Who am I?

• I am an amateur gardening enthusiast.
• I have grown up in a family that cares about our yard and garden. I am not afraid to get dirty.
• I love growing things. For decoration or eating, I don't care. Growing things fascinate me.
• I have an unusual tendency to keep things alive for a fairly long time.
• I am patient. I have some plants growing that won’t produce food for a couple years yet.

This sums up my gardening experiences pretty well, I think. I’m a self/home taught gardener, who is always looking for something new and exciting to grow. Most of my family grows ornamental gardens, whereas I tend to grow more vegetables and herbs (the kitchen garden, if you will). From the moment snow starts melting until the first frost of Fall, I’m thinking about my plants.

I also have a degree in biology. This means I geek out a lot when I’m talking shop about plants. (Seriously, do you know how exciting Nitrogen Fixation is?) I love the science and the history behind various plants and planting styles. There are tons of household tricks to making your plants grow better, but I want to know why they work. And I want to pass that on to you.

I know too many people that try to start their own garden and give up after a season, or a month, or even a few days. Plants are not fast creatures, and the results of your care can be a long way off. I want you to know that what you are doing now makes a difference, even if you can’t immediately see it. I want you to know that doing something just a little bit different can make the difference between a tomato plant and one that actually produces tomatoes.

So how am I going to do this? I’m going to focus on my gardens this year. I’ll show you what I’m growing, what I do to it, and how I care for it. I’ll throw in some articles about things I find helpful or some neat ideas for designing your own garden. I'll talk about what I'm growing and how it's doing. I may even have some guest articles from some friends and family (we’ll see how that works out). I’ll do what I can to provide pictures, when available, and I’ll try to keep this updated regularly. When the season’s over, I’ll talk about harvesting and preparing your plants for the winter.

I can't promise my garden will be perfect. It's a learning process, and I'll be the first to admit, I haven't learned everything there is about gardening. What I can promise is that whatever happens, I'll learn from it and pass it along. Should be a fun ride, I think.

So. Let's get started.

~The Garden Geek