General

My history begins in the rural South (boy, did that sound corny, cheesy, redneck…take your pick.) I grew up with a father who practiced traditional gardening, using a tractor, lots of fertilizer and weed killer, lots of hoeing, and reusing the same space year after year. I went to college, got married, and began a family in a new environment and gave no thought to gardening at that time.  Then around 2008, I once again regained a desire to grow things.  I had a big yard with lots of grass. However, I didn’t have a tractor…or hand tools…or a lot of extra money to buy those things. It was obvious that I was going to have to do things differently, and that is when I found container gardening.  I learned new techniques and faced different challenges in gardening this way.  Container gardening gave me a new opportunity to be able to grow some things that I truly desired such as cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuces, and squashes. This became a time of discovering new methods, figuring out what worked well for me, and determining what I liked to grow. I did move on from the vegetables that I started with to learn other methods and to try new varieties.  I tried traditional containers, wicking containers, 5-gallon buckets, tiered growing systems, and grow bags.   One of the greatest advantages of container gardening is that you can take it with you if you move.  My family has a tendency to move around.  There are some containers that have moved with me to different states since I first started gardening in 2008. Fast Forward Many years later, and I now have a larger section of land and the financial ability to purchase tractors or tillers if I wanted to use them. However, container gardening remains my first love. It allows me to try new things, be more in control of the situation, and move things around in the yard to suit my mood. I now grow all kinds of things in containers, such as potatoes, strawberries, blueberries, as well as my first loves of tomatoes, cucumbers, and lettuces of all varieties. …And of course I’ve added chickens..(more on that later.) I plan to share my love of gardening, my new love of homesteading, and all of the fun that it brings.  I’ve learned so much and hope you will be inspired as we celebrate HOME, grow FOOD, and discover TREASURE along the way. Conclusion I invite you to go along on this journey with me, as I teach about all the things that have become essential to my life. I strive to lead a sustainable lifestyle that allows me to do the things I love. Come with me to celebrate HOME, grow FOOD for yourself, and discover all the new TREASURES in your life, as we travel along this journey.