Hello! Here I am in the sunny Monadnock region. My house is (mostly) built and I am spending part of most every day creating a garden where once there was sheep pasture (100 years ago) and then unmanaged scrubby woodland. It was cleared last year, and abused with trucks and construction equipment all last year, and now I'm taking over and nurturing it like a mama with a newborn.

First I dug a lot of rich foresty soil and mixed it with manure, humus and peat moss.

I've put in 4 4x4 raised beds (my own adaptation of
square foot gardening) where I've planted lettuce sets, and seeds, spinach, pea, bean, beet and parsnip seeds, onion sets and seed potatoes. It's still too early for tomatoes and basil, but they're coming. I have an herb plot with thyme, tarragon, oregano and rosemary, (more herbs coming soon- especially my favorite, lavendar!) and have ground prepared for squash and melons.

I've dug a couple of plots for the perennials that have started pouring in- planted white and yellow flags, rosa rugosa and lilacs, have a spot for the forsythia, rhodies, sunflowers, nasturtiums, dahlias (which I've moved from garden to garden 4 times and they keep giving me glorious red blooms in August/Sept!). There are still piles of lumber where I want more lilac and 2 holly bushes in front of the house. We're building a porch and woodshed this summer, then I'll get going on those areas.

My long term goal is to create a feeling of sanctuary as you wind down our long driveway, inspired from my long-time friends at Seven Arrows Farm in Seekonk, Mass. First you turn off the road on to our wooded driveway lined with beech, maple, hemlock, birch and pine. Come up a rise and begin to see daffs, lupins, lilies or whatever's in season. Round the bend is the garden on the left, the house straight ahead. Buddhas, wind chimes, other sculptures, cairns, or special rocks are hidden in the trees. You'll know you're safe when you get here. That's my dream, and it's starting now.