Garden update

Our patio garden is going strong! We ate our first blackberry , picked our first tomato, and have a bell pepper about the size of a golf ball. We still have a lot to look forward to. This week we had a new garden pest. I think it was a looper caterpillar nibbling a bunch of our leaves, but now we seem to have it under control. Here's a collage of the garden's progress.

Plant stand

I wanted to buy this plant stand (left) on amazon, but then I got that "hmm I bet I could try to make one myself" vibe. So using an old chair frame and a shadow box picture frame box, I made this planter (right). I added a few plants to the underside to grow upside down and a few plants to the top to grow upwards. I might add a shallow planter box to the bottom but I want to wait to see if the upside down plants need all of this room below.

Spinning compost bin

A few weeks ago, I made a compost bin from a tote bin. It is slowly working on our compost. I read a few articles about how much faster a compost pile decomposes in rotating bins. In less than 1/2 the time and it's less of a dirty job with no need to shovel the pile regularly. That sold me. What didn't sell me was the price. So expensive for my budget. So after a few google searches, a little brainstorming, and a trip to our garage to find a few odds and ends to work with, I came up with a rotating composter using a large bucket with lid, a metal pole, a storage bin with lid, rubber bands, a soda bottle, and a drawer knob. I'm not saying I'm the first ever to make it this way, but I couldn't find instructions for this design easily online.

The kids love "feeding" the composter. Now we wait and see how long our scraps take to make food for our garden :)

Grow garden grow!

Grow garden grow!

I'm so excited about our patio garden. It continues to thrive despite my lack of overall gardening knowledge. I hope to learn enough quickly to keep up. We now have the following growing:

Aloe
Asparagus
Assylum
Beets
Blueberries
Broccoli
Basil
Chives
Cucumber
Carrots
Eggplant
Flax
Gerber daisy
Green onion
Green beans
Jicama*
kohl rabi
lavender
Leeks*
Lima beans
lettuces
milk weed
Mints
Melons
Okra
Oregano
Peas
Peppers
Radishes
Raspberries*
Rosemary
Stevia
Spinach*
Sunflowers
Strawberries
Squashes
tarragon
Tomatoes

I think that's all of it. I know not all will end up surviving but I hope most will. The * means I'm still waiting on the seeds to sprout.

It's so satisfying to watch each plant sprout and grow in a matter of days and then grow inches over each week. I am getting a little anxious waiting for my first harvest. Hopefully sooner than later.






Just a few of the many photos :)