On the calendar spring is only a few days away, but in my neck of the woods we'll still have snow till mid to end of April.  Mother Nature always has that last good-by winter storm in April!  Still, just the thought of Spring coming makes me smile and warms me up.  Local stores have their patio furniture, camping gear and Spring/Summer clothes out.  Local nurseries started putting out the seed displays and Spring displays... I love this time of year.

The nice days are starting to outnumber the cold dreary ones now.  Here are a few pictures from last week during March break where my son got a nice white blanket of fresh snow to go sliding ;o)

It was pretty nasty but now the snow is melting and Spring is in the air (hopefully).  In the picture of the back yard the garden is buried under the snow between the patio and my son's play cabin.  It was bare just a few days ago.. ah well ;o)

Over the weekend Seb (my son) and I started a few seeds.  We started a few tomato, cabbage and asparagus peas.  It's still a bit early but I had the itch and hope I can keep them to transplant to a cold frame to get an early start.  We'll start staggering seedlings in the next few weeks.  I can't wait to be able to invest in a good greenhouse!  But the new baby on the way will take care of that money.. haha.  It will be a busy busy summer with a new black lab puppy, Sookie,  as an addition to our 3yr old black lab Maddy and then the new baby (to be named) due Aug. 27th.

Whoa just starting to sink in with all the fun work ahead... good start to 2010!!  Ok back to reading planning the garden... ;o)

We grew our garden again this summer by double.  It's now about 40ft x 14ft filled with beans, corn, radish, onions, cucumbers, turnips, tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, pumpkins, lettuce and for the first time this year, potatoes. 

Since this was the first year, I wasn't sure when exactly I should dig them up.  Reading online and talking to others it was suggested to dig them up in early September, or before the first frost starts and the foliage turns black and starts to die off. 

The foliage on my Yukon Gold potatoes is dying off now and unfortunately we had our first frost warning last night so I decided to dig up the first of 3 rows planted.  I was pleasantly surprised with about 10lbs of potatoes in a 15ft row.  I'm not sure if that's good or not, but I did have some lessons learned.  I'll dig up the rest in the next week or so as I keep an eye out on them.

Next season I will prepare the plot better and plant the seed potatoes in about an 8 inch trench and cover with 4 inches and work up the mound.  This should ensure a plenty bounty as this first planting seemed to have potatoes popping out of the ground, which I would attibute to not planting deep enough.

Another option I'm going to try next season is a potato stack... but more on that later ;o)  For now I'm pretty happy with the experience and will definately grow a couple varieties of potatoes next year.  If anyone has any tips or tricks I'd certainly love to hear them!

Common even the President of the United States of America is gardening!  Ok well at least the White House will get it's first garden since the Victory Garden days, so what are you waiting for?

Food gardening is becoming a movement on it's own.  Not only due to tough financial times to reduce grocery bills, but also people are becoming better educated about produce and want to know where their food is coming from and is as healthy as possible. 

According to a recent survey by US National Gardening Association, seven million more people will start a vegetable garden in 2009, which is up 19% over last year.  This statistic itself is good motivation to get started if you haven't already!  Home vegetable gardens are easy to start and don't require that much time or effort.

Here are a few tips to get you started:

• Location, location, location... most staple vegetables thrive in full sunlight so find a location that has at least 6 hours of sunlight a day.
• Start small... you don't need to feed the neighborhood on your first run (although that can be a goal later ;o).  Start with a couple 8x4 raised beds or even plan some cucumbers, tomatoes and pole beans in an empty flower garden or a small 10x10 plot if you don't want to build raised beds.
• Watering...take watering your garden into consideration and preferably plant close to rain barrels where you could possibly run a drip line.  Don't plant your first garden where you or your garden hose can't reach or you won't make the effort to water when needed.
• Planning hint... plant tall vegetables like corn and pole beans on the north or west sides of the garden so they don't block the sun for your smaller vegetables.
• Good Soil... if you can prepare your soil with plenty of organic material like compost and KEEP AWAY from fertilizers and chemical pesticides.  Key to delicious vegetables is all in the soil.  Not too sandy and not too clay like... good amended soil will stay together when you squeeze it into your fist, but break apart easily.
• Mulch & Mulch... mulching is one the best things you can do for your vegetable garden.  Use good quality organic mulch and lay about 2-3 inches around your vegetable plants and on top of your drip lines, if you use them.  Mulch will help retain water and help stop weeds.
• Relax & Enjoy...relax and enjoy the garden.  Gardening is a fun experience and you trully get the fruits of your labor.  Nothing is more fun or rewarding then going out and picking fresh produce from your vegetable garden for a meal.

