Mavis Butterfield | Backyard Garden Pictures 3/16/14

Now that it’s finally starting to look like spring around here {bulbs are blooming and buds on all the trees are beginning to pop like crazy} I thought I would start posting a few pictures of what my backyard garden looks like every week again like I did last year.

Over the winter I reduced my garden beds from {16} 8×4 raised garden beds to just 10. 😉 We will be super busy this summer and the last thing I want to do is get too overwhelmed with my garden that I end up dreading it.

In addition to the 10 raised garden beds I also have a wood pallet garden. You can read more about my previous pallet gardening adventures HERE. Right now all the pallets are planted with strawberries and one of the wood pallets {front and center} has lettuce growing in it. 

Here is a view from the back of the garden. You’ll notice some of the beds are taller. Those are the new garden beds we installed this past fall. The shorter beds were installed in 2009.

My lasagna garden. I’ve been building this lasagna garden bed up over the winter with leaf litter and garden soil from other areas of the garden that I’ve dug up and needed to repurpose.  Right now the lasagna bed is about 8 inches deep and although I’m not sure what I’ll be planting it it quite yet, I’m excited to see how this method works.

To the left of the greenhouse I have rhubarb, poppies and a few perennial flowers growing. I’m waiting to see if the artichokes I transplanted last fall are going to come back {I hope so}.

In small beds along side the greenhouse I have herbs growing. Oregano, Rosemary and chives on the left, and Sage, Thyme and garlic chives on the right.

I also have a small raised bed planted with cabbage and kale off to the right as well.

As of this morning, I have four containers of lettuce thriving in the greenhouse garden. I recently planted 3 more garden pots with additional lettuce seeds and expect those to be ready for picking sometime in early June.

Ye Olde Chicken Coop. Over the winter I removed the pea patch that was in front of the chicken coop {now all you can see is brown bark} and expanded the garden bed in front of the coop a wee bit. I’m not sure what I’ll be planting there yet, but whatever it is, it will need to be protected from the chickens. {Black Fatty and Peter keep flying out of the coop}.

About a month or two ago I finally got around to digging up last years pumpkin patch and smoothing out the dirt. But now what? 

7 rows of raspberries. 

12 blueberry bushes.

And 2 pear trees. Clearly, they need to be pruned. 😉

Well that’s what is happening in my backyard these days, do you have any cool projects on your honey do list this year? I need to get mine started {so I’m looking for suggestions} hint hint. 😉

~Mavis

This years garden is being sponsored by the awesome folks at Botanical Interests Seed Company. You can check out their website HERE, order their new 2014 Garden Seed Catalog HERE, or visit my boyfriend Ryan’s blog HERE.