My love of history has become matched by a passion for gardening. My genealogical roots are found with farmers as recently as my father’s childhood, but I grew up with little more than a well-tended herb garden.
With a bit of land, I set my first ‘real’ garden in 2011. Though 2012 was an off year with a young babe in the house, I’ve readied myself for 2013. I hope to share my progress with you here, on The Kaintuckeean. Topically, it may be a bit off from our usual exploration of history and architecture. But so much of Kentucky is about the land, the people, and the food. With any luck, people interested in gardening will learn a little about Kentucky and vice versa.
But for now, in the cold of winter, I’ll just contemplate what the garden will be. With seed catalogues, excel spreadsheets, and a calendar, I’m creating a schedule and layout for Garden: 2013.
The following is subject to change, but the following illustration shows the layout I’m considering for this year’s garden. From prior years, I’ve expanded it from 64 sq. ft. to 112 sq. ft. – an increase, but I believe a manageable one.
Regrettably, funding (both time and financial) for this increased endeavor has to come from somewhere. Over the past couple years, our family has participated in a CSA share which I picked up at the local farmers market. This involved an annual outlay of a few hundred dollars and a weekly outlay in time of about 90 minutes. Rolling these resources into the new, improved garden will bring me closer to my food in a relatively cost-neutral manner.
Well, I’m looking forward to sharing some green pictures on here. If you’d like to see less, or more, let me know!