Here are some of the gardens that I grow on our farm. I fell in love with gardening at a young age due to a couple of my grandparents. As I got older, I started to plant some things here and there and would help with some general garden upkeep but got more serious about it in my adult years. I wanted to get in touch with my roots. I wanted to be more self reliant and grow my own food without a bunch of stuff added to it like you find in the stores. I also figured it would help save on some grocery money but any true gardener can tell you that it's not a cheap hobby.

 

   I decided to start my own vegetable garden to grow food for ourselves. It took me back to remembering when I was a kid and being in the garden with my grandfather. I would help him pick the vegetables to take inside for my grandmother to prep and would watch him work in the garden. I often think back to those days and remember them fondly. Now I'm growing the vegetables for both us and my animals on the farm.

 

   Of course I just can't stop at food. I love flowers and nature. I remember my grandmother loved her flowers and when I was a kid, I was amazed by her gardens and loved visiting her house. They were not big by any means and just normal sized flower beds but as a little kid, I thought they were so much more. I would find myself laying in the grass outside next to the garden bed staring at the Johnny Jump Ups and Violas. I always played with the Snapdragons to make them talk. I also loved bouncing around from one flower bed to another to see her garden statues. She had them everywhere. I wanted to start growing my own flowers but kept waiting and waiting until I knew I was in a permanent place in my life because I didn't want to have to lose all of the hard work and memories and start over. I always dreamed of having a rose garden. I was once told that "No one promised you a rose garden." My response was "I will plant one myself." I stopped waiting and decided to dive right in. 

 

   When I planted my vegetable garden, I mixed in some flowers to help keep certain critters away from the plants. I also wanted to attract pollinators to help pollinate the plants. Every year I started throwing a mixture of seeds in the corner of the garden that I had reserved for annuals and planted some other plants throughout the garden. We are currently living on the smaller homestead right now but will be moving to the larger farm once the house is built. Now that I finally own my own land and soon house that I plan on living out the remainder of my life in, the fun can begin! I got a lot more serious about the flower gardening. I started collecting my roses, dahlias, lilies and other plants that I've been wanting and admiring over the years. Right now, I'm growing in pots and some annuals in the ground until I can get situated on the new larger farm. Once I get some fencing up, I plan on moving certain plants to that property to go in the ground permanently. I'm excited to have a lot more growing room now. Sometimes I wonder if it will be enough! 

 

   I love gardening with flowers and vegetables and enjoying what nature gives us. Being in the garden is one of my happy places and it grounds me. I love taking care of the plants and watching them grow into something beautiful. I love being able to grow my own healthy foods without worrying what all has been done to it. I now understand why my grandparents on both sides of my family loved gardening so much and I can't help but think of lots of fond memories when I'm in the garden. I only wish they could see what I've done. I hope that I have made them proud.