It's Spring!

Spring is such a wonderful season for declaring God's glory. I went outside today and took some snapshots of the beautiful flowers and greenery.

My very favorite tree.

It is almost 15 feet in circumference!

The deep green of the forsythias is so rich against the red barns.

The peaches are just starting to grow.

One of five peach trees. The Lord has provided us with fruit at our new home.

Beautiful purple vinca

We have several different kinds of azalea bushes

Baby pears

We have three pear trees

 I also recently planted Liberty and Granny Smith apple trees

Three apple trees were already here

Apple blossoms are so pretty

Some are white and some are pink

What we call "helicopter" seeds

Bunches of little white flowers

A caterpillar nest. When I was younger I collected thousands of caterpillars each year.

Blackberry bushes. We have quite a few of these

Our wonderful red barns

A very well-pruned dogwood tree

I am not sure what kind of bush this is, but it is gorgeous

At long last, here is a promised picture of our new home

This is probably my favorite shot

My mom found this tiny nest on the ground. Perhaps it is a hummingbird's nest

I cut the grass in the field today

I hope you enjoyed these little snippets of our new land. For us, these things are so very precious and new. God is so awesome! As Psalm 66:1-4 says,

"Make a joyful noise unto God, all ye lands:
Sing forth the honour of his name: make his praise glorious.
Say unto God, How terrible art thou in thy works! through the greatness of thy power shall thine enemies submit themselves unto thee.
All the earth shall worship thee, and shall sing unto thee; they shall sing to thy name."

Back to Eden and Garden Plan

My family and I recently watched a documentary entitled "Back to Eden".

It is about observing how God created nature, and implementing those concepts in the home garden. The website description is as follows:

"After years of back-breaking toil in ground ravaged by the effects of man-made growing systems, Paul Gautschi has discovered a taste of what God intended for mankind in the garden of Eden. Some of the vital issues facing agriculture today include soil preparation, fertilization, irrigation, weed control, pest control, crop rotation, and PH issues. None of these issues exist in the unaltered state of nature or in Paul’s gardens and orchards.

“Back to Eden” invites you to take a walk with Paul as he teaches you sustainable organic growing methods that are capable of being implemented in diverse climates around the world."

We were so impressed and encouraged by the information in this film, that I would highly recommend it to anyone who has an interest in gardening. You can watch it online for free at http://backtoedenfilm.com/

I am so thankful to God for putting this film into our lives right before gardening season this year, as we will be implementing this method in our new herb and vegetable gardens. He provided for the fact that we do not own a tractor so beautifully!

Also, I was very convicted by how Paul Gautschi consulted the Lord even in his gardening techniques. I suppose I have always considered the garden to by my deal, without realizing that God is the ultimate Gardener! I have been earnestly praying that the Lord will reveal things to me in my gardening journey this year, and help us to bless others who may not be able to garden.

Below is the plan I have laid out for our vegetable garden. I know it is very small, but I hope you are able to get the gist of it!

It is going to be 100ft by 70ft, which is a major venture for us. My mom and I are also working on the herb garden plan, which I will post when completed.

Garden Planning

I am beginning to plan for our spring garden.

We have decided to order heirloom seeds, which are organic and open-pollinated. Here is the list I have compiled so far of seeds I am going to order:

Vegetables:
-Cantaloupe
-Watermelon
-Tomatoes (Roma, Cherry, Slicing)
-Zucchini
-Squash
-Cucumbers (Slicing, Pickling)
-Pinto Beans
-Green Beans
-Black-eyed Peas
-Sweet Peas
-Bell Peppers
-Jalapeno Peppers
-Ceyenne Peppers
-Corn (Sweet, Popping)
-Okra
-Potatoes (Gold, Red, Sweet)
-Onions (Green, Sweet, Purple)
-Shallots
-Garlic

Herbs:
-Comfrey
-Rosemary
-Lavendar
-Oregano
-Thyme
-Basil
-Cilantro
-Parsley
-Sage
-Lemon Balm
-Mint
-Apple Mint
-Peppermint
-Eucalyptus
-Stevia

I would love to hear any ideas and suggestions you may have! Just leave them in the comment section.