Our First Kentucky Summer Raised Garden: A Family Affair!

This summer has been a truly special one for our family. We embarked on a new adventure together: growing our very first raised garden bed here in beautiful Kentucky! There’s something incredibly rewarding about getting your hands dirty and watching fresh produce sprout from the earth, and doing it as a family has made it an unforgettable experience.

We started our garden journey with two pre-fabricated 4’x3′ raised garden beds from Menards. To expand our planting space and connect the two beds, we got a bit creative and used some leftover 4″x4″ posts from Home Depot to create a seamless section between them. This gave us a wonderful, continuous planting area to work with.

When it came to filling our beds, we knew that good soil was key. We did some research and ended up mixing different types of soil to get the desired results – a healthy, nutrient-rich base for our plants to thrive in.

Our plant list was ambitious for first-time gardeners, but we were excited! We planted a wide variety of vegetables, including:

• Tomatoes
• Carrots
• Squash
• Zucchini
• Green Beans
• Jalapeno Peppers
• Banana Peppers
• Lunchbox Peppers
• Bell Peppers
• Cucumbers
• Potatoes

We also practiced companion planting, strategically placing Marigolds in the corners of our beds. These cheerful flowers aren’t just pretty; they’re known to help with pest control, a natural and organic way to keep unwanted visitors away from our precious veggies.

Throughout the summer, we’ve learned a lot about nurturing our plants. We’ve been diligent about periodically pruning our tomatoes and other plants to encourage healthier growth and better yields. We also made sure to give our plants a boost of nutrients by mixing nitrogen fertilizer with water and applying it at regular intervals.

Beyond the bounty of fresh food we’ve been harvesting, this garden has brought so much more to our family. It’s been a source of quality time together, working side-by-side, teaching our kids about where food comes from, and just enjoying each other’s company in the sunshine.

The delicious results of our labor have also sparked wonderful discussions with neighbors, friends, and co-workers. Sharing our homegrown produce and swapping gardening tips has been a fantastic way to connect with our community. And for me, personally, spending time in the garden has been an incredible stress reliever, bringing a sense of peace and positive feelings.

As our first Kentucky summer gardening season winds down, we’re already dreaming about what we’ll plant next year. This experience has truly enriched our lives, and we can’t wait to continue growing together as a family, one raised garden bed at a time!