In our dreams we see an acre of vegetables, yet every time we look out the back door all we see is a postage stamp sized area for a garden. Finding your passion in gardening gives you the opportunity to forget about the stress of your job and other obligations and the chance to grow something of your own. Gardening may be for us past farm kids who like to dig in the dirt, for those of us who want to eat more healthily, or just save a few dollars off the grocery bill. A big garden may be only a dream, yet the homeowner with a small space in the corner of their yard may still be able to experience that dream.

What do you have a passion for? What has made you want to jump out of bed? Catherine Pulsifer

Let’s start with the location for the garden as a means of finding your passion. You want as much exposure to the sun as you can get. Avoid a garden by large trees or any structure which will shade the area and stunt the growth of your plants. Try for a level area with decent drainage. If you have a yard with a chain-link fence, look at one of the back corners. Don’t overlook a space because you think it isn’t big enough – you would be surprised what you can grow in a garden with a total of 100 or 200 square feet of space and the enjoyment you can receive.

The type of soil in your yard is a big factor in the success of your garden. If you are blessed with black dirt in your yard, say "thank you"! The first two homes we lived in had plenty of black dirt. At our current home we have clay, and only clay. This gives us a couple of options - one was to mix mulch and peat moss into the soil to help loosen the very compact and dense clay. Or you can do what I did – I dug a trench around 24 inches or more deep and moved the dirt to another part of the yard. I started a "mound" for flowers, that’s another opportunity for finding your passion in a different type of gardening – flower gardening. Next I had a truck load of black dirt brought in and I filled the trench in my garden.

Now you can stop there, but I didn’t. I wanted a "raised-bed" garden which offers a couple of advantages. A raised-bed garden will dry quicker in the spring allowing you to plant sooner. You can have defined rows with a walkway on one or more sides which will allow you access to your plants without walking on the area where they are growing. This reduces soil compaction. A raised-bed garden also means you don’t need to stoop down as far when weeding or picking your produce. There are various means of confining the dirt in a raised-bed garden, the most common is railroad ties or with treated 4x4’s or 6x6’s. I don’t like either due to creosote in the ties and the chemicals used in the "green" or treated lumber. My concern is the chemicals will leech out of the wood into the ground and end up in your vegetables – that would not be very healthy for you. One can use stone if you have access to that on your property or if you are willing to spend a lot of money. I use the white vinyl 2x6 fencing material you might see in a fence on a horse farm. It is relatively inexpensive, you can cut it with a hack saw, and with a few pieces of re-rod pounded into the dirt on each side, and it will stand upright for years. Both items can be found at most of the big home improvement type stores.

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