I started gardening when we moved to New Jersey a little over 7 years ago. First, it was at the South Orange Community Garden, then it was in little pots on our deck at our house, and now, FINALLY, it is in garden plots in the backyard!!! Ever since we bought our house, I have been wanting garden plots. E was going to arrange for them to be installed as a Mother’s Day gift for my first Mother’s Day but we just never got around to it. This year, I was determined to make it happen.
I initially wanted to build wooden garden plots but that seemed like a lot of work. And the cost of wood these days is INSANE. Instead, I bought these plastic garden plots on Amazon and they have been great! They were super easy to put together (thank you E) and even easier to fill (this was a group effort). I bought a wide variety of seeds and seedlings from Dreyer Farms, Williams Nursery, and Home Depot, including tomatoes, beets, lettuce, arugula, tomatillos, green bell peppers, strawberries, cucumbers, kale (curly and lucinato), purple eggplant, and MORE! I may have bought eight different tomato varieties, including cherry tomatoes. Jersey tomatoes are the BEST! It has been fun to watch everything grow with Nathan and Nora.
Nathan has been my gardening “helper” ever since he was one year old. We call him Farmer Nathan! I have loved teaching him where food comes from at such a young age. He LOVES to pick fruit and vegetables right off the vine. His favorite fruit and vegetables to grow (and eat) are strawberries and cherry tomatoes! He usually just pops them into his mouth right after picking them!
We have bunnies that run around in our yard occasionally, so a fence around the garden plots was a necessity. I didn’t want any bunny bite marks on my kale! Thankfully, I found this fence on Amazon and it has kept all of the little critters out! It has been the BEST investment for the garden!
If you were thinking of starting a garden, it is not too late! There is still time! Many fruit and vegetables will thrive through fall. Plant now! You won’t regret it!
