Garden Update

Princess's zucchini has taken over.  I'm thinking we need LOTS of recipes... if you have a good one, let me know.
Rosebud's corn is ready for pollination.  Did you know that when you only have a small amount of corn that pollination is done by hand?  I'm thinking that is something she will need to take care of this weekend.  Her watermelon looks good also but it has some strange looking bug that needs to be investigated and eliminated... another project for the weekend.
Stinkbug's plot has some good looking corn too but it is not ready for pollination.  And you almost can't see his corn because of his potato plants... what is up with those things???  The tomato plants he began from seed are almost as big as the ones we bought.  He is quite attentive to his plot and it shows.
And of course, we can't forget Sugarcake.  The big monster of a thing in her plot is pumpkin... that's A (singular) pumpkin plant.  I didn't use a wide angle but it is over on the right side about 3 or 4 feet and over on the left side 1 or 2 feet.  All she wants from it is pumpkin pie, but I'm thinking we may have to start selling them... lol... she's been trying to figure out a way to make money...

I can't believe it has been almost a month since my last garden update... what a difference a few weeks makes!

In love and recovery,

ThereO

First Fruits...

Okay, well, actually... FRUIT (singular...lol)  Princess celebrated the Ascension by picking her first strawberry.
Perfectly red... perfectly beautiful.
And perfectly tasty!!!

In love and recovery,

ThereO

Garden Update

YEA!  We have tomatoes!!!  The only thing more exciting than seeing things growing in the garden is seeing the look on the kids' faces when they see things growing!  These two were found on Princess's tomato plant.
The potatoes in the picture above are in Stinkbug's plot.  And below is Rosebud's corn and watermelon looking so much bigger than last week.
Below is Sugarcake's pumpkin.  She has watermelon too but it is not quite as thick as Rosebud's.

Stinkbug's potatoes have gotten so tall we are going to have to add some boards to his plot so we can pile more dirt in.  They are only supposed to have about four inches of growth showing so we've got lots of dirt to get on those babies... and soon!

More weeding and watering to come.  Hopefully we can keep the ants at bay.

In love and recovery,

ThereO

Fruits of our Labor

Okay, well, I'll be honest... God's the one doing all the work.  He's sent the rain, He's sent the sunshine, and so far He hasn't sent too many bugs or weeds... so this is how some of our plants are looking this week....         The first strawberry for Princess...

Corn stalks for Rosebud...

Stinkbug's potatoes are looking good...

And it looks like Sugarcake may get some pumpkin...
Most of our other plants are looking good also but these are the best looking of the plots so far.

May God continue to bless our garden and have mercy on us city dwellers that haven't done this before.

In love and recovery,

ThereO

Growing a Garden - Update

After our planting session last week, we ended up with some pepper plants and blue boys that did not have a home.  Today I cleaned out some pots and planted our left overs.  Below is a picture of our garden storage.  I'm not a big Walmart fan but I did manage to find this there for $4 and several pairs of garden shoes for $1 each.
Princess's garden plot...    eggplant, zucchini, strawberries, onions
Rosebud's garden plot...   okra, watermelon, corn, stevia
Stinkbug's garden plot...   potato, corn, tomato, carrots
Sugarcake's garden plot...  pumpkin, watermelon, tomato, beans
I can hardly believe it has been less than two weeks since we put these babies in the ground!  I'm amazed at the growth.  Today, we added dirt to each plot and watered.  I finally managed to stake the tomatoes plants purchased from our community garden... another Walmart purchase - bamboo sticks, a whole package of about 25 for $2.37.

Time for a shower  NOW!

In love and recovery,

ThereO

How a Garden Grows

In the middle of February, God graced our family with the opportunity to participate in a community garden.  We joined about 5 other homeschooling families in this project.  From the first moment, we were hooked.  We have had the opportunity to plant seeds and seedlings, pull weeds, water, feed worms, pull bugs off plants and a variety of other things.  As we approached spring, we decided to try our hand at raising a few vegetables ourselves.

We purchased some packages of seeds, some dirt and some starter containers.  Within a few weeks, our seeds had sprouted and we were ready to get them in the ground.

We constructed four plots.  Each child helped to construct their own plot... we did 3 sides and dad finished up the fourth side of each one.

Next came paper and then organic soil.  None of the kids seemed too excited when they found out what was in the soil... lol!

Within a few short days, the beds were built and filled with dirt.  And the planting began...

God blessed our garden with LOTS of rain... so much rain that we were beginning to wonder if our little garden might wash away.  Not only is the garden still in place, all of the rain seems to be just what it needed and our sprouts are lush and green.  We'll replace some of the washed away soil and my hope is to post a weekly update on "how our garden grows."

In love and recovery,

ThereO