Hello there!!!
Welcome back to the Victory Garden!
I dunno about y’all, but I am chomping at the bit to get my hands in the dirt!

Here are some tidbits I thought you might like to look at as you plant your own garden. I am getting a little seed swap organized with several of my like-minded local pals. You have enough time to do the same! Share! You’ll learn a lot and have some fun, too!

Here is a list of the seeds I have so far.

Last year I tried some different planting methods, some of which worked and some of which DID NOT. I had pretty terrible luck with growing large tomatoes in pots. The small or cherry varieties did *okay* but not great. Potatoes in pots did AMAZINGLY WELL! Since I’ve had a whole year to track how the sun moves, I am ready to put some plants in the ground. I’m still going to do pots for some things.

Scene from a snow day!

Here are some varieties I had great luck with last year and plant to grow again.

Since I do live in the foothills of North Carolina, it is getting close to time to start seeds indoors.  I am going to start my tomatoes (all small varieties) and peppers (mostly HOT) inside near the first of March. I’m going to direct plant lettuce, spinach, radish and carrots around the same time outside. I planted garlic, shallots and onions at the end of October. Like I told y’all last year: after growing potatoes, I am convinced I can grow anything!

Here are some tips from this VERY AMATEUR gardener:

KEEP A NOTEBOOK. Last year I kept notes on bits and pieces of paper that I then put in a portfolio folder. This worked okay, but I’m sure I ended up losing a few of the notes. This year I am using a regular old marble composition notebook. I’ve got pages dedicated to planting & harvesting dates, plus pages for gardening notes and tidbits. It has already been a help to look back over last years info as I plan for this new season.

KEEP A SEPARATE CALENDAR. I tried to keep garden notes in the same calendar as the rest of my life last year and it did not work for me. I have some friends from my Missouri days (Hi Trevor & Lisa!!!) that put out a little zine-style calendar each year and send it to folks in lieu of those stupid life update letters (they include one of those, too, but it comes with this practical gift). It’s big enough to keep dates, but small enough to keep with my  note book that has lots of details. I went ahead and with the help of my planting guide (see below) put dates on the calendar for when I need to prep/plant/potentially harvest. I hope this helps me be a little more organized this year.

INVEST IN A PLANTING GUIDE. I got one of these free with a Baker Creek gift a few years back and really didn’t pay that much attention to it until this year. I watched this video from Off Grid with Doug and Stacy was like OMG I have that thing! (Be sure to watch the video AND follow the channel–it’s a funny & very knowledge couple that you can learn a lot from!) The “thing” is a planting guide for planting and it works all over the globe. I know you can DIY them, but for a mere $4, you really can’t beat this one from Clyde.

LOOK AT GARDEN BED PLANS. I get really overwhelmed thinking about what to plant near what. I love reading about companion plants and who plays well with whom and who has drama…but then I don’t really know what to do with the information. This year I looked up actual garden plans to figure out where to plant. I’ll share more about the process once I nail down my own. There are tons of great free resources online AND in books at your local library.

Here are some of my “just for fun” seeds!
{milkweed, snap dragon, Job’s Tears, luffa, marigold}

Share with me!
Tell me what you are planning for YOUR garden!
What advice do you have for me & our readers?