Last summer was a rough one. Perhaps it’s that I’m getting old or maybe it’s some family changes that have occurred, but for whatever reason, the idea of spending lots of time outdoors growing food for my family just didn’t work out.
The heat has really been hard on me for the first time ever. That’s surprising because, as a former Florida resident, I’ve always loved hot summer weather. (It’s not just the heat; extreme cold is hard for me too. Pretty much any weather extremes aren’t good for my body lately)
I’ve also had a few nagging injuries and I don’t bounce back from them as quickly as I did in the past.
Last year, my garden grew up in weeds; my tomatoes, because of all the rain that we had, turned soft and black. Getting out to pick beans and other veggies seemed to take more effort than I wanted to give.
This spring, I’ve decided to take a break from the big garden. However, not growing ANY food items doesn’t sound appealing either. I really want some sweet Cherokee Purple tomatoes on my BLTs this summer. I also would miss eating fresh green beans.
I have planned differently this year. Rather than growing a large garden, I’m going tiny. I’ve evaluated some different planting areas and I’m focusing on plants that can provide for some of our needs in smaller spaces. Rather than a dozen tomato plants in 6 or 8 different varieties, I’m growing two or three plants in varieties that I know we love. My beans will be of the vining variety rather than the bush kinds I’ve favored in the past. Key to my planning is LOW Maintenance.
I’m not throwing in the towel on vegetable gardening altogether. I just want to take it easier for a year or two. I’ll re-evaluate at some point in the future.
I did start some seed though in my sunroom. Here are some of my Cherokee Purple seedlings growing in the sun of my window.
Hopefully, this break will help me refocus. Who knows? Maybe I’ll like the smaller garden and reduced workload. Actually, since my kids are getting older and may start moving out in the next few years, all I’ll need will be the small spaces. I guess we’ll see!
Feeding My Family 