Perfect Timing

Okay, so this isn't directly design related. However, I do think a bountiful garden can very much contribute to the beauty of your outdoor living space. Which is why we decided to finally plant a full-on garden.

My Grandmother was a gardening goddess, both vegetables and flowers. Seriously.....she cross-bred two different type of Iris to create her own breed. I am lucky enough to have some of her Iris transplanted in my yard in Minneapolis! My Grandmother passed on her skills to my Father, who carried on the tradition. My Iowa summers were filled with time out in the garden picking fresh peas and eating them on the spot. I also spent a little time each year snapping fresh peas (love that sound!). I remember begging my Dad to plant raspberries. Good thing he didn't give-in, as I hear they can take over your garden/yard. So, with an impressive gardening lineage I knew we couldn't just throw something together quickly.

We started our gardening adventure by planning out what plants we wanted to include. Then we did our research to determine how much space each plant would need, this would dictate how large we would need to make our garden. From there we marked out the edges of the garden, using some scrap wood (from this project) and some twine.  This allowed us to get a nice visual of the space.

Then, we started digging. Then we dug some more. Then some more. And then....even a little more. Along the way, we salvaged all the black dirt and worms that we could. Once the digging was done, we were left with this...

Finally, we started to put the plants in the ground. We used a tape measure to draw lines in the dirt, marking out where each plant would end up.


And last, but certainly not least, we put up some chicken wire. There are rabbits all over the place! In fact, we have one that has started a family next door and has become a regular in our yard. The last thing we want is a rabbit ruining all our hard work.

So, as we finished up our two day garden extravaganza on Mother's Day, it started to rain. Perfect Timing! I would much rather water the garden with rain than with the hose. Thanks, Mother Nature :)

Are any of you gardeners? Any tips for growing beautiful plants? Any tips for keeping away the rabbits?

If I manage to make my family proud,

and produce a garden that acually yields some crops....

i will be sure to post some pictures.