Garden Update #1

In the 14+ years of owning our casa, we have longed to have a thriving garden.  We have had mixed success, though, primarily due to inconsistent watering and harsh, windy weather.  Now that we live here full time, we are up the challenge.

Good dirt is really difficult to come by and is definitely one of our biggest challenges here.  In order to get decent dirt, we drive out to the desert and up an arroyo looking for a mesquite tree.  Normally, the dirt underneath has nutrients although the dirt can still be sandy or full of clay.  We bring the dirt back and place it in our “dirt” planter.  We mix in seaweed, pieces of torn up paper, compost, spent grains and hops, and worm tea from our worm composter.  We water and mix up the dirt a few times per week.  Trust me, this is very time consuming but so far is paying off.

This morning, I planted some seedlings into one of our new planters.   We have a variety of tomatoes, orange butternut squash, and lemon drop melons.  We also have a planter with some chard and lettuce growing as well.  Oh, I almost forgot we have three or four potato plants, and a few dragon fruits, too.  I’m keeping my fingers crossed with some of the other seeds we’ve planted.

We also bought some beautiful strawberry plants from a nursery located in Vizcaino.  We also bought a mango, blood orange, mandarin, and peach trees to go along with our orange, pomegranate, lime, and zapote trees.  We have a well-established grape vine that produces lovely red, seedless grapes.

Waking up each morning and walking around the garden with a cup of coffee is how most of my days start.  I couldn’t imagine a better way to start the day!