How Does Your Garden Grow?

Yes, I am feeling very contrary this morning. It was cold, this has been a long week, and I stayed up way past my bedtime to watch the BCS Championship game (GO SEC!). Plus, I am tired of salads. I had some very filling and tasty salads this week, with homemade dressing, but I feel like a rabbit. Tonight: steak! I haven't weighed myself since Monday (153), so I'm not sure how much progress I've made. I'm stepping on the Wii Fit tonight, and I swear I'll scream if I'm not down a few pounds. But, back to the actual topic of this post...

This year I am starting an honest-to-goodness garden. I had a bucket garden last year that I started way late in the season, but with the moderate success I had (4 huge bell peppers, 3 tomatoes, and a sage and thyme plant that made it through the winter), I am very excited about this growing season. Between our local farmer's market, my coworker's fantastically abundant garden, and our own garden, we should be more than set for this summer/fall.

My hubby has finally found the perfect Valentine's Day present for me: build my raised bed. Since we only have about 1/3 third of an acre of arable land right now and no real hard-core gardening tools (greenhouse, tiller, etc.), we decided to build a raised bed in a pretty unusable strip of ground between the driveway and the house. It's going to be right outside the kitchen door and will be bookended by gardenia bushes, so, hopefully, lots of pollinating going on.

So far, the list of plants to be included is as follows:
- peppers
- tomatoes
- spinach
- lettuce
- broccoli
- kale
- squash
- assorted herbs: thyme, oregano, basil, sage, parsley, chives, and dill

If I have room (doubtful), I'd like to include tomatillos and zucchini. In the buckets from last year, I want to grow mint, garlic, rosemary, and onions.

These are all very lofty goals, and once space is considered, I'll probably be cutting back on something, but I can't decide what. But, hey, dream big. And of homemade spaghetti sauce.