2014 Garden Prep

I've been working hard to get some garden beds prepped so we can have a small garden this year. I have really missed my fresh herbs, summer and fall produce, and the therapeutic peace that comes from working outside. 

We're having a fence built soon (I will never ever ever build my own again in Bella Vista rock soil. So many grey hairs!) and when it's finished, I have a grand terraced garden planned for the back yard. Knowing the amount of time it will take me to dig and build leveled beds, I panicked a little when I thought about having to wait so long to plant anything. I decided to put my recycled pieces from the raised beds from the old house into use.

Shoveling rocks is no joke! My back and arms ached for days after clearing our these spaces. With the parts of the old beds I was able to salvage enough to assemble 3 square beds and two long beds. That will at least be enough for this year. We don't have a lot of direct sun in the yard so I hope our garden will be successful! I also have 4 trees that need to be cut down soon. We've been saving all of the money from my preschool in a separate account and there's enough in there to pay for the tree removal, a fence and garden and some other large projects, so that's pretty exciting. It feels awesome to not dip into our budget for projects. 

It's coming along and I'm slowly leveling them out as I clear the rocks out. In the future, these beds will hold the herbs, strawberries, and asparagus, but I'll probably fill them with tomatoes, squash, and peppers this year because I cant bear to go another summer without them. I'm really looking forward to having a garden again! This hobby brings me a lot of sanity, teaches my children the benefits of hard work, adds beauty to our yard,  puts good on our table, and brings me closer to friends as we share ideas and things we grow. The garden will be small this year, but it is mighty in purpose.