The Month of May has been exquisite. The past couple of weeks have been my vacation in between semesters. The boys and I have taken full advantage of that and have been working in the gardens and enjoying being outdoors.
The weather has been the driest it has been in 3 years. It’s allowed my gardens to thrive and I’ll soon be harvesting lettuce, radishes and green onions followed by peas, spinach and fava beans. (Although I do need to pray as there is a week of rain ahead of us in the forecast… sigh.)
Spring Gardens Growing
Community Garden
Yesterday, my boys and I spent all day working in the community gardens and my edible landscaping at home. I was born to be outside.
The center bed is filled with onions, eggplant and kale. The bed to the South has tomatillos and I’ll finish that up with Ancho, Jalapeno and Cayenne Peppers. The Bed to the North will be sowed with zuchinni and my favorite pumpkin, Lakota Sioux Squash.
The amendments I’ve been adding to my raised beds over the past couple of years are really starting to pay off.
My Edible Landscape and Home Gardens
It’s during this time of year that I start to fill my home with the beauty of flowering annuals, perennials and now… herbs and vegetables.
Nope… it’s not the newest house on the block, however, we choose to live simply which in the end, gives us more freedom.
Every week I buy a couple new annuals, usually geraniums, to fill in clay pots. Soon, the entire front porch will be filled reminding me of Spain. My mami and I like to sit on the front porch and reminisce over a cervecita.
In the front porch area I have a mix of annuals, perennials and fresh herbs. Tarragon, dill, chives, and chamomile. Soon I’ll pot my mint, rosemary, oregano, parsley and marjoram.
There is swiss chard planted in the area above which has sprouted and growing well. Soon, I’ll be sowing beans to trellis up the other side of the window. I can’t wait to see what that looks like!
In this area I have cabbage, raspberry bushes and tomatoes. I have a volunteer swiss chard plant growing as well in one of my grow boxes that I’ll transplant, YES! Over the weekend I’ll plant my sweet peppers in the growboxes.
The raspberry patch on the side of my house always gets gobbled up by my kids. With many of the new sprouts this year, I’ve lined one entire side of my driveway with more raspberry bushes to give me enough to preserve. By next year, I’m sure we’ll be swimming in raspberries!
Nehemiah and I sowed the front gardening area with a perennial, marigolds that we had dried and saved seeds from last year and 6 tomato plants.
We’ve also been working on our backyard. Remember my chicken tractor experience from last year? Well, we won’t be using a tractor this year as it did kill off the grass in my backyard. I’m still contemplating to raise a few hens for meat and only allow them a couple hours free range a day.
So… we’ve been sodding our backyard and it’s coming along.
There’s orange fencing to keep the dogs off. We still need to sod the other side of the yard and beyond the orange fencing, I’m thinking about adding a few more raised beds that I’ll have to fence off. Something cute and attractive.
Also, I’ll be leaving a dirt area specifically for the chickens dust baths. They love the dirt.
The girls have been happy.
It’s been a busy time but I love the Spring and all that it brings.
So, what have you been growing? Leave a comment or share some pics over at the Spain in Iowa facebook fan page. I’d love to hear or see what you’re doing.
Boy do I wish I had access to such space to garden! I know what you mean about being born to be outdoors. It’s so fulfilling to roll up your sleeves, and truly labor with the earth, nourish it so that it can be in its best condition to grow the plants from seeds that you so carefully and thoughtfully saved from last year. A beautiful cycle, and the beginning is filled with so much wonderful hope.
we just planted our leftover seeds at my in laws last night before today’s rain — bush beans and carrots for them. they weren’t ready for the other seeds yet.
I am really considering stop by in late summer to have a cervecita and enjoy the bounty of the Harvest to come.
🙂
Hugs girl!
Mely
I would LOVE That!
That’s a beautiful kitchen garden. You’ve handsome garden helpers too. I love reading your updates and watching the progress of your plants through the pictures posted. Have a nice weeekend!
I’ve been working on my garden too. Taking tomorrow off for a blog conference but then back at it!
Beautiful pictures!!! Love it!
Beautiful gardens Diana! Looking forward to seeing them maybe. We are getting started on square food gardening. Even Jon is really getting into it (which is an anwsered to prayer because I can’t do it all myself!). We are excited to teach some of the kids too. Please keep that in your prayers that our gardens will be successful and we will be able to show and teach the locals how to raise their own food simple in a square foot garden! Check out our latest post at RO4Y. There is a paragraph on it :o)
Very nice garden indeed! You’ll be swimming in produce come July and August!
I planted peppers (sweet and spicy), sugar snap peas, mesclun, kale and Asian mustard, tomatoes, cucumbers and zucchini. I’ve also got a variety of herbs. I would love to convert more of my backyard space into vegetable beds, but Hubby is not really keen on the idea. We’ll probably just be adding one more 8’x 2′ box.
Oh MAN am I jealous of that garden. We have two measly raised beds with peas, kale,, strawberries and tomatoes. We get no sun! I miss the midwest spring.
I love your house! It’s so cute, the patio out front is awesome! I’ve changed my front yard to edible landscaping this year as well! Mostly herbs and strawberries!