Let there be LIFE

And on the seventh day...

Not really, this is more like the 20th day, but still. I have created LIFE! Check out the pictures for the status of my vegetable gardening adventure. I have indoor seedlings going for: cherry tomatoes, regular tomatoes, leaf lettuce, chives, cucumber, bell peppers, and jalapeno peppers and outdoor seedlings for: leaf lettuce, snap peas, spinach, onions, chives, and carrots!

Are you not entertained?!?

My indoor seedlings have spunk, I think ;-)

Flowers brighten everybody's day :-) I bought these on Liberty Ave. and transplanted them to pots in the backyard

My delightful patch of love - peas are in the back left and leaf lettuce is in the front right, the others are little still, but they're there!

Cultivate your mind and the rest will follow

Apologies for the cheesy title. I'm getting bored with creating witty blog titles.

I LOVE MY GARDEN! There isn't any life in it yet, hell there's not even any seeds. But what there is - is topsoil and cow dung! Hooray! This completes Phase 2 of the summer garden extravaganza. Yesterday I turned over all of the soil (which was hard and gross looking and contained logs for some reason). I used a technique that I learned in my gardening class called double digging. Basically, you dig out a 1'x1' tunnel and move the dirt somewhere outside of the plot, but save it for later. Then you add topsoil into the hole. Next you dig out another tunnel right next to the first tunnel and use the new displaced soil to fill the first tunnel. Get it?!? And it goes on until you only have one tunnel at the other end of you garden and then you use the soil you set aside in the beginning to fill that hole. It was painful. My back, arms, and abs are killing me!

Then Ann came over and was my little helper. We poured topsoil and cow manure on top of everything and then just cultivated for about an hour: breaking up big clumps, moving everything around. Finally we installed a snazzy little brick perimeter. and Voila!! Craig and I now have a garden plot ready to go!

Peas are going in tonite. And I will start my seedlings for tomatos and peppers and some other stuff.

Double Digging

Finished Project!

Garden Project: Phase 1

I realize this is probably not the most interesting or witty of my posts - but I have found a passion... And it is in the form of a small 6'x6' plot of dirt. After taking my gardening class and committing myself to create life (botanically speaking) I sought out on a summer-long journey into horticultury.

The canvas: my new backyard. More specifically the plot of grass where a shed used to sit before we owned the house.

The challenge: create a vegetable garden.

Phase 1 - Transform the grass-covered plot into a fertile nursery for my babies (ie. crops) to thrive.

It took 2 days (about 5 hours which converts to a 6 pack of Lionshead), using a weeding tool no larger than a fork and Craig, who has a surprisingly green thumb, to complete Phase 1. Please enjoy the accompanying photos and get psyched for Phase 2 when we travel to CULTIVATION NATION!