Tag: squash

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Fabulous living

What I Learned From Two Years of Gardening

Hello All!

Happy Wednesday! We are in full on cozy season here, but I am still trying to get outdoors as much as I can even if it’s just for a walk with my dogs. 

A crisp morning where you can truly see all the signs of changing seasons.

Speaking of the outdoors, I am just wrapping my second summer of growing a garden and year two went very differently than year one.

Here’s my post from the start of the season when I had high hopes for this summer.

This year I had a mix of seeds and plants for vegetables. I had plans to harvest pumpkins, squash, strawberries, onions, peas, carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers (yes, I know, I had a lot of expectations).

I kept my plants in a mix of soil and pots in different areas. I checked on them every day and watered them consistently and made sure they had lots of sun.

Unfortunately, this year’s harvest was not as plentiful as my first year. I found that the plants that I purchased did better than the seeds. 

Halfway through the summer

Some of my seeds did not even produce vegetables, which was a bit disappointing. 

The end of the season

I did get some vegetables like a tomato, a cucumber, and some strawberries and they were delicious and so flavorful!

Some of the tomatoes I grew
My cucumber!
More veggies

Once again, it was a fun experience, but a bit frustrating when I didn’t get the results I was hoping for.

Enjoying some of the fruits of my labor

My plan is to try and grow more vegetables next year and I goal is to buy plants instead of seeds.

Some of my fruits
Even more fruits, small, but mighty!

If you are an avid gardener, what advice would you give and did you have a successful harvest? 

The last of my harvest

I would love to hear about your experience so I can better prepare for next year.

Happy Gardening!

Categories
Fabulous living

Year Two of Growing a Garden

Hello everyone! 

Happy Wednesday! I hope your days are filled with sunshine, summer snacks, and sunrises or sunsets. Summer is in full swing, I can’t believe we are halfway through July, time needs to slow down. I have been doing my best to savor the summer days as much as I can without rushing through life. 

Soaking up summer fun like by mini golfing!

For the second year, I decided to grow a garden. Last summer, I started small with carrots, peas, peppers, tomatoes and cucumbers. I learned a lot about over and under watering plants, daily plant checks, and most of all, patience.

A perfect salad with all the veggies from last year!

The best part was enjoying the fruits (and veggies) of my labor and sharing them with others. I was satisfied with my experience last year, that I decided to do it again this year, with some changes.

Cucumbers growing.
My tomatoes!

I thoroughly enjoyed the process and I was eager to do it again this year.

I decided to spread out my garden to two different spots, one in the same section, and the other in planters since I decided to add more veggies this year.

For summer 2024, I decided to grow cucumbers, peppers, carrots, onions, peas, strawberries, squash, pumpkins, and tomatoes. 

I planted the pumpkins, strawberries, squash and cucumbers in one spot.

Then I planted the carrots, peas, onions, tomatoes, and peppers in the raised beds. I did this method for this year to give more space for the vegetables to grow. 

This year I also got a mix of seeds and some plants that were already growing. I decided to do a combination to see how the vegetables would fair. I have noticed that the plants have been growing faster than the seeds for obvious reasons, but I have enjoyed the process of seeing them both grow and mature. 

Growing a garden has brought me a sense of peace and connecting with the earth. I always like to start or end my day by checking on and by watering my garden. It’s a few moments of peace before or after a busy day that brings me joy and contentment. I love getting the fresh air daily and I like seeing the hard work pay off, even if it takes a whole season. 

I am eager to see how my veggies and fruits do, especially the new ones that I planted this year. I am by no means an expert gardener, but I have enjoyed this new hobby and was happy that I could do it again this summer. Plus, it gives me more time outside, which I will never complain about. 

I really enjoyed year one of growing a garden and year two has been off to a great start as well.

Tell me: if you have a green thumb, what’s your advice for planting and growing?

Plus, if you started a new hobby, what have you enjoyed the most about it? Let me know in the comments below!

Happy Wednesday!