Years ago, our family grew a field of watermelons. It was quite the experience so this year I
decided to plant a packet of sugar baby seeds.
This was towards the end of spring and I wasn’t sure if the seeds were viable and to my surprise all 16 germinated. It was a beautiful sight and as these plants grew, I was reminded of the field we prepared on our family farm.
We had quite the work ethic back then and would say that my husband and I still have a good amount of energy, we just move at a slower pace that is steady. Perhaps we enjoy the process more instead of being, so goal driven.
Sometimes when looking back we can get stuck in those memories but when all 16 of these seeds germinated, I was reminded that this next chapter of life is going to be a neat one.
Special moments remembered as we garden are some of
the most fantastic things about growing your own food. Watermelon really is a neat plant because the vines have a mind of their own.
By taking a smaller approach planting in one raised bed, the growing process was less overwhelming than say field planting.
This 3 x 5 was a great choice as it allowed the
vines to cover the dirt working as a protector to keep the soil
moist. This was in addition to the pine
needles I added back in June.
As the vines continued to sprawl, I let them travel towards the ground so I could get the same effect as field planting.
This has been energizing to watch them mature and last weekend we enjoyed the first sugar
baby watermelon for the season.
If you are in planting zones 2-11 then add watermelons in raised beds to
your list for next year. Sugar babies will be
back on my planting list as I have already harvested seeds.
A little tip for me I will be planting in a different bed because rotational planting is a must.
It’s these positive garden experiences like growing watermelons that continue to keep me focused on my gardening book. This book project has been long, but I am happy to share it is in the final weeks before heading off to editing.
I think the hardest part was sorting through all those projects because not everything I shared was popular. So, it dawned on me to just add the favorites and perhaps there could be a few new projects, things that I am doing now in my swamp garden.
Remember to keep growing in everything you do and your takeaway here is simple, raised bed gardening is a great way to leverage your time and energy. Cheers!
See the good,
Carole