From Johnny's Seeds:
Green Splendor Gourds - I'm going to experiment in making luffa sponges (this is my new favorite blog and here's a post on making your own luffas)
Mint - this is something that Jason and I both remember having in our childhood homes so it's a must for our garden although we'll put it in a container so it doesn't take over
Blueberry Plants - Abygail and Jason love blueberries and the only kind I see around here are NOT from around here so we'll try this out, they will probably be planted along the fence line to give some privacy
From Seed Savers:
Tomato Plants:
- Amish Paste - this will be our 'preservation' plant
- Brandywine (Sudduth's Strain)
- Green Zebra - I've always wanted to grow these, now we'll know if they are worth it
- Stupice
- King of the North (Sweet)
- Wenk's Yellow Hots (Hot) - both Jason and I are from TX and we really like hot and spicy foods, this will also be used a lot in preservation as well
- Birdhouse Gourd - this will be a fun craft project
- Gourd Mixture - fun for the kids and help them enjoy the garden too, possibly also used for craft project
- Scarlet Nantes Carrot
- Early Fortune Cucumber
- Empress Bean
- Amish Snap Pea
Strawberries - we all LOVE strawberries and I'd like to preserve some this year
Seed Starting Kit
Corn - another childhood memory and a must
Zinnias - when I think of gardens I think of the Zinnias that my best friend's mother grows in their family garden
Sunflowers - another one for the kids and ... let's face it, I love sunflowers too
Sugar Baby Watermelon - I'm not sure if this will turn out or not but again, this is something that Jason and I think about when we remember gardens of our childhood so it's a must for us (at least this year)
It's important to me that we not only produce some of our own food but that the garden be enjoyed beyond the food aspect. I've tried to create that enjoyment for us by adding in some 'special' things (birdhouses, flowers, childhood memories, and yummy fruit). By doing this I'm hoping we'll have a better chance of success and some memories of it all. (of course I could be wrong, we'll see)
Also, even though we have a small yard we plan on using the Square Foot Gardening method that will increase our growing space by allowing us to grow more in less space. It might cost a little more the first year but it will really pay off after the first year (unless we get through this year and hate gardening all together, which I'm hoping doesn't happen).
To construct our garden beds we'll be using some wood from cabinets that we took down from our basement walls (ugly dysfunctional cabinets) so the construction cost will be little to none. The cost will mostly be the seeds/plants and the soil.
Farm Mom,
I've attempted to choose things that will 1) work well in my/our zone and 2) I won't need to start from seed indoors. Please let me know how successful or unsuccessful I was at this attempt. I did buy some cheap seed starting equipment just in case I need to start anything indoors.
OK, I think that's plenty of information for now. So, what do you think? Too ambitious for the first year? I guess I'm a little scared that we were a little over ambitious. I hope not, I really hope this turns out well.
This sounds like a fun plan- well thought out and very positive. What is the soil like in your yard? We are lucky here to have soft soil that is very easy to work with--unlike Texas. Good Luck! When do you start planting in New York?
ReplyDeleteSo one time I decided to plant some herbs but of course, they died, so I dumped the dirt out just over the edge of the balcony of my apartment (the one in Cedar Hill), and the following spring, there were these strange plants growing in that exact same spot. I didn't know it was so easy to grow herbs!
ReplyDeletesounds like a nice garden- I don't know if you already ordered everything but there are several farms close that you can pick blueberrys strawberrys and any local stuff they grow. we picked last year and it was a pretty good deal and fun.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on your first seed/plant order!! I'm so excited for you! I don't think you have too much, or should be overwhelmed by your order in the least. I see you ordered your tomatoes and peppers in plant form, so that eliminates any need to start anything indoors. The only thing that may happen is that your plants will arrive a bit too early to be put out. In which case you'll need to keep them well watered and under some light souce or in a south facing window. Keep me posted and as always, I'm open to all sorts of questions at my blog or at my email.
ReplyDeleteJudy - I'm not really sure about the soil here as we haven't had a chance to dig in it yet. We'll actually be filling in beds though so I'm not sure if the soil here will even be an issue.
ReplyDeleteRhia - GIRL! U SO FUNNY! U 'member those straaaaw-burry plants we tried to plant that one year? Man, we sure was bad at watern' them.
Rachel - The strawberry and blueberry plants won't produce the first year so we plan on doing the u-pick for this years crop. We decided to go ahead and buy them so we could establish them for future years.
Farm Mom - I'll certainly keep you posted and thanks for all the help so far!
Watch the water bill, that's what we found was enormous with last years dry summer. It was great to have all the stuff, but we couldn't figure out if it made financial sense because it did cost a lot of money to keep them alive. I am planting again, though and can't wait.
ReplyDelete