So there is no reason to not start a vegetable garden.  If you have kids this is a GREAT way to kick off the summer months as they can learn with you from start to finish... from planting the seeds or starter plants, to picking summer snacks while mom or dad aren't looking!  Most of all kids can learn that tomatoes do come from a plant that you cared for and helped grow, not from a grocery store counter.

These are just a few tips to get you motivated and moving.  Trust me and ask others, once you start you will only continue to expand every year... it's addictive.  So what are you waiting for?  Go plan and start your vegetable garden today!

Since it's well into 2009 now I thought I'd put down some of our plans for the Urban Homestead.  First though, some accomplishments from 2008.

We expanded the garden and learned how to preserve the basics of our vegetable garden.  We made 24 bottles of salsa and froze onions, carrots, beans and peppers.  After this experience we now have a better understanding of planning a garden for specific yields and times. 

We built a compost bin out of used wood pallets.  This was a fun project and we already have plans to add another to double capacity.  It took a night to build after supper with my 5yr old son helping along.  He is really into composting and helps keep our kitchen compost bin full.  Can't wait to use the fresh compost in the garden this spring.

Personally I learned how to make bread from scratch as well as pies, apple pies being my favorite!  This was a fun experience and we now make our own whole wheat bread regularly.  My 5yr old helps along as well and enjoys the process.  It's nice to see him learn where food comes from, the garden, and also involved in the process of baking.

Now that we have 2 summers under our belt, we are expanding the vegetable garden again.  We have ordered in 2 seed catalogs and are ready to plan/order for the spring.  I'll be starting seedlings indoors where applicable to get a head start.  More on garden planning to come....

We will also plant 2 or 3 Cortland apple trees this spring.  I'm investigating dwarf apple trees as I've read about them online.  We will also plant strawberries, blackberries, gooseberries and raspberries this year.  Not sure how much we'll get out of them this year, but the plan is to keep on them and eventually have enough for jams and preserves in the coming years. 

We already have a rain barrel for water collection but I'm putting together a better system to collect from both sides of the house and will run drip lines to keep things hydrated.  If money allows, we also plan on fencing in the backyard with a nice 6ft hemlock fence.  This wood is harvested locally and has the same rot resistant properties as cedar but less expensive.  It ages beautifully and should give a bit more privacy and a place for the fruit vines to climb along the edges.

We have many other plans but to start you have to at least put things down on paper.  This is a start and I'll be writing and posting pictures of each project as we go.  My wife is taking professional photography now so there's no excuse to have good pictures of our progress ;o)  Till then... cheers.

During a visit with my wife's grand parents, who have lived in the country all their lives, I was reminded at how life was lived not too long ago.  At 80+ years old, they were still picking apples from their apple trees, proudly displayed cherry trees and even offered some seedlings for our Urban Homestead.  Their vegetable garden growing Canadian staples such as Green Beans, Corn and Potatoes looked great surrounded by gooseberries and raspberries bushes.  A quick visit in the root cellar to raid their canning shelf really brought the message back home... you can grow a great abundance of your own food!

The first step in moving towards a more self sufficient lifestyle is to start a vegetable garden.  Starting slow and working at your own pace.  The problem is the world got itself is such a hurry that it forgot the road from whence it came.

As first time gardeners, the key is to start slow.  Do not overwhelm yourself by turning your entire backyard into one huge garden, you will be wrought with disappointment.  There is a learning curve.  Take your time and get a good understanding of what works and what doesn't.  Here's a few ideas to get started...

Start small.  A raised bed garden four feet by eight feet would be sufficient. Start with two of them if you are ambitious.  You can mark off a section of your yard for feet by 12 feet if raised beds are not for you.  You can buy some peat moss and some composted manure to help the health of your soil as well.  Check your local gardening store for soil tests and take appropriate guided action.

Vegetable selection.  Again ask your neighbours or your local gardening store for vegetables that are easy to grow in your area.  In Eastern Canada these are Green Beans, Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Onions, Green Peppers, Carrots and Potatoes to name a few.  Green Beans are great and the easiest to preserve by canning, same with Tomatoes.

Preserving yield.  There are many methods to preserve your crop to last you well into the winter.  Canning and freezing being the most prevalent.  You can also dehydrate some vegetables as well.  Being your first few years, you will most likely not have much to preserve and will most likely eating and sharing.  Once you know what and how to grow, as well as how much yield per crop to expect, you can expand your vegetable garden and plan your preservatives to hold you over winter.

If anything at all, gardening brings a sense of community as you share and learn knowledge and produce with your friends and neighbours.  Even though this is being written at the end of the this years growing season, that only means that next years planning is ready to start.  Keep tuned for tips on fall garden prep and cleanup as well as next season planning.

Keep it Green!