“This post was originally written in 2009 and updated in summer 2020. We have always enjoyed growing food in our urban backyard. This year we are self sufficient with lettuce and herbs and enjoy raspberries ripe from the bush. Our family is looking forward to harvest cucumbers, tomatoes and squash in our garden.” Kari
Last year it was probably the most hyped outdoor activity and it looks like it is a trend here to stay. Everyone I know have started trying to grow their our own food and it seems it doesn’t matter where you live. If you are: young, adult, grandparent, famous, not famous, wealthy or poor. We are all digging in the dirt. When my father calls from Norway, what do we talk about? We talk about gardening. How is your basil doing? Is your rhubarb coming up?
It is a great trend but for some it can be too much pressure to be a great gardener. Gardening is like cooking, even when you follow the recipe, it just doesn’t turn out sometimes. You just have to keep trying because it is when you fail you learn the tricks that best work for you. Failures are learning experiences in a garden. Especially when you have kids.
One day I hope to have a urban garden like Carol Bowlby ,”My Urban Garden”
(Great info about urban gardening)
Started with seeds
In our garden we start with seeds in March inside and plant them outside in May. In August a lot of our vegetables are ready for harvest. So how did it go last year?
Pretty well, our herbs were very successful, and our tomatoes and potatoes grew like crazy.
We spent days last summer wondering who ate our sugar snaps, “Was it a slug or a caterpillar”? We went out every morning to see if someone was munching on our plants.
Our strawberries did not quite make it from seedlings; it was too cold for them and our patience with them failed. We planted rhubarb and raspberries. We also planted kale and garlic later in the year.
We also made composting a natural tool for learning that soil is important in a garden. All our garden waste and vegetable kitchen scraps went in the compost bin. We also had fun weeding and watering our plants and looking for signs of budding vegetables. It was such a joy both for the large and small in our family.
This year we are hoping we excel even more in produce and are looking forward to the gardening season.
Check out these fun gardening activties we have done over the years with the kids :
