4.21.2015

2015 Garden {Week 1}

Over the weekend, we planted our 2015 Garden! 
I always try and get my garden planted by the end of April/beginning of May.
Last year I didn't get it planted until the early part of May, but since our weather has been so nice, in the 70s this weekend, we decided to get it planted!

Kevin grew up with a garden in their backyard & so did I.
We LOVE homegrown veggies. 
They taste amazing...there is nothing like picking veggies straight from your backyard!
I get so excited in April when it is time to start thinking about our garden.
I carefully plan out what I am planting in each garden box (that Kevin built for me!)
My girls love having a garden also, they love helping me plant it, water it & pick the veggies.
I always try and get my garden planted by the end of April/beginning of May.
Here is our 2015 Garden:
Each year, we get new dirt for our boxes & Kevin mixes in the new dirt with the old dirt.
This year I also got this Organic Fertilizer to mix in:
I got it at our local nursery.

4 years ago, Kevin built me these 3 Garden Boxes:
Every year, I plant veggies in all 3 boxes.
Here is what is in Box #1:

Romaine Lettuce:
Kale (this is my first time growing kale)
This lettuce is perfect for salads!
Red onions:
 Carrots from seeds (usually I do orange carrots, this year I am trying out the colorful mix.
 Kate grew a bean plant at school in science, so we replanted it in our garden:

My strawberries that I planted last year came back randomly a few weeks ago!
Dill:
 Oregano:
 My Rosemary plant from last summer is still growing strong
 Cilantro:
 Basil....the smell of basil reminds me of summer!
 Chives:
Box #2:
 I have 4 types of cherry tomatoes in Box #2:
Husky Cherry Red:
 Sun Gold Cherry Tomatoes:
Super Sweet 100 Cherry Tomatoes:
 Sun Sugar Orange Cherry Tomatoes:
  I also plant squash (only 1 squash plant this year because of the drought)
 Zucchini! My favorite! Again, only 1 plant because of the drought:
 I love growing zucchini because they grow a ton & I have several recipes that use zucchini!
Chocolate Chip Zucchini Muffins:
Blueberry Zucchini Bread:
  My 3rd Garden Box is reserved for my favorite....Early Girl Tomatoes!
I love early girl tomatoes....they are a medium size & are so red. They are perfect for sandwiches, hamburgers, caprese salad, etc.
 I plant 5 Early Girl Tomatoes in this box:
We also a few fruit trees planted on the perimeter of our garden. 
We have a mandarin orange tree:
 And, 2 apples tree....Fuji & Honey Crisp (you can see them on the left hand side)
The past 4 years I have planted vegetables along the right side of the garden boxes, like cucumbers, pumpkins, cantaloupe & watermelon. It is so fun to grow those, BUT...we are in a MAJOR drought here in California......it's really bad. We are on water restrictions, so I am not planting those veggies since they are vine veggies and require A LOT of water. 
The rest of my vegetables don't take as much water...but I am willing to skip out & cut back on my showers....nothing gets between me & my homegrown tomatoes ;)

Here are my gardening tips in case you have a backyard garden!
1. Plant your garden in a place in your yard that gets a lot of afternoon sun. 
We use a raised garden boxes that Kevin built. 
They are 4x8 and made with redwood. This is our 5th summer having them. I love them!
2. Make sure you water your plants 3 times a week during mild weather and every other day during a heat wave.
***For drought areas, like us here in California, we are on rationing, so I am going to water 2-3 times a week, but I am going to water directly on the base of the plant with a trickle, so that the water goes straight to the roots.****
3. Get new dirt each year, more specifically one for gardens. 
We order a Garden Mix from our local nursery. I also add an organic compost/fertilizer.
4.  Block your garden off with a fence (or barricade) if you have a pet who likes to ruin your garden. 
Last year, our yellow lab dug up half our garden within 24 hours of planting it & I had to go back & by new plants the next day!
5. If you are planting Tomatoes, you MUST get this: 
 
It's my 5th year using it and my tomatoes are usually out of control! 

Do you have a Backyard Garden? What is your favorite thing to grow?
Let me know if you have any other garden questions, gardening is one of my very favorite hobbies!

11 comments:

  1. Wow! Your garden is so impressive. I can't wait to see everything as it starts growing. Please post pics! You are much braver than I. I definitely do not have a green thumb! I always tell my husband that my idea of "hunting and gathering" is going to the mall... ha!
    Have a great Tuesday!
    The Busy Brunette
    http://thebusybrunette.blogspot.com/

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  2. I always love your garden posts! I think I need to plant one this year!! Love Early Girl tomatoes also!

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  3. We have a front yard garden and love it so much. We grow peas, beans, cucumbers, lettuce, kale, squash, tomatoes, radish, Swiss chard and a bunch of other stuff. I just love it so much. Careful with those strawberries - they'll take over your whole garden!!

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  4. This is so timely! Our lawn care man is wonderful and just built us a raised bed today. I'm so excited! A few questions: 1. How deep is your box, and did you dig down under it or only plant within it? Ours is 6 inches and I'm wondering if I should have him make it 12 since we have a drain under ours and can't dig down. 2. Besides the tomatoes how many of each plant do you grow and do you have too much, too little, etc? There are four of us, including a four year old and soon to be eating solids infant. My husband is the only tomato water in our family but I'd love to grow him some yummy ones!

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    Replies
    1. Tomato EATER! So frustrating, can't edit on mobile. I had a third question I can't remember, too, so these will have to do. Thank you!

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  5. Love your garden pictures good job!!! We have a garden and have for years love all the fresh homegrown stuff to cook all summer long...Do you ever grow okra? We use seeds from yr to yr but my husbands grandfather would save his seeds for us and then my FIL would give us seed so it was passed along to all of us so special to see it grow with love. Sad my FIL passed away almost a year ago but we found some okra dried in his barn for us and it will be planted this year. I would love to mail you some if you thought it would grow there...

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  6. Ok I am going to get some of that tomato growing stuff PRONTO! We do a huge garden in the field behind our house. It is really nice because a little old man that owns the land behind us plows it up with his massive farm tractor (he has a pumpkin farm). The downside is that it is not fenced in and we have lots of trouble with deer, rabbits, etc. We grow everything from tomatoes to zucchinis, pumpkins, loads of green beans and peppers, cucumbers, corn, and asparagus! Your zucchini recipes look fantastic! I just posted my mom's recipe for choc. chip zucchini muffins the other day- too funny! Great minds think alike! We get so many zucchini we *almost* get sick of it! Bring on summer and caprese salads- yummmmm!

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  7. This was the post I needed today :). I am going to follow every tiny detail you shared!

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  8. Going to attempt a veggie garden this weekend for the first time…is there anything you do to prevent weeds? Thanks.

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  9. I enjoyed reading your blog. Your garden looked great last year and I would be interested in finding out what changes you plan to make this year. You seem to be growing a lot of veg. I grew some tomatoes last year and they were a great success. Hopefully Ill be able to grow a lot more veg and flowers this year. I'm just getting into gardening so it's nice to read others posts.

    Norberto @ Thorburn Landscapes

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  10. I love your blog as well as your garden. You have managed to grow a lot of veg which is great. I also like the photo of food that you have made with the veg from your garden as all the dishes look very tasty. I am planning my garden this year and am thinking of building some raised beds. Hope your garden does as well this year.

    Bert Aguilar @ Rainfill Tanks and Curved Roofing Supplies

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