NOW IF ONLY.

On March 14th I told you about the new vegetable garden I was planning. With the help of my honey, MrC and a friend's backhoe we have made a start on making my dream come true.

MrC scraping away the sod to expose the lovely rich soil underneath.

Even though the soil is rich, I plan on having some raised beds as well creating a few beds directly in the cleared area. The white box you see in the foreground is made from two large commercial file drawers we were given. The two drawers have been securely bolted together and should last a few years before they rust out.

There is still quite a lot of work to be done before the garden is as I want it. It has to be leveled some more, the loose sod raked up and discarded, fenced to keep the critters out, landscape cloth put around the garden beds as they are installed and probably either bark or straw over the cloth between the rows to keep the weeds down and my feet from getting muddy.
We have quite a few old car tires which will make nice planters for herbs, flowers, or whatever else takes my fancy. These need to have the top rims cut out, placed in the garden area and filled with the wonderful compost/topsoil mix our landscaper friend brought over for us to use. (a whole dump truck full)

Here is a closeup of the first of two, about 18 inches tall, boxes to be constructed, then there are two more about 15 inches tall to be bolted together. With the high cost of cedar or other products which we could use for the raised beds, the choice to utilize what we have on hand makes sense. The more expensive materials can come later on. I am kind of a "waste not want not" kinda person, so using what we have on hand will leave me more money for plants, seeds and fencing material. I also want a couple of trellises for beans and cucumbers to grow on.

Now if only, the rain would let up,I could get out there to start on my project.