Watching My Garden Grow!

Our weather has been unseasonably warm, and I couldn't be happier. Neither could my garden. 

All 960 sq ft of it! 

Speaking of my garden, there have been a few changes as we gear towards summer! 

1) I decided to go for a soaker hose system, to cut down the water bill a bit. I haven't buried it yet, because I want to wait until I'm sure it's working/placed where I want it first. 

2) That handy hubby of mine built me a new double Cedar compost bin! Actually, we built it together. As a date. Cause that's how we have fun around here! 

3) I'm also trying out a rather makeshift hoop house. The hubby wants me to do a greenhouse, but I'm still on the fence about it. We'll see how many of my plants survive (and flourish!) before we get that serious! Either way, I'm hoping this will help out my tomatoes this year. 

This is just for cute. I caught somebody in the strawberries!

So, I'm not a huge fan of Rosemary, but it does have it's place. However, so it didn't take over my herb garden, I decided to container it (that's a word, right??)

HERBS! Yummy!

About half of my garden in the evening glow. This just makes me happy.

Inside the hoop house. Yes, I splurged on the orange tomato cages. I know, I know.

I'm hoping my snap peas (3 varieties) will get enough sun behind the hoop house!!

Blueberries

This bed has snow peas, green beans, red beans, black beans, golden beans, chard, yellow beets, and bull's blood beets in it. And garlic, obviously.

I'm still playing with the soakers in the rows. Advice? I am just not happy here. There is actually a fifth row on the other side of the planters too.

Compost.

Oh, and this cutie was the real inspiration behind a new compost system. My old system (was hideous) and Mr. Fatty Pants (aka Jack) kept sneaking into it. 

Faux Berries

Maybe you've seen this idea floating around the interwebs. The story goes something like this: 

- you paint some rocks like strawberries

- put them in your strawberry beds

- birds try (and fail) to eat them

- then when your strawberries DO pop, up the birds won't touch them!

Well, my friend Shelby is giving it a go this year! Hopefully she'll tell us how it turns out, so we we can make an informed decision next spring. Here are her lovely "strawberries"!

A Million Little Things

I didn't have very much to do in the garden this week, but that doesn't mean it wasn't a super busy week! We are always doing things. If it's not sunny out (it wasn't) then I try to get inside chores caught up. On this week's agenda was lots of cleaning, baking, sewing, building, and painting. 

We had one sunny afternoon, so my little guy and I decided to paint some rocks for garden markers. I had been gathering them on my runs all week!

I also baked a couple of loaves of bread for the week and made some scratch/no MSG/no preservatives/all natural sausage biscuits to freeze for mornings when we all oversleep and a fresh breakfast isn't an option.

My lovely friend showed me how to do elastic (I have no idea why I was so scared of it!) and let me borrow her pattern so I could sew up some new diapers for my growing babe. I had scraps of organic hemp, organic cotton flannel, organic cotton fleece, and I bought a few fun prints and terry on sale for my new stash. 

We also started on our new woodshed since we are out of wood for the year. Luckily it's a warm spring and I don't think we will need anymore. My daddy came over to help out. I love that my hubby gets along with my family (and I with his!)

And just for fun, I chopped off all of my hair! I've never had my hair this short before, but I am loving it!

And that brings me back around! What do you do when there's nothing to do [in the garden]? 

How to keep your starts alive and thriving!

DON'T DROP THEM IN YOUR GARAGE!!!!

Another one bites the dust...

Mulch Much?

I know I said earlier, that my new grass was a fail, but I am thrilled that I was just impaitent!!! LOOK! New Grass!!!!! 

I also got some straw for the garden for mulch. Now, I know that there can be problems with straw: sprouting and slugs to name two. Gross. BUT, it will also seriously cut my water bill down and compost back in over the winter when I turn it in. It's natural and, maybe even more importantly, super duper cheap. 

Fun Bun Run

First off, I'll go ahead and appologize for the tittle. I know, I know, but I just couldn't resist. 

Second of all, this is mainly a shameless hubby brag, so you'll have to forgive me a second time. I'm not gonna lie, I feel like the luckiest girl in the world to have a handy hubby who builds me stuff! 

My daddy (orange) and hubby (blue) building the bunny run!

Of course, Coffee Bean and Creamsicle loved their new bunny run!

Bun Run

The bunny run, bunny hutch, and my back garden. So lovely! I seriously can't wait until summer!

The SUN! Quick, everyone OUT!!!

Here in the great Northwest it was in the 60s and sunny all week! Quick! Everybody outside! Seriously, my kids think it's summer. 

Sooo... we put in 10 raspberry plants in the front yard. 5 Carolines and 5 Tulameens. YUM! The boys got to bike, scoot, and play street hockey while Mr. Baby helped me plant.

As I mentioned before, here, I am reusing garden materials, so this bed cost me 0 dollars and 0 cents. However, this raised bed would seriously be the cheapest ever to build new. Each block costs just over a dollar new. I placed river rocks (free at your local creek) on top to make them prettier.

I love garden snuggles...

Another project we worked on was cleaning out (removing thier winter mulch) the strawberry/iris/fruit tree beds. 

And my mama bought me a Candice (PINK!!!) grape plant! SO excited about this!!!

I had my first little bloom!

I also transplanted my onions (New York Early and Walla Walla) that my middle little dropped. I'm hoping they don't die. We'll see...

Also, my grass seed that I planted between my raised beds in the garden seems to be a big, fat FAIL! Soooo.... I'm transplanting moss from my yard! Less to mow, right? I'm taking something I have, removing it from where I don't want it, and putting it where I do want it. 

Moss in the grass... 

Moss in the garden...

I had a super awesome garden helper too! My mom. She's an awesome gardener and super fun. She also bought me my Raspberry and Grape plants. I think she wants jam this fall....