My Mom's Backyard Garden
Monday, June 15, 2009 at 10:23AM 
Now that I'm back in Chicago, I swung by my mom's place to check on her new backyard vegetable garden which is totally kickin'. This spring, she put in two small plots next to her lawn with the help of her friend Noreen Edwards Metz, who is the owner and designer of Design Green Landscapes, a full service custom landscape company that specializes in sustainable design, installation and native plants.
It's amazing what you can grow in small areas, as long as you have adequate sunlight. In just about 20 square feet, my mom is growing many different kinds of salad greens, peppers, cucumbers, three kinds of tomatoes, spinach, swiss chard, beets, basil, peas, chives, cilantro, sage, rosemary and sunflowers. I can't wait for harvest time!
-Dorothee
Reader Comments (10)
I love these pictures....I've always wanted my own garden!
Basil is my favorite!
Gardens are amazing and one of the things I miss most now that I live in New York. In my search for a new apartment in Brooklyn, I'm looking only at places with backyard or rooftop spaces for growing things. I used to be totally into (and GOOD at) gardening as a kid; it'd be a shame to give that up forever! Nothing like the sun and scent of the earth, eh?
You look pretty handy with that thar broken snow shovel!
Great photos Doro. (I didn't notice the broken snow shovel...) She will gets lots of vegees. I have to also bring some Kale seed over.
Thanks for putting that up. Please note my new name, Design Green Landscapes, new email, DesignGreenLandscapes@gmail.com, and new website, DesignGreenLandscapes.com that is still a bit under construction, but it's pretty cool so far.
I love how your mom is gardening in wedge heels. Too cute.
Haha, totally, that's my mom for you - always stylish.
Now that's how we can all become self-sufficient. It doesn't take much land...but it does take alot of LOVE! There is nothing that can compare to the taste of produce from your own garden! The energy that emanates from plants that are in the ground would astound most people. As soon as we pick a vegetable or fruit from the ground or off of a tree it remains fairly vibrant for several hours...as the days pass they lose much of the life energy they were meant to give us. That's why so many people in the world are lifeless - they are eating lifeless foods that are shipped miles and lay in a warehouse for days. But as soon as we are "thankful "for the food - subtle energy proves that the plantlife is revived enough to "give" to us again. Wishing you great success in all you do!
Go girls! You look great with shovels!!
"but it does take alot of LOVE." This is really the word for gardening - Love. Gardening or in large-scale it's called farming really needs that passion. I remember the days when I was not yet so busy and i did a small backyard gardening also, the plants are like pets. They need your time. Then if they are visited most often they seem to be lively compared to have that garden be watered by someone else. Yes, the energy is really different when it's not your caring hands that does the tilling and the watering.
Abe
Achla compost tumbler
Love the pictures! Looking stylish and gardening is quite a challenge that you both pulled of very well! I have been looking around on line today and came across your post. I love gardening and have been picking up more tips from DIY (HD) from my DISH Network subscription. It's been great working here at DISH and learning more about tv content as I didn't watch much before.