Rain Rain Rain!

It has been very spring-y this year. It has been raining so much that I haven't been able to put my plants in the ground. In fact, the ground has been very wet. The area I removed sod from flooded from the amount of rain. 

This week though seems promising. Although I haven't mowed my lawn yet (shame!), I planted 3 seed starters of tomato, cantelope, watermelon, and cucumber. My planted my corn a couple days ago and they have shot up! Broccoli is doing great, and the cooler weather will help too. 

Mesclun has clumped up in two spots, and I picked a random leaf and ate it, and it was good! I see lots more seedlings poking through, so yay for more mesclun! Strawberry plant is doing well and so is the blueberry bush. 

Exciting!

Underwater

Lots of rain overnight caused my garden area to be flooded.  I haven't planted anything because the rain hasn't given me a chance to. 

Tools

I have some tools that I want to share with you. These items have saved me from bruises, energy, and have made gardening much easier on me and my body.

The first is the Terra Tiller. 

This tool has a blade side, but the blade isn't sharpened. I found that the force of swinging is good enough to cut through thick grass. The Tera Tiller also has a garden fork side. I have used this side to shake away the top soil in the pieces of sod and to lift the cut sod out of the ground. 

Make sure you exercise caution. This tool can hurt! I underestimated releasing a sod piece and managed to hit myself above the lip. A small cut and a bruise were reminders on how to properly use it.

The next tool which I use all the time, are my handy (haha, get it?) leather work gloves. I got these on sale at Walmart, and they have been so helpful in gripping muddy tools, keeping my hands from getting blisters, and keeping my hands from getting so dirty. 

Mine are orange and I use them while shoveling, mowing, and any other yard work. 

The soil I used in my containers is Miracle Gro Potting Soil. I have read mixed reviews about it, but I have not had any bad experience with it. I purchased the 2 cubit foot bag and I plan to purchase more.

I also love the Miracle Gro plant feeder. I haven't had a chance to use the actual food yet, but the hose attachment is great and has held up to being dragged across the yard. 

I used the Jiffy Seed starter to get my seeds up and growing. They worked really well on germinating the seeds. Just don't have a cat knock it off the counter because it could get messy. :)

I pulled the bottom image off of a blog review. https://domesticwonder.wordpress.com/2010/04/12/jiffy-planter-review/

I needed to save money on a mower and I also have limited storage space, so I opted for a reel mower. Yes, it is a little bit of a workout, but I don't mind. I have found out though that it is best to make sure that you don't let the grass get too high. Sticks do get stuck, but are easy to dislodge.

I have one item that, like the gloves, is a must-have. Knee pads. I know that they sell knee savers and portable kneeling benches, but the best thing is the strap-on knee pads. You don't have to worry about adjusting them as you move, they are durable, and work really well. These are what I use. 

They have extra cushioning in the knee and allow ample movement. Plus, the Velcro straps fit around my chubby thighs and don't pinch off circulation. Sometimes I do undo the bottom strap, but they are very comfortable. 

Well, there you have it. Here is my list of items I have used minus a shovel and garden fork. I will post more on those later. 

What I Have to Work With

Let's, see.

I have my front yard. I'm not a good guesses on square footage, but it is a nice size for a rental home.

  I have 2 flower beds in the front which were overgrown. And needed some TLC. I weeded, removed dead plants, and took out the accumulation of weeds. 

In the backyard, I have a deck area that gets full sun during the day, and the lawn is full of weeds. 

I also have started removing sod in the backyard to make way for the veggies.  I chose in ground beds because they can easily be converted back into grass. 

I started a strawberry plant, blueberry bush, mesclun, and 6 broccoli plants in containers. 

Reasoning

I realize there are tons of gardening blogs, websites, how-to's, and guides, but I want to write about my own experiences gardening for the first time. I've grown seedlings before, but I have never grown a garden. Somehow, I lose interest in the upkeep of the plants, or the plants die. Hopefully this will not be another case of that this time around.

Why am I gardening? I recently moved into a house with both a front and back yard that I am responsible for. I want my house (even though I'm renting) to be pleasant and something to be proud of from the outside perspective. This is also the first time that I am responsible for a lawn. I've always lived with my parents or rented which had no lawn responsibilities, so this is my first chance to learn how to start a garden, maintain it, and prosper from it.

I will post about my experiences and hope to spare no detail as I hope to help someone else someday who is starting out, or trying new things like I am. I will post pictures, links to helpful information, experiences, and product information and reviews. Keep in mind, I live in the Northeast tip of Oklahoma. My circumstances might be different from what yours may be, but hopefully you can take the information from my experiences and apply them to yours.