Beginning gardeners, take note. Growing your own food has never been more fun or rewarding with tips and tricks from Crystal Broussard. A relatively new gardener herself, Crystal offers valuable advice for those who long to raise their own vegetables and fruits—whether to honor a family tradition or for the simple sake of being more self-sufficient.
How have my fellow gardeners been over the winter? Here in the Ohio Valley, it has been miserably cold the last couple of weeks, so the natural solution for me is to dream about my garden. I’m itching for the smell of freshly plowed soil and the feel of dirt under my fingernails. Although our family may be living in a new location without the benefits of a big yard, I’ve already begun to plan my garden.
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As my garden harvests have started to come in, I’ve been left wondering what I can do with all of these vegetables before they spoil. In years past I would batter and fry squash and zucchini every day, have tomatoes on a bacon sandwich, or add tomatoes to tuna salad. However, in the spirit of adopting a healthier lifestyle, I have changed my eating habits and ways of cooking.
Read moreI knew a little about bees because one of my neighbors has hives and harvests honey. He has an in-ground pool and spent thousands of dollars putting in an intricate pond with a fountain so his bees can stay hydrated. Yet the bees were at my sprinkler. I wondered what my yard had that his didn’t.
Read moreMy children were eager participants this year with the planting. The two older ones were delegated certain jobs that my husband supervised while I kept the youngest by my side and supervised her. To my surprise, the older ones took the initiative to stake up the tomato and pepper plants. As I watched, my heart swelled with pride. I was happy to discover how much our family could enjoy playing in the dirt.
Read moreA greenhouse allows you to get your seedlings going sooner and also provides a place to grow crops that are sensitive to weather changes. I set up my small, yet efficient greenhouse in a space that gets full sun most of the day.
Read moreRejuvenating the soil with mulched up leaves and compost every year is a must. New gardeners don’t realize the importance of this until their crops fizzle and don’t reach their full potential. I made this rookie mistake last year. My husband and I expanded our garden plot, and we didn’t use compost on the previous year’s plot. Even though we changed the flow of our rows from north to south to east to west, the eastern end of the rows didn’t produce as much harvest as the other end that was “new” garden area.
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