Today is Day 24 of my 30 Day Challenge: How to Start a Vegetable Garden. We are getting down to the end of the challenge and I have a few more important tidbits to share with you. So stay tuned for information about fertilizers and tips for watering your garden, among other posts.

Do you keep a Garden Journal?

It seems that there is always something new to research about my garden.

Over the weekend, I was reading about garden pests as I call them: all the creepy crawly spiders, bugs, and bees that frequent my garden. I need to learn which ones are harmless, and which ones I need to address immediately before my garden gets destroyed.

Keep in mind, creepy crawlies are among my least favorite things in the world, and staring at hundreds of them on my screen to learn their appearance and characteristics is low on my "things I want to do" list. However, it had to be done for the health of my garden.

But...I digress...

As I was researching the creepy crawlies, I came across a Garden Journal. Too little too late - I wish I had chronicled my garden since day one so I knew for next year how to better plant my garden.

I am happy that I have my 30 day challenge to chronicle some of the things I've learned, but I wish I had been more diligent with dates so I knew, for example, how long ago it was since I planted my potatoes in garbage bags and my first set of peppers seeds outdoors (which are FINALLY growing by the way).

So, I'm going to begin blogging about my garden on my website on an (almost) daily basis. It will be my Garden Journal and I will do my best to include pictures of what I'm talking about, but no promises!

Today's Update

Today was a huge day for my garden. The professional tree removers FINALLY came and took down the giant tree next to my raised bed. My daughter was in tears and many emotions needed to be gently handled, but my vegetables were happy as some of them saw their first rays of sunlight in a while.

In addition to removing the random flower petals and seeds that were gifted to my raised bed by the trees above, today I nurtured my green beans and peas with loving care.

These plants want so badly to climb up their trellises, but they are so tiny (between 10 and 20 inches high) that are having a hard time getting going.

I found some plastic ties I had purchased a few months back, and gently moved the plants around and secured them to the trellises to help them with their upward assent.

They are no longer bending over or crawling up each other in a jungle type mess. They are standing up tall and independent and they look so much better!

Now to give them a few days to get their support vines to cling to the trellises and we are in business!

30 Day Challenge

Is there anything you are struggling with in your garden that you would like to see me include in the 30 Day Challenge? I am currently researching (and testing out) natural fertilizer options, as well as organic pest deterrents (both animal and bug) and water conservation ideas.

Please let me know how your garden is doing, as well as anything you may be struggling with. Additionally, I finally got my RSS feed working on my website and will begin blogging my Garden Journal this weekend. Check it out!

Note: This photo is of my green beans after I transplanted them this weekend. Unfortunately I didn't get a fresh one today. However, you can see my pinwheel in the back. I have pinwheels around my garden bed and a few in the middle and so far they have been effective at keeping the birds out of my garden bed. Give it a try!