My Garden

My Papaw Sharp is an avid gardener, and as soon as we decided to move back to Tennessee, I couldn't wait to grow some of my very own vegetables. We have some huge flower beds in front of our house and flower beds at the top of a retaining wall that goes along the road.  Unfortunately, the soil is not great, but I have managed to plant a few flowers, vegetables, and herbs. 

When we moved in, all the flower beds were overgrown and crab grass had completely taken over.  Throughout the fall and winter, I spent many days weeding.  I have new ideas for next year and hope to start composting this fall in order to have better soil for next year.  Below are some pictures that show the progress of the garden.  It is hard to take pictures because everything blooms at different times, but hopefully you can see the progression below.

 Retaining wall flower bed.  Notice the dead crab grass.  Imagine every inch of all the flower beds you see covered with crab grass just like this or worse.

 Finally finished weeding - early spring.

 Daffodils came up first. I planted these bulbs last October and were thrilled to see they actually grew.

This is in late April.  There is still some lilac that has bloomed on the bush to the right.  I planted some basil and Gerber Daisies in this bed.

 The ivy (many different varieties) reign on this side of the flower bed.  I did manage to grow some rosemary, oregano, and thyme here.  

 Mid-May - I just planted my vegetable plants - 3 tomato plants, 3 bell pepper plants, 2 strawberry plants, 2 cucumber plants, 2 zucchini plants, and a yellow squash plant.  I tried planting Marigolds, as I read they repelled bugs.  I think it has worked on many things but not ants!

 The Hydrangeas came in beautifully. There were two mature plants already in the flower bed.  They bloomed throughout June and part of July.  Beautiful!

 Look at these basil plants!

Honestly, my garden hasn't produced many vegetables so far (except for all of my herbs, which are wonderful!), but here is a bowl full of "produce" that I picked today. 

I look forward to planting several more vegetable plants next year.  If you garden, I would love for you to share any good tips that you have picked up over the years!