Garden Box

I just had this great idea that I wanted to try my hand at gardening. Never mind the fact that I can never get anything to grow, mostly because I have a bad habit of drowning everything. So my always supportive husband jumped on board with the idea and helped me put together a garden box. so far this has been the easiest DIY yet! 

Here is the after picture just to inspire you to get started. 

Our side yard is not a very pretty area, but this does seem to get the best sunlight and would be out of the way.

We used cedar boards that I believe were 1x6's and we stacked them on top of each other and measured them out to 8'. But you can make whatever size to fit your area. We used outdoor wood screws to hold the boards together and secured the boards to the corners with 1x2s as support. I believe our box was about 3' across and 8' long. 

To try to prevent some of the weeds and grass from growing up through, we lined the box with this black weed proof mess (you can find it at Lowes's) and then added newspaper. I HATE WEEDS! By the way, I have used the newspaper trick in my flower beds and it definitely cuts down the weeds. 

 

We loaded that bed with a ton of soil that included peat moss, compost, and vegetable garden soil. And watered it all down. 

I had to do some research about what will grow best in our hot climate and when I should plant certain things. I also learned that cumbers and tomatoes should not be planted near each other. This year, I decided to just try a few different things, just to see what would grow. I have jalapeno plant, bell pepper plant, cuccumber, zucchini, yellow squash, tomatoes, cucumber, strawberries, watermelon seeds, and romaine lettuce.

 That tiny strawberry was my first harvest. lol!! I'm still shocked that things are growing and my husband is completely impressed that I haven't given them to much to drink. Right now, I have watermelon leaves coming through the soil, multiple strawberries, and about 8 tomatoes starting. The cucumber and squash plants are growing like crazy but no visible produce starting yet.