Apartment 12: I Love My Garden! {part 1}

My vegetable garden is just steps outside my side door. I've long thought I'd enjoy vegetable gardening much more in raised beds instead of having long, endless rows of produce that take constant weeding. I'm blessed to live in a county where there are produce stands everywhere so having my little plots within my plot is a dream come true.

The best part of my boxes is a sweet reminder of my honey who made me a raised strawberry bed when we lived at Fleur Cottage. It came with me when I moved to Apartment 12 even though I wasn't sure what I was going to do with it. It wasn't until I was halfway through the courtyard side of my gardens that inspiration came to break the long box into four smaller boxes. They are perfect and I love, love them!

Because there are too many pictures for one post, I'm doing this in two posts with before and after pictures...the difference is amazing!

When I looked out the side door last winter, this was a common scene a good bit of the time.

Today, when I look outside from the same spot, it looks like this. Don't you all just love it with me?

I prettied it up as much as I could. The door behind the bench came from Wayne who almost burned it but thought of me in the nick of time. It was also the area where I kept my gardening tools handy.

Definitely a work in progress here! Thanks to our neighbors, we had access to an enormous pile of composted horse manure. Josiah plopped a skid loader pile on top of the ground and I planted the lettuce in it.

For weeks this area was the designated storage area, including the now finished raised bed boxes. It was an organized mess!

My pots, work area and deck boards beside the house. I was sooo disappointed when the bulbs and hosta I had planted in the pots froze out. The elevation is higher here and the bitterly cold winter took its toll.

The strawberry box before I broke down from fifteen feet long to 5ft x30" wide. I had wonderful help from Josiah putting them together.

A side view of the organized clutter. Today it looks like this from the same spot.

Amazing! I give credit to my son-in-law Wayne, who took the time off of his busiest season to help create this dream for me. Also credit goes to grandson Josiah who screwed the raised beds together and was my right-hand man many, many times.

From left to right plants. The gray-green plants were a freebie at a yard sale and bloomed beautifully. The cotton plant that is now seven feet tall and still growing. My third planting of lettuce and onions on the end.