Some people relish a day in front of the TV. Others save their time to work on models or scrapbook or any number of worthy hobbies. Me? I love dirt!!
My dream is to buy a couple of acres of untouched land, clear it and make it mine. I would slowly clear the underbrush (with the help of my small herd of goats that I would buy as soon as the fencing was up!). Then I would go through the trees and decide which would serve best as fuel and take them down. I would plant fruit trees suitable for Florida (fig, avocado, sand pear, maybe a Florida apple variety), kiwi vines, blueberry bushes and blackberry thickets. My garden would supply us with most of our vegetable needs, the dairy goats would give us milk and keep the underbrush down. Chickens for fresh eggs and IF I got courageous enough, I would try to raise meat rabbits. The courage would be for "harvesting" the meat.
AAHHHH....to dream!
My reality isn't all that bad though. I live on a fifth of an acre, have a great house (big enough AND small enough), good neighbors and as much financial security as anyone these days could expect. Living here for 25 years has its benefits. I've spent 25 years bringing in compost and improving the soil in this largely sandy area. The oak trees in my yard shield the house from the worst of the summer sun and our yearly average electric bill (considering I keep our nighttime AC at 73 degrees) is very reasonable.
So, my job is to create my dream right here! Yesterday I shoveled about a cubic yard of sand and well rotted horse manure. I was in heaven! My body loved the exercise and my mind loved the "zen" of hard labor. The goal? To build a raised bed in my front yard! That's right, the FRONT yard. That little square patch of land has been left largely unscathed by my escapades mostly because I am not a pretty gardener. I am a vegetable gardener. I like FUNCTION. This will be my new challenge.
I've laid out the landscaping timbers and secured them in place. The manure is all snug in its new 'bed' and will have to rest a bit before it receives plants. I don't want to burn their little tootsies! The crescent shaped bed is 16' long and about 3' at its widest. Along the front I'm planting some colorful fall flowers, maybe impatiens because I really love them. Broccoli will stand proud in back (until I cut they little heads off!!! HEHEHEHE) and perhaps bush beans to fill in the middle. I wonder if squash will grow there. I can't seem to grow it anywhere else!!
It comes down to this...if I can't have my place in the country, I'll just have to bring the country to me...and my neighbors and husband will have to deal with the smell of horse once in awhile. And coffee. Starbucks gives away old coffee grounds and they make great fertilizer! Today I got a bonus in my 30 pounds of grounds...two small stainless steel pitchers that they use for milk. So for the next few days anyway, the smell of horse hockey and coffee with mingle in the air...HEHEHEHE!!!!
My dream is to buy a couple of acres of untouched land, clear it and make it mine. I would slowly clear the underbrush (with the help of my small herd of goats that I would buy as soon as the fencing was up!). Then I would go through the trees and decide which would serve best as fuel and take them down. I would plant fruit trees suitable for Florida (fig, avocado, sand pear, maybe a Florida apple variety), kiwi vines, blueberry bushes and blackberry thickets. My garden would supply us with most of our vegetable needs, the dairy goats would give us milk and keep the underbrush down. Chickens for fresh eggs and IF I got courageous enough, I would try to raise meat rabbits. The courage would be for "harvesting" the meat.
AAHHHH....to dream!
My reality isn't all that bad though. I live on a fifth of an acre, have a great house (big enough AND small enough), good neighbors and as much financial security as anyone these days could expect. Living here for 25 years has its benefits. I've spent 25 years bringing in compost and improving the soil in this largely sandy area. The oak trees in my yard shield the house from the worst of the summer sun and our yearly average electric bill (considering I keep our nighttime AC at 73 degrees) is very reasonable.
So, my job is to create my dream right here! Yesterday I shoveled about a cubic yard of sand and well rotted horse manure. I was in heaven! My body loved the exercise and my mind loved the "zen" of hard labor. The goal? To build a raised bed in my front yard! That's right, the FRONT yard. That little square patch of land has been left largely unscathed by my escapades mostly because I am not a pretty gardener. I am a vegetable gardener. I like FUNCTION. This will be my new challenge.
I've laid out the landscaping timbers and secured them in place. The manure is all snug in its new 'bed' and will have to rest a bit before it receives plants. I don't want to burn their little tootsies! The crescent shaped bed is 16' long and about 3' at its widest. Along the front I'm planting some colorful fall flowers, maybe impatiens because I really love them. Broccoli will stand proud in back (until I cut they little heads off!!! HEHEHEHE) and perhaps bush beans to fill in the middle. I wonder if squash will grow there. I can't seem to grow it anywhere else!!
It comes down to this...if I can't have my place in the country, I'll just have to bring the country to me...and my neighbors and husband will have to deal with the smell of horse once in awhile. And coffee. Starbucks gives away old coffee grounds and they make great fertilizer! Today I got a bonus in my 30 pounds of grounds...two small stainless steel pitchers that they use for milk. So for the next few days anyway, the smell of horse hockey and coffee with mingle in the air...HEHEHEHE!!!!
2 comments:
So it this new garden bed behind the blueberry and fig bushes? I can't wait to come and sample some vegetables.
Can you please make your daughter teach you how to upload pictures?!?! Also, Cabbage is one of the new "in" plants for a flower garden, but you can eat it too--funtional and pretty--use the purple variety.
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