New love

I LOVE the garden! I feel quite materialistic saying this, but it has made all the difference to me to be working on a piece of property that we own, compared to working on anyone else's land. In the first place, we're right there. Get dressed, walk out the door and there's the garden. Though that implies quite a high degree of laziness, the ease of access lowers any barriers I might have to gardening. Combine this with the fact that my husband and I are both excited, feeling creative, and not bound to any particular vision of the garden - I'm freed up to do what I/we want, and don't have to answer to anyone else. Oh, the freedom from external control! No worries about making "mistakes" - just fun and enthusiasm over what we can do. Then, of course, it's ours - our home, our nest, and for the first time, working outside - on the yard - is an extension of my home-making instinct. We're making the place beautiful for us to enjoy, for our friends, and down the line, for our property value. And I have an amazing husband who quickly and easily brings in loads of soil, a pile of rock, or whatever else we need, and works it and builds it and makes it beautiful.

And then: gardens are so beautiful!!! We're putting in walkways, enclosed beds, all kinds of herbs and succulents and flowering and other plants (preferably perennial and low water varieties). Each few hours brings dramatic changes, or the promise of them when the plants grow in and take over. I didn't know how much I'd love doing this, and I'm thrilled that I do. I've started doing more reading about gardens, more research, and am looking forward to seeing how it develops over time.

The Garden

We've been doing some work outside on the yard, and it's really starting to look like something! On Saturday it was warm and sunny at long last. A beautiful change - I felt my personality changing in the warmer weather (nothing like not shivering to improve my mood). We pruned, organized, laid out bricks for a walkway and some beds, got a big load of dirt, planted some seeds and bulbs .... and I'm excited. I love gardening in theory, so it's a relief to find that once I get out there, I also like it in practice.

I realized how much I have to learn, too, and that's exciting. Like, what do you prune, when and how? Where and in what conditions do particular plants grow best? What plants should you grow together to maximize yields and minimize pests?

Together with some helpful input from my mom, we planned out what vegetables to grow, and which to start from seed vs. seedlings. We're trying to grow heritage varieties where possible, then organic, though for seedlings that might be harder. I'm feeling ambitious, but it's also our first year doing this, and we're still finishing the house, so we'll do what we can this year and not sweat it if it's not perfect.

We want to grow as many usable and edible things as possible in our yard, vs. purely ornamental things. We'd also like perennials and things that re-seed; and things that grow best in drier conditions, since that's what's best for the region. However, I do want at least one bed of low-growing succulents & groundcover. We're also going to minimize lawn and - at least according to this plan - have lots of structured space: bricked out beds, paths, raised planting beds, a pergola for vines (grapes maybe?), and then berry bushes.

Planned plants:
Lots of herbs: basil, rosemary, mint, chamomile
Greens: swiss chard, kale, lettuce varieties, arugula, chicory, spinach
Roots: beets, and going to try potatoes (with the tire/potato structure thingie that we've heard about).
Other veg: tomatoes, zucchini, beans
Other STUFF: sunflowers, lavender, and berries - hopefully raspberries & blueberries.

Yum!

Compost

Now for something a bit lighter. M is working outside today, cleaning up the yard and building lots of awesome things for us. We really hope to get upstairs by May, so we can rent out the basement.

In the meantime, though ... I helped him build our composter! It's got 2 sides, lids, and a lift-up opening at the bottom so we can dig out the awesome compost once it's produced. I helped measure (usually accurately), used a nail gun for the first time (with most of them going in the right place) and helped him place it and level it. Yay, a place to put all the smelly, green, hairy compost we've been generating!

M's other project now is to make some raised beds for our garden. Boy, that is awesome - I'm so psyched.

Moving in

So we're almost in the basement! M was spending some nights here while working on it. My first night was the night before our trip - it was more convenient than staying at home (though we still didn't get out of town until around 1).

It is almost, almost finished down here. The handles & shelves are on/in the kitchen cupboards, which was big: now we can unpack food & dishes. the bedroom is so cozy! the shower, which I used for the first time, is wonderful: beautiful tile-work, M! There are still a few dusty things to do, though, so I've been holding out, but I think I'm going to have to give in and move in :) Which I will do with pleasure, 'cause I like it here. We just need groceries! Today I brought over a pile of groceries my mom picked up for us at Costco and they're being unpacked now (not by me - I kind of hurt my ankle going ice skating :( ).

It will be really good to be in one place. I realized that it's been quite unsettling to be between locations. Not to mention the clutter I've been living with for months, as things from the wedding piled up. Can't wait to stretch out, unpack properly, and start making a home.