Your Ultimate Gardening Guide.
Rules
Partner and I have had a blast with our first garden. It's been a tough year with a very serious drought in our area for much of the summer, but our squash have not minded at all and have thrived! We've harvested over 50 lbs of assorted squash from 8 plants! The acorn squash got ravaged by vine borers, so those got harvest very early and are just for decoration haha.
There's something both satisfying and so stressful about gourds. The vines can get so long and out of control but you get something both delicious and easy to harvest. They have been pretty consistent at my house since we let them grow over our fence and on our retaining wall.
We got a few acorn squashes, lots of decorative gourds and Luffas growing this year. What all did you plant? I see butternut but unsure about the others
The longer ones are North Carolina Candy Roaster squash, similar texture to butternuts but less sweet.
I have never had them but sound delicious. There are so many varieties that you can't try unless you grow them yourself.
Never thought I would know this much about squash varieties but here we are lol...
The first year of gardening is a defining moment for potential gardeners.
The weeding eventually becomes payment, the watering when and as you should transforms into a school, and the results are more than rewarding.
Every year is a new experience & every harvest is a gamble (regardless of skill)
You did good, in more ways than you might realize.
Reaching out to other gardeners and learning from/sharing your experiences is the ultimate reward in this endeavor.
Couldn't agree more. We kept our expectations very low, so any success felt incredibly rewarding. We felt like we learned a ton, and can't wait to apply those things to our summer garden next season! Now it's on to fall/winter plants, and we can't wait to see what we learn from those :)
That's it, that's the right attitude!
The nutrients you likely added will balance out and dwindle. The appreciation for your dedication will dissipate. These will all need balance.
It's not a hobby or talent, you are taking life & placing it into an environment of which you are attempting to control.
Eventually, if everything goes right; you'll be constructing little tunnels of the strongest and clearest material so you can continue to grow when the environment doesn't allow! (Don't worry, it's still fun if you love it)
Remember, this can easily become a chore & it's a privilege to have this chore as an option. Share & give. This applies to the harvest.. as well as the knowledge that leads to the harvest. All of this is a gift.
Thank you for sharing, what a great perspective to have.