes and put in the tomatoes, basil, potatoes and cilantro. But this year I added carrots and white onions. On the other side of the yard I have 12' x 3' garden boxes, where I planted green beans, green onions, cucumbers, white onions, baby spinach and pumpkins. We've been enjoying the baby spinach already for a couple weeks. I'm sure I've grown at least 6-8 60z large plastic containers of spinach so far, which sell for $5 a piece at the store. Today, I picked the first of the green beans to come up.

I planted pepper and some cherry tomato plants where I put the acorn squash last year. They're growing, but definitely more slowly than the stuff in the planned soil. The same goes for the corn and garlic in X-man's garden in the front. But they're growing. I didn't plant enough that I could literally feed may family off of vegetables until next grow season. But I think I'm doing an okay job as a beginner gardener. Plus, X-man is so much happier playing with the kiddie pool while I weed. I can watch him in the shade of the house while I work.