garden morning

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Most days in recent months find us very busy in the garden. And not just one garden, but two. This year, in addition to the smaller garden we have in our backyard, we are also gardening over at the ranch were we keep our horses.

We started the garden over there in early spring. There was an area already fenced in up near the barn, originally meant for animals, ready and waiting for us to start digging. We made 21 long beds, and lots of big plans for all the good food we would grow. Funny how quickly you can run out of room in a 2,000 square foot garden. You might think it would be plenty of space, but apparently for us it is not. You might think that since we have this big new garden we wouldn't have to dig up half of the remaining space in the backyard. But we did. Cleared space for a greenhouse too. There is just no way we can start another season here without a greenhouse, definitely a necessity when living and gardening above 7,000 feet.

Yes, needless to say, our gardens have been keeping us oh so busy. Sometimes I take a few pictures. Mostly I plant, water, weed.

The other morning the girls and I went very early to do our garden chores. But before getting to work I wandered about with the camera for a while.

I am so in love with our cabbage. (Oh gosh, I know that sounds weird.) It is just so pretty.

For a while our cabbage was looking kind of strange, our broccoli was doing much better. Then our broccoli started forming little round heads, our cabbages sending up tall center stalks.. That's when I realized I mixed up the cabbage and broccoli while transplanting our little seedlings! Well, at least now I know all is well.



The land around the ranch, even though it's just 10 minutes away, is very different from the forested land around our home.

And the soil is so much better! Not nearly as heavy with clay as our backyard garden, and hardly a single rock! We have never experienced anything like it, so so great (say the people who have dug many gardens in these rocky mountains)...

Well actually, our very first garden, in 1998 or 99, was in Ohio, so that was some pretty nice soil too.

We grew corn that year in Ohio. We haven't grown it since then, until now.

Yes, lots of pictures of the corn, cause I love it also. We have it planted amongst the winter squash, with pole beans planted to climb the corn stalks.

Lots of carrots. Two beds of beets planted a week or two ago. (I should be keeping better garden notes..) Seven beds of potatoes, but we kind of accidentally planted fingerling potatoes. Please don't ask how we could have accidentally planted them, they were given to us, we didn't put much thought into it, we just planted them...

As always we are just so very grateful that this family is willing to share so much of their land with us. It is definitely hard though, tending to a garden that is not at our home. I do love to be out in the garden, but I also really really really like to be at home.

We have developed a pretty nice rhythm with it, and I am just trying to embrace the busyness as part of what summer is. Lots of outward activity. I am also being mindful that the girls get enough rest and home time.

They sure are having a great summer.

Soon enough it will be time to turn inward again.

We intend to keep making the best of every beautiful summer day we have!


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