Welcome to My Farm
Yes, I live on a farm. I couldn’t be more excited to share my funny farm adventure with you. I hope to encourage you to step outside with your family more. I hope you are able to reconnect with nature, make intentional goals, and to grow or raise something with meaning.
Summer Farming
Summer was beautiful over here at the funny farm. We had so much fun growing our food and forever and ever… continuously learning. I will be the first to admit, I had more failures than I’d like to acknowledge. The heat really got to us, it was my biggest struggle the last few weeks. Next year I will be sure to plant more heat-tolerant and slow to bolt plants.
Honestly, learning from my seasons is part of why I love gardening so much. It doesn’t have to be perfect and always successful for me to enjoy my time spent. I have so much gratitude and respect for the entire process of gardening. I am showing up here to wrap up summer!
Fall Gardening
Bring on the cozy sweaters and pumpkins. Fall gardening season is about to begin. There is nothing more refreshing than the crisp cold air. A time when spiders return to well, anywhere but everywhere. If you’re new to gardening, this is a wonderful season to start.
Tender plants need time to get going, grow and produce before the freezing weather hits. I have never been one to sit down and map out my entire space, learning from past mistakes is something I pride myself in. That goes with anything in life. Needless to say, I will start mapping out where and how to plant my new babies.
I personally do a mixture of planting seeds and starting seeds, simply because I just don’t have the time or space to start everything from seedlings. I always freshen up my soil beds with great nutrients. This way I can insure a happy harvest, which in my case is a three-year-old pulling anything partially ripe off the vines. That is part of the fun.
Let’s Begin
To begin you will want to start planting with your hardiness zone and frost dates. Understanding when to plant for your area is very important. Some of my favorite things to grow this time a year are broccoli, beets, carrots, beans, and spinach. For the last few years I’ve focused on growing my produce. While that isn’t necessarily changing, I’m going to focus on fall flowers as well. I love seeing pops of color throughout my raised beds and having a chance to fill a vase on my kitchen table brings me joy.
Annuals are always a great way to deter some pests, bring in beneficial predators, and help out our pollinator families. I can’t wait to head over to Armstrong in Thousand Oaks when it starts to cool down outside. If you are new and want to start gardening, my advice to you is grow what feels right and sounds most tasty to you. More than anything, do it with your family. Include your kiddos despite the messes and internal heartache (if you like control and order I know you know what I am talking) do it anyway.
Start Your Own Garden
Create new memories and seasonal traditions that will allow your family to feel connection through the foods you eat. Help everyone around you appreciate the process of what it takes. I hope this gave you some new ideas and inspiration to start your own garden. Remember, you don’t even need a backyard to have a few thriving plants. When I lived in my condo by the beach, I only had space for windowsill herbs and you bet your bottom I was so proud of them.
Happy Gardening!
Fun Fall Recipe
Spicy Jalapeño Margaritas!
This can be a wonderful drink to make without alcohol. Pour one shot of tequila over ice, add sparkling la croix and a dash of organic margarita mix. Cut up 3 slices of jalapeños with freshly squeezed lime juice, mix it all up and bon appetit!
Thanks for being here alongside me on this journey.
