We have two raised garden beds in our yard and this is the first time I am using one for a fall garden. I plan to share more about this experience in a future blog. The other garden bed is primarily packed with tomatoes and mint. As I started the cleanup process to prepare the bed for winter, I became disappointed in the overgrown weeds, the amount of dropped tomatoes, the spinach I totally forgot to harvest because it was hidden under the mint… I felt like a failure even though we enjoyed so much from this garden bed over the summer. One of my biggest tips for beginner gardeners is to turn your “failures” into future goals. So here are mine for next spring/summer:

#1 GET MORE ORGANIZED

Before plants start bearing fruit or looking like the food we recognize, it can be hard to tell what’s what, especially when starting from seed! I hope to have more organized beds so I remember which plants are growing in each spot. Using plant markers could be a helpful tool to meet this goal.

#2 GROW LESS

I often referred to one of our garden beds as the tomato/mint jungle because that was all you could see! I was so sad to see so much spinach underneath it all when I went to clean up the bed. As grateful as I am for the cherry tomatoes we harvested, ate, and even shared with others this summer, I would love to make some room for other herbs/veggies.

#3 HARVEST MORE

As much as this has become a family project, growing a family takes priority over growing our garden. This means I can’t always get out to maintain the plants and pick as much as we need to. I would like to get in a rhythm next year and really make the most of what we grow by harvesting regularly. We definitely did better than last year, but I want to grow more and eat more!

#4 MANAGE WEEDS

Can you grow plants and harvest despite weeds? Absolutely! But some weeds are toxic or at the minimum, they take up space, which means they are taking up nutrients from what you really want. With little ones, you really have to be careful with weeds, especially ones that can bear toxic berries. Weeds grow so quickly and can get unmanageable. I let a few go this summer and plan to stay on top of it next year.  

#5 MAKE IT PRETTY

Gardens can be functional and also a beautiful aesthetic addition to your landscape. Adding finishing touches like stones, flowers, and trellises can really level up the area and add to the experience.

Keeping up with a garden is not an easy task, especially with little ones, but it is worth the work. The best part is that there are always new things to learn and you can keep improving!