Is Winter giving you the blues? Not enough snow to send the kids outside? Too low temps to safely play outside? What does any stir crazy,outdoor loving, cabin fevered mom do? Get ready for warmer temps by finding Ways to Beat the Winter Blues! In this multi-post series I will share with you some ideas to get your family ready for Spring and Summer by taking simple steps now. I will share a variety of easy craft and DIY projects to inspire you and prepare you for the seasons ahead!
Do you have a garden? If not, why not? Winter is the perfect time to work on garden prep. Stay warm indoors while researching and preparing for a successful garden season. Maybe you do not know what to do to get growing and ready to garden. Well, you have come to the right place. I will share with you some simple ways to prepare indoors for a great garden this year.
1. Research Garden Ideas and Tips- Do you know when to plant things indoors to be ready for outdoors in your area? Ask your local farmer’s supply place, college agriculture department, or look it up online. Many things can be started earlier than one might think. Some things can be planted outdoors in the Fall for an early Spring harvest!
2. Space- How much space do you have to garden? This would determine how many of each kind of plant you can accommodate Have you ever read Square Foot Gardening? You might give this a try. How about Container Gardening?
3. Compost- If you do not have a pile of compost start one with veggie peels, egg shells, and coffee grounds. Maybe you still have leaves blowing around your yard that you could rack into your compost to help make it richer. When the weather is nice be sure to flip and rotate your pile. Add grass clippings in the Spring.
4. Save paper Egg cartons- easiest and cheapest way to start seeds is in something you already own! If you have the choice of styrofoam or paper CHOOSE PAPER! You can just tear apart the egg carton and place the entire egg well into the ground to decompose as the seedlings grow.
5. Buy soil- Buy a small bag of soil to start your seeds. You will need to place the egg cartons on a waterproof area like inside a plastic tray. Then fill each hole with soil and then plant your seeds.
6. SEED SWAP- Unless you plan to have a huge garden with 20-50 plants of the same type swap seeds. Find another gardener from church, your neighbor, or family member who wants to garden similar items. Decide what seeds each will buy and then split them! This saves money and the waste of extra seeds going unused or bad. Check the Seed Swap database from the National Garden Association.
Resources:
How to Successfully Start Seed Indoors
Vegetable Seed Saving Handbook
62 Free Seed Catalogs and Plant Catalogs
While the ground is too frozen to plant is the perfect time to get thinking about what you want to do outside in the Spring. Gather ideas, pictures, and research to make your garden spectacular this year and beat the Winter Blues!
Yes, I’m so excited about getting my garden going! I’m used to living in the north and getting snow but not it sticking around all winter so it’s starting to feel depressing! I’m going to order my garden seeds next week 🙂
Yes! hubby and I do a lot of garden dreaming during the winter. Looove it when the seed catalogs start coming in. 🙂
I ordered a couple of seed catalogs this week. Gotta learn what to plant when. I plant too early some years and too late others.
Wish I could get hubby more interested in gardening or homesteading stuff. I think he would be interested in “survival skills”:)
I have been thinking a lot about my garden during these cold days. I am glad you reminded me of some things I need to take care of!
These are such great tips! We are readying our compost and are going to be so ready to start our seeds. I’m excited (mostly because we will have a gardener helping us). Haha! Not so green thumb here.
Thanks for the awesome tips. Pinning! Thanks so much for sharing with us on the #homeschoollinkup It’s great to be sustainable and for children to learn to love gardening.
Great tips! I love that you keep your seeds in an old wipes container — way to upcycle! I can’t wait to start sowing my seeds for the spring. I have always purchased started plants before, but this year we are sprouting or own organic heirloom seeds, so I need to get online and see what is good for my area, and when to start planting. I will be sure to pin this and check back in a couple weeks, when I am laying out my plan. Thanks!