With inspiration from Lisa, I have started my own Square Foot Garden. I've never had a garden before, but the Square Foot Garden website says this method is ideal for beginners. Instead of making the frame 4 feet by 4 feet, I made two 2 feet by 4 feet frames. This way they fit better in the sunny part of our yard where I think the garden will do best. I bought the lumber and had Lowe's cut it to size for me. The guy cutting the lumber called me "Princess". Kind of flattering, kind of creepy. At least he was a young guy and not too bad looking.
Yesterday I made the frames. It felt awesome to build something myself - with my own drill and everything! The boards were slightly warped (definitely not Quality Builders material), but the frames came together nicely. The hardest part of the whole thing was mixing together the dirt to fill the frames with. I was very hot and dirty by the end!
I'm starting some of my plants indoors. I'm afraid I'm a little behind in the season, so maybe starting them indoors will get them to grow faster. In all, I'm planting beans, onions, cucumbers, tomatoes (for Amy especially), basil, cilantro, oregano, and peppers. That's a complete pot of soup right there! Yum! I was planting the starter pots out on our deck and it was a bit windy out. The packet of (opened) basil seeds fell through the boards and are not-retrievable. It is possible we'll get basil growing up between the boards of our deck, but I'm thinking they may not get enough sun to do anything. The funniest thing is Amy saw me through the window with my face pressed against the deck trying to see the seed packet and wondered what I was doing.
I've purchased some of my supplies from Lowe's, but am trying to get the most of what I need from this great family-run business just down the street from my house. The people there are very knowledgeable and helpful, and I like going to the "Mom and Pop" shops. This garden is being financed by a surprise gift from my grandparents. Yeah for Grandpa and Grandma!
So I'm keeping my fingers crossed that something will grow. Only time will tell if living with Lisa and Karen for several years helped me pick up a "green thumb".
It's possible I can post of picture of this garden if someone (ie., the landlady or the other roommate) want to take a pic with her digital camera for me. Just a suggestion.
4 comments:
Way to go Amanda...I am totally impressed! You will have so mcu fun!
Good job Amanda, I hope you got the green thumb from your former roomies,because you did not get it from your mother. (-: Hope it all grows well.
What kind of lumber did you buy, Amanda? I want to buy cedar, because it's naturally rot-resistant, but it's pricier. The SFG book says even just untreated pine will last a few years before rotting; that may be a good way for me to start.
Of course, this is all after we return from Cedar...in June! Talk about getting a late start.
Off to pack for unpredictable UP weather.
For lumber I used 1 x 6 pine (untreated of course). It came in 8 feet lengths. I had to buy three boards to make my two 2 feet by 4 feet boxes. Total the lumber only cost about $15. Lowe's cut it for free.
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