Looking at my garden this year, and planning for the next
This year I really wanted to make good progress in my family's garden. I was planning to try and keep the whole garden weed free all summer, so that we wouldn't have to dig through weeds to get to the food when it was ready to pick.
I was doing really well this year, until it started to consistently be 90+ degrees Fahrenheit. And then the mosquitos seemed to come out in droves, and now the grass in the garden has gotten tall.
While I'm a bit disappointed, I don't feel like I've failed at all. We can still get to the beans, even if we have to push aside weeds to reach them. I'm still doing some work outside to keep up the habit, although it's much less than I was doing before. But most importantly, I've learned what I need to prioritize next year!
Mulch
Keeping the garden weed-free all summer isn't a reasonable goal by itself. If I have some mulch to keep the weeds down, doing maintenance will be much easier. So I'm wanting to rake and bag up some dead leaves, or pine needles, to use next year.
Natural Bug Repellent
I tried to do that this year, but unfortunately none of my rosemary seeds sprouted :( I might try to get a variety of plants next year, that bugs don't like the smell of. That way if one doesn't come up, maybe the other will.
Other things I'm keeping in mind
I'm not a morning person, so I have no idea how this will go. But I want to at least try and work in the garden in the mornings, instead of the late afternoons like I have been doing. It should feel cooler, and maybe the mosquitos won't be as active then. I was able to do this this morning,
I'll make new mistakes next year, and then I'll have new stuff to learn! Even though the heat is beating me down, I'm still determined to have a nice garden :)
Take chances, make mistakes, and get messy!