Why do we do, what we do?

The following is something I've been working on with the idea of submitting it for publishing in some form of print media. I will be breaking it up into five smaller posts to make it a little easier to read online, the whole of which is entitled: "Small Space, Big Yield - Making the most of your backyard garden." Enjoy!

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When my husband and I bought our home four years ago, our decision to dig up the side yard must have been met with looks of bewilderment from our family and neighbours. It was an inconvenient place for a patio, too small to be used as a child’s play yard or pool, and an odd (and out of view) space for a flower garden. What were we doing?

Seventy years ago it would have been called a “victory garden,” though today such a term is not wildly used. However, the idea remains the same: a small-ish vegetable patch planted in an urban setting to either sufficiently feed, or at least supplement, the diet of an individual family. Nowadays another name has cropped up – the urban homestead. Yet as we live in a small town opposed to a big city, we have chosen the term “somewhat-urban homestead” to describe our home. 

For us, the decision to embark on a rather time intensive and physically exhausting way of living was a matter of sustainability, and the ability to show our three sons where food truly comes from. So shovels in hand we made the decision to be a little more self-sufficient, and after four summers we’ve proven it to be a success.

So how did we do it? We didn't have acres upon acres to use, and were also not willing to sacrifice the backyard that our sons and dogs love to play in. So with a little ingenuity and some sweat equity, we have discovered that anyone can turn even the smallest square feet of space into a successful urban garden.

Up next: Part 2: Raise beds, raise production