Our Paradise
Welcome to my tiny space in the world.
My family and I live within the city limits of Tallahassee, Florida. We live in a new subdivision with a fairly active homeowners association. Because of this, our front yard has been planted with edibles in disguise. My neighbors are always curious as to why I’m picking the holly berries (pequin peppers), pulling up sections of the ornamental grass (lemongrass), pulling out my plants and carrying them into the house in baskets (onions, garlic, lettuce), and cutting lots of things out of the flower bed (nasturtiums, violas, pansies, dianthus, rosemary, lavender, etc.). I’m sure I have been dubbed, “that crazy lady down the road.”
Funny thing is, the kids that live on our street are drawn to the plants. If they come over with their parents, I let them go into the backyard and pick some of their favorite veggies to take home. They LOVE it! I admit, I have the motive of trying to hook them on eating fresh vegetables and it is beginning to work. Three families on our street are now growing little patches of vegetables in their back yard and the children are eating it up.
As for my own family, I have two young boys and our garden has influenced them in ways I would never have imagined. They are as different as night and day, and it is fascinating how each of their personalities is inspired by something as basic as a kitchen garden. Even my husband has developed an affinity for certain plants and taken them on as his own children.
Our side and back yards are packed full of edibles that do not have to be hidden. These are our treasured areas and over the years will mature into our own little paradise.
Tiffanie
Comments
Tiffanie, your stories are so exciting!! They even made cry because that is what kind of garden I am dreaming about and working on. You inspired me even more. I am trying so hard to create my own edible paradise and sometimes get so discouraged by some plants not growing... I live in sw Florida, 30 minutes away from Sarasota and have very bad experience growing vegetables here. What are you doing to enrich your soil? How do you fight those nematoeds ? How often do you water your garden, it is so dry here in winter? I would really appreciate any suggestions from you. Thank you very much and enjoy you paradise! It is such a pleasure of life!!!
Garden maniac , Katerina
Posted by: katerina | February 15, 2006 8:09 PM
Katerina,
Thank you reading my blog. Florida can be a frustrating place to garden, but the rewards are great. In Tallahassee we have either hard red clay or sand for soil. I have the clay and have had to deal with amending the soil in different ways. To start our gardens, we had a truck bring in a mixture called “Ginger mix”. I am not an expert on soil mixtures, but the hauling company mixes it for us and then brings it to our house. It is a combination of mushroom compost, peat, tiny pine bark pieces, sand and not sure if that’s all or not. It is very light and fluffy- the microbes love it. Ginger mix is named after the person who came up with the mixture. It is not designed special for ginger plants. Your local sand hauling company might be able to get it to you. It is much cheaper than buying it by the bag! You probably have sandy soil. If so, I have been told by locals here that you need to amend your soil on a yearly basis because the nutrients (and soil) leach into the sand quickly. I have found making raised beds to be worth the initial effort for many reasons. You could line the bottom of your bed with a semi-permeable landscape fabric to hold in more of the good stuff. As for nematodes, I thankfully do not have any obvious bad ones at the moment. Gardens Alive sells organic products that might target the bad nematodes you have.
I have perhaps not the best attitude when it comes to watering my garden. Since I have clay, I can get away with it better. The first year I have planted trees, I baby them, but once established, they are on their own. If we have a particularly long dry spell, I will supplement by punching some small holes in the bottom of a milk jug, setting it at the base of the tree, and filling the jug with water. I like the water to drip slowly instead of all at once. The vegetable garden itself is raised and I will use a sprinkler from time to time between the torrential downpours (light rain happens, but it just seems like it is rare). I water in the afternoon to maximize its usefulness. Make sure it can dry before nightfall. I grow a lot of radishes so watering is becoming an art form in itself.
I hope this helps! Chin up and keep gardening. Sometimes it is easier to start small and go from there. Also, don't forget about your closest extension office. The Master Gardeners are there to help you and they are familiar with your growing conditions.
Tiffanie
Posted by: Tiffanie | February 17, 2006 5:11 PM
Tiffanie, I also live in the city of Tallahassee but in a free zone without a front yard fashion police. My garden is in the front yard because as I explained it to my astonished neighbor "it's where the sun shines." I have a three sisters garden of corn, beans and squash. Some spearmint, lemon balm and a square of tomatoes. As reality of peak oil sets in you are going to see your neighbors rototilling their sunny front yards and asking you how to grow stuff.
Posted by: Jeff Bastian | May 30, 2006 12:42 PM
I also live in the city of Tallahasse but in a free zone liberated from the restrictive front yard fashion police. My garden consist of three sisters; corn bean and squash. I have a 4'x4'square of tomatoes and some herbs. If you neighbors complain tell them that you are going to hang up you laundry instead and that you will see them in court. Food security is more important than the green grass fetish.
Posted by: Jeff Bastian | June 1, 2006 3:13 PM