Who needs grass?

Raspberries!

It finally feels like spring. Trees are blossoming and the grass is growing--and by grass, I mean dandelions, thistle, and grass. As "homeowners", we purchased our first lawnmower a few weeks ago. A big step into adulthood. We've been pretty diligent about mowing because it is enjoyable and we would like to make friends with all of our new neighbors.

That said, our long term goal is to mow as little as possible and to get as much foods out of our .16 acre lot as possible. So, we've begun converting portions of our lawn into a mulched native plant area and an edible garden.

We're transforming half of our front yard to a mulched "rain garden" with low-maintenance native shrubs. We'll see how low-maintenance it really is when the thistle and dandelions begin to creep through the sheet much. Thanks to a tip from our friend, Shalee, we scored a truckload of wood chips for sheet mulching from a local mill!

The backyard is where the food will be grown. We put in an herb garden and raspberries last weekend, but our main veggie patch is a big experiment. We double-dug half of the plot and got 3 yards of compost from Lazy J Tree Farm that we are going to till in. On the other half of the plot, we've laid cardboard that will be layered with compost and mulch and left to break down for a season.

What have you done to create new garden space with healthy soil?

The great veggie experiment.

Herbs outside the back door.