In the Beginning the Earth Was Waste and Void

After years of living in rentals and dreaming over dozens of garden catalogs and books, I finally bought a house. One of the main requirements, of course, was a large yard, because I was through just dreaming about gardens. Well, I found a great house at a great price on a more than respectable lot with even a slight view of a river that runs through town. Ahhh! I was in heaven! Well, at least potentially.

The previous owners had chopped down a large black walnut in the back yard in order to plant a garden (what a shame to lose that tree- over 2 feet in diameter!). The garden, completely vegetable, took up the entire backyard. They tried to reseed before putting the house on the market, but they must have used discount grass seed and they certainly didn't rake it smooth first. So our yard was a mess when we moved in.

I didn't mind so much though. I had BIG plans for the yard which did not include much of a lawn anyway. That was eight years ago. This year is the first year that my gardens have even begun to resemble what was in my mind all those years ago. It's finally time for unveiling them to the world.

This is a journal of my long journey and the things that I learned along the way. I am also using this to keep track of the things that I do and where the hell I put things (nothing is quite as irritating as planting $50 worth of plants one year only to pull them as weeds because you forgot what they were). I hope to not only help others, but to get help from them in return. And, of course, I really just am so proud of my gardens that I just have to brag!