Planning for Our First Garden at the Farmhouse

This will be the first year my husband, Justin and I attempt to grow our own food. But, it’s something we’ve been longing to do for years. In this post, I will share the steps we will take to set up our very first garden here at our farmhouse.

The Journey to My First Garden

Intimidated? Yes, that’s one of the emotions I am feeling when it comes to setting up our very first garden. But, I’m also super excited too. The promise of growing at least half of our produce here at home would be a major accomplishment. At least to start.

Confession: I am a gardening newbie. If you knew me 10 years ago then you would know that plants came to my house to die. To be honest, even today when it comes to houseplants, I opt for those that are the hardest to kill. Snake plants, aloe plants, you get the idea. The ones that can be neglected for a few days and still make it out okay. I swear, I’m a better mom to my kids than my plants, lol.

Jeez, that sounds so bad when I read it back. But, we all have to start somewhere right?

So, why start a garden now? Well, to be honest I attempted to start seeds when we were still living in our rental cottage on Long Island. It was one of my quarantine projects. But, one that ended poorly.

Given my history with plants, I became an overbearing plant mom, and kind of smothered my little seeds. Finicking over every little pod, and wondering if they were getting enough sun or was it too much?! Could they withstand the cool early spring breeze, or should I bring them back inside, like now?! I know…crazy, with a capital C.

This time it’s gonna be different! (Share the story for the last time you said that phrase, lol) I’m leaning toward the middle of the road with my plant parenting. Not too helicopter-y, and not neglectful either.

But, the reason I chose to try again is because of all the benefits that growing your own food, and tending to your own garden can bring into your life. And, being less dependent on my local grocery store, well, that’s an added bonus.

So, where to start?

Determine the Size of Your Garden

After a small bit of research, I discovered that an 800 square foot garden will feed a family of four. However, after reading this article on Southern Living, I think we might start a bit smaller while leaving room for future expansion. Justin and I would also like to purchase a greenhouse so that we can extend our growing season. The greenhouse will also act as a fence on the north side of our garden.

Thankfully, now that we have 10 acres, we have space for the garden of our dreams. But, you definitely do not need a lot of space to start a garden of your own. If your outdoor space is limited, pick one vegetable (or more) that you love to eat, and grow it in a container this season. You’ll get to practice for when you have a bit more space.

Pssst…that’s my approach with houseplants. If one survives a season, I’ll add to the bunch. And, that’s what I plan to do once all of the renovations of our farmhouse are about 75% done.

Find the Perfect Spot for Your Garden

Here are a few things to consider before you pick the perfect spot for your garden – it’s proximity to water, your home, sunlight throughout the day, and whether or not you plan to expand your garden in the future.

Now, there are a lot of opinions on this matter, like placing the garden close to home because it will be easier to tend to. But, I am choosing a different option. Our garden will be tucked away behind the pond in our backyard. This is how close I will be to the back door of our home from where our garden will sit:

I know, it’s quite a distance. And, we do have plans to set up a rain catchment system so that access to water will not be a big issue. But, my reasoning behind choosing this spot is –

there is fencing along the south and east side of the garden,
this area gets a ton of sunlight,
on the windy days it will be protected by the gradual uphill slope of the property going back, and
I would like the backyard space in between the pond, and our home to be designated just for the kids to run around in. We’ve never had a proper yard for them to enjoy, and we feel like we’ve hit the jackpot with our new farmhouse.

Decide What You Want to Plant

Here’s a brief idea of what I have in mind for our first garden –

Herbs like basil, thyme, and sage
Vegetables like brussel sprouts, broccoli, carrots, and cucumbers
Flowers like sunflowers, wildflowers, marigolds

Truthfully, I need to figure out which seeds to collect because our last frost date is April 13, and that date is rapidly approaching. Not only do I hope to eat from the harvest of our garden but, I hope to make tinctures and salves as well. And, I want to repel garden pests naturally but attract native pollinators. In other words, figuring out what I want to plant will help determine my garden layout. Jots down on the to do list.

Stay tuned for more on this topic, I still have some more research to do here.

Start Your Seeds

Each seed packet will be your guide once you’ve determined your last frost date. Pull together all of your seed packets, and check for whether or not the seeds can be started indoors. If yes, then look for “days to harvest”. This will tell you when to start your seeds.

For example, our last frost date here in East Tennessee is April 13. It takes my watermelon 80 days to harvest. So, I should start my seeds on January 23. Yikes, that was a few days ago!

TIP: So, having just discovered that, I am going to grab ALL of my seed packets, write their start dates on the back, and group them together by start date to get better organized. Classic newbie fumble, am I right?

Disclaimer: I have decided to push my last frost date back to April 29. Being that this is our first garden, I just want to make sure we don’t get a rogue frost, and lose all of our transplants. I’ll let you know how this works out in the future.

Other seed packets will tell you whether to start your seeds indoors or out. For instance, carrots must be sown directly in the garden soil. Conversely, brussel sprouts should be started indoors 8 weeks before planting outdoors. Your seed packet, and the local garden center are your friend here!

Wrapping it up for now

Alright, I have some more work to do to get prepped for the next step in garden planning, which is designing the layout. So, I’m off to plan our next steps which are: