How Does Your Garden Grow?

Even though we have had a garden in some shape or form for a few years and I witnessed gardens being tended and cared for since I was a young girl I still feel like a newbie when it comes to the art and science of gardening. I think the problem lies in the fact that when it comes to gardening the amount of choices involved make it more of an art than an exact science.

Every aspect of gardening involves a choice and for someone as indecisive as I can sometimes be the choice between raised beds and regular beds, heirloom tomatoes and cherry tomatoes, to compost or not to compost, types of soil, plant choice, and garden layout could paralyze me into inactivity.

The basics come down to getting one's hands dirty: digging into the soil, placing a seed or seedling there and tending to it. And in the garden my motto must become "just keep sowing."  When the decisions crop up, The Mister and I make them democratically and move on. Have we recreated my dream garden in this fashion? No, but my dream garden is just that--a dream (think garden of Eden).  We have to work with what we've got in terms of space and budget and hardiness zone. So when I make some off the wall suggestion--we are reigned in by those parameters.

I feel like we are late to the game this year because our garden is not in the ground yet.  But this weekend--after my sister gets married--we have plans to put one in. This year we are keeping things simple: zuchs, tomatoes and peppers. Maybe I can talk Jim into putting in an eggplant...

I really do love having a garden. Nothing tastes better than food that you toiled for. Sure, our garden may not be watered from a rain barrel or be covered with compost from our old coffee grounds and such...but it will be ours.

Is your green thumb itching? Tell us about your garden plans for the year.  How do you make decisions about what to plant and how to plant it? --every garden has a story and I'd love to hear yours!