Hi, y’all!

How’ve ya been doing? I know you probably thought Raw Juice Girl “flew the coop” but I didn’t. I’ve just been busy as a little worker bee doing all sorts of cool stuff – including gardening and writing about gardening!

I’ve also been hunting for treasures (which I’ve found!) for unique container gardening. I’m so excited to be growing yummy goodies to eat. Not only is gardening fun and healthy exercise, it’s rawsome to be able to eat produce you’ve grown yourself.

First up, is an old wheelbarrow that was full of junk. I knew right away it was a treasure that could be filled with rich soil and that it would make a wonderful home for produce of some sort.

Now that I think about it, strawberries would have loved living here, but pepper plants it was: cayenne, jalapeño, and sweet bell peppers to be exact.

Before

After

Note two things:

1. The recycled trash can lid turned upside-down in order to lift the bottom and result in using less soil.
2. That the wheelbarrow is now PINK – my all-time favorite color!

(I blogged about my “Pink Pepper Patch” here!)

Next up is an old shelf that was laying in someone’s yard and would have literally just rotted away to nothingness. I could envision a fantabulous raised garden bed and just had to have it!

Thanks to my sweet husband, with some scraps of thin plywood nailed on the back to make a bottom, I was in business….

Before

After

On each end of the above raised garden bed is yellow crooked neck squash (four plants on each end).

Along the back, is four cucumber plants.

Down the three center rows is tomatoes (green zebra striped and beefsteak). I’ve never grown green zebra striped tomatoes. I bought them from a lady down the road. They’re supposed to stay green even after they mature. Now, she also sold me some Ananas Noir tomatoes – more about that in a future post.

Squash Blooms Already!

Tomato Blooms!

(I blogged about How Gardening with Grandma as a Child Brings Writing Success Today HERE!)

Lastly is an old, rusty washtub. Oh, the joy!  This beauty was lost in the weeds and it just spoke to me. Yep, it did. It said, “Michele, you need me. I’ll grow delicious spinach and basil for you!”

It won my heart over. (I blogged about the story: Grandma’s Washtub Transformed!)

Before

After

And so it grows….

What about you? Are you a gardener? Have you discovered the peace and joy of gardening? Do you love garden-fresh produce? Do you remember gardening as a child? What’s your favorite veggie or fruit?  How has life been treating you? I’ve missed you so – fill me in!

Keep your eyes peeled for more gardening adventures!