March 21, 2009

What you think, shall become

Just yesterday, I was talking to my husband about farmer's markets. I wished that I had enough space to not only feed our family, but have enough to sell to others that wanted to buy local produce. Today, that wish is now a possibility.

A few weeks ago I was making the rounds, calling all the local nurseries for the pricing of a cubic yard of compost. It was abundantly clear that I would not be able to afford as much as I wanted, being roughly $29-35/cu. yd. - I needed about eight for a raised bed. At the suggestion of a forum member, I emailed local horse stables for free or cheap horse manure. By that night, Steven of BriarCroft Stables and Tack returned my email stating that he had two year old composting manure and it was free. Hallelujah!

This morning, Jeremy went to the stables to pick up the compost. Unfortunately I had to stay home with the kids (no room in the truck). I really would have liked to meet Steven and speak with him. When Jeremy returned home, he told me about the meeting. There was the suggestion that if this garden goes according to plan, he would allow us to use his property for a large-scale garden so long we keep his family in fresh produce. The rest can go to the farmer's market, CSA, whatever we choose (insert BIG, HAPPY, blow my mind grin here). Hopefully we can build a good relationship over this year's growing season and discuss how to proceed.

Of course, this opens a whole new can of worms. Will my backyard garden be successful enough to give me the confidence to try it on a large scale? I need to learn how to save seeds in order to plant such a large garden. How will I find the time to care for my family, work a full-time job, and take care of two gardens? That's just the tip of the iceberg, I'm afraid.

I have to keep in mind what Jeremy always tells me:

Stop putting up roadblocks. If you think it, it can be done.

1 comment:

deanna said...

How super-cool is that?!!! Go, Kim!