February Wind-Down

With the recent rains in Northern California and along the west coast, I’ve found myself daydreaming about having plenty of water to irrigate my fruit trees, plants and vegetable garden, and enjoying an abundant harvest of juicy pears, lemons, kiwis and apples as well as a myriad of fresh vegetables.  Such a lovely picture in my head. . .

But I have to snap myself out of that daydream because the reality is that the drought is here in California, and for a number of other states too.  Even if I wasn’t faced with a drought, or required to cut back on water usage, its a good time to look at how I garden because water, or lack thereof, will continue to be an issue.  While I am a little bit anxious, I am also very excited to see whether my garden will be successful after implementing the changes discussed throughout February; The term “mindful gardening” comes to mind.

So, I am going to practice mindful gardening this coming season. I have coconut coir already worked into my raised beds, I have shade cloth on hand for the later, dry summer months, I’m checking my drip irrigation system to make sure its working properly and putting out the right amount of water, and I’m making sure that my soil has a good amount of organic matter and mulch.  It will be a learning experience, but one that I welcome.

As we move through the spring/summer growing season, I would love to hear about your experiences of gardening with less water.