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MamaGigi
02-20-2009, 11:26 PM
Greetings all!

I have lived in an apartment for all of my adult life. Growing up we had a garden that NEVER made it to the canning stage. My siblings and I would devour the food as soon as it was ripe enough to pick. Fast forward a few years to motherhood. I have a special needs child because she has severe food allergies that result in extremely high organic food grocery bills. We were living in Germany when we discovered this so I didn't have an opportunity to grow my own food. Fast forward to December of this past year, when we moved into the wonderful home my husband agreed to. Yeah us!! It is a 1.5 acre plot with MANY trees. We have a very irksome hill causing the water to pool at the back corner of our house. So one day I began digging a trench to cause it to flow out. Boy did that help! Did I mention I am SEVERELY overweight because of poor lifestyle choices? Anyway, I've been working out in the yard, blazing walking paths, clearing underbrush, moving 36 tons of composted mulch to level off the yard. In the past 2.5 months, I lost 10 lbs. YEAH!!!! Anyway, my daughter wants a pet so badly she can't stand it. My husband agreed, if it was an outside pet and not one for in the house. A friend sent me a link on how to install a garden pond which absolutely answered my prayers! My daughter and I homeschool so she and I have watched EVERY video link on the website we can find. She saw the bantams Patti has and decided that would be what she would request first. We went to the store today, got our lumber cut, and brought it home. As soon as the sun is up in the morning, we are building our first 4 4x4 raised beds! I can't wait to see how this turns out!

ecogirl
02-21-2009, 05:43 AM
You sound like a great mum! 1.5 acres :eek: thats a lot! Isn't that about 1 and a half soccer pitch?! WOW!!!!! I'm really jealous now!! Soz!! You can shift a lot of weight of doing gardening and these things. Bantam chicks are really cute aren't they? Nice to meet you!
____________________
ecogirl
www.ecogirleco.blogspot.com
Bring gardening back to where it started!

MamaGigi
02-21-2009, 09:46 AM
I am the most UNoutdoorsy person anymore. I used to never be inside but college changed that. I want to design my yard so my children have a run and play area, the gardens, and an area for relaxing and socializing. I want a study area/outdoor classroom. I built my first 4'x4' raised garden boxes today. I feel so jazzed just to be doing something for my family! Now if I only had the extra money to do more right now. :)

Blossome
02-21-2009, 12:25 PM
Welcome, Congrats on the new land. I know how you feel I was jazzed when I built my first two beds last year and I plan on expanding and making them deeper this year. Good luck on the new garden and chicks.

MamaGigi
02-21-2009, 06:44 PM
So today I did a little more than I planned. :) I went to Lowes with an idea of somethings I wanted to get. 3 hours later, I had 4 pecan, 2 figs, 2 apples, 2 plum, 3 pear trees set aside along with 3 kiwi, 6 grapes, 2 raspberry, and 2 jasmine plants. I got enough wood, chicken wire, pvc pipe, and plastic to create a total of 12 4'x8' raised beds with greenhouses. My husband cut the wood and I drilled the holes. Our daughter began the shellacking process. Tomorrow afternoon we'll finish putting them together and setting them out. I contacted my friendly neighborhood poultry farmer and he's bringing some droppings later this week. This is gonna be great!

MoniDew
02-21-2009, 08:37 PM
I'm enjoying reading through these posts, so much! You all are making me smile. WELCOME to the board!

gardengirl72
02-22-2009, 07:33 PM
MamaGigi, you are well on your way to a sustainable healthy lifestyle. I love how the whole family is involved. One thing I would have you add in the near future is a compost bin somewhere. You'll be able to continually feed the plants that you have and it will save you money in the long run. Please post some pictures of your progress. You might also consider starting a blog about it. It could be a good writing assignment for your daughter if she is at that age. Check out the message boards here for advice on soil for your beds. Check out the Raw food section for some great recipes that will give you an idea of what you should also grow. Welcome!

MamaGigi
02-23-2009, 09:30 AM
Hi and thanks!

Too funny you mentioned about the blog and compost bin. I just started one today after reading your ezine. I am going out to take pictures right now so I can have a progress album. :) My daughter has severe food allergies so for the last 2 years we have eaten a lot of fruits and veggies. I've learned a whole new lifestyle in regards to cooking. I've started seeds of all the things we love to eat and a couple that I'm hoping my family will take to that I already love. I already have the compost bin going. This morning I got up and made "bins" for the leaf compost in our wooded area. I'm going out in a little bit to fill them. I can't wait to see how my yard looks at the end of a year. I'm sure it will never be done but any progress will be great.

plantoneonme
02-23-2009, 04:42 PM
Seems like you are jumping into this outdoorsy thing full force...welcome to the group. Hope you enjoy your new digs. Kim