How Does Your Garden Grow?

I think I can safely say that the garden is IN.  It took a LONG time, especially trying to fit it in on nice days (in Michigan... hah...) that I am not working or rehearsing.  But I plugged away, and took my space from this:

   

To this:

I had to rip out that scrubby tree (it was too close to the house anyway, we were worried about root damage  to the garage) and I used scrap wood and twine to build a trellis for my peas.

 First I transplanted the sage, chives, and thyme that lived from last year out of the main garden space and into planters (actually, old storage ottomans, which I think make very cute planters!).

I planted the pepper seedlings (the only ones I grew from scratch that didn't get leggy in the uneven sun of my den or squashed by my cat, who seems to think that anything new in the house has potential to be an amazing bed.  Peppers like it hot and sunny, and they don't handle cold well.  In Michigan we had snow well into April, so I thought it would be good to put these guys into pots and set them on the front steps and driveway - I can move according to the sun and still be able to move them in in case of a sudden cold snap.  Their first day I moved them too far from the house, though, and I think an enterprising squirrel killed off a few more of them!

My main garden space was kind of a disaster.  This one took a couple of years to even make functional, as someone before us had left it a pile of unruly myrtle (an aggressive viney plant) and mysterious stumps/concrete buried throughout.  With a lot of weeding and elbow grease, it was finally ready for herbs last year.  This year, it's all veggies.

The pots contain tomatoes... There's a big concrete foundation under the spot where the planters are, so I had to put in planters to make use of the shallow space.  This year I planted several types of squash, peas, spinach, broccoli, and carrots in the main garden space.  I have the peppers and tomatoes (cherry and beefsteak) in planters, and the new herbs in cute vintage baskets that may end up mounted on the walls if we finish enclosing the deck a bit more.  The verdict is still out on the strawberries - I bought a few of those pre-made planters, and they don't seem to be doing well.  I'm excited to see how the summer goes, and hope to continue transforming our lot into something amazing!