A Garden Update: Worship and Solarization

 I wish I could be updating you all on all my awesome veggies in my garden, but I can't, because there isn't one! This year, I had high hopes for having a successful veggie garden. Then as 2011 came to an end and 2012 began, life got much busier, and I found myself having to re-prioritize. And that's okay. 

  For a long time I had been asking God to give me a hobby I could be passionate and excited about; a way I could worship Him through my creativity. Kevin worships through writing music, and I have friends who worship through painting and even baking. Praise God for that, right? But none of those things ever spoke out to me when I tried them. Then, God in all His love and grace, placed the desire to garden on my heart. It was no coincidence that we moved into a house with a big garden plot in the backyard around the same time.It felt so good digging my hands in the dirt. I loved having that time to connect with the Creator of all things, and I still do.

 So, here I am about a year later with no garden, but still as passionate as ever to get this show on the road. I'm so thankful God allotted me time off this summer to get some essential preparation done for next year.

 You see, my garden was overgrown with weeds. I'm talking jungle-like proportions, you guys. I was totally down in the dumps thinking I would never be able to clear out this space with my own hands. I needed a tractor or something. And I didn't want to use any chemicals, because I want my soil to be healthy and organic, especially since we'll be eating stuff from it! So, I researched for several days figuring out the best way to kill these weeds and grass and still keep the soil healthy.

 That's when I stumbled upon soil solarization, which simply put, is suffocating all those weeds. LIFE CHANGING! There was hope again! I could prepare this plot naturally in a way that benefits the soil. And it was simple. What more could you want?

 All you have to do for soil solarization is to 1. mow the grass as low as you can. Use a weed-eater if you need to 2. Soak area 6 inches deep. For me, that equaled about 1 hour of watering 3. Cover area in clear plastic that is about 3-5 mm thick. I got my plastic in the paint section at Lowes for about 3 dollars a roll 4. Fasten plastic to the ground. I just used wood we had laying around, but I'm sure stakes or big rocks would work great, too. You just want to make sure none of the plastic will blow up or away by the wind. You don't want all the moisture drying up underneath, then it won't suffocate it. It gets hot and steamy in there, and the plants can't breath. Muahahah! Seriously, it feels good killing those suckers. 5. Leave on for 6 weeks (make sure temps are hot out before you do this), then take plastic off, till the soil to bring up anything that might not have gotten killed, soak again, and reapply plastic for 2 more weeks.

 I obviously haven't gotten to step 5 yet, but I can't wait! I have about 4 more weeks left, but I can tell that nothing new is growing and it's all brown, so that's definitely a good sign.

 Sorry for such a long winded post. It just feels so good knowing that I have made progress out in the yard. I can't wait for spring to roll around. But until then, there's much research and more prep to do.

 Do you have any weekend plans? If you're in Tulsa, I suggest you check out Scales of Motion at the Free Tulsa Music Festival on Friday. It's guaranteed to be a good one! Have a wondferul weekend!