My Summer Vegetable Garden

For the past four summers, I have invested a great deal of my time taking care of my family’s vegetable garden. The joy of eating fresh fruits and vegetables is overwhelming due to the fact that I am eating foods that do not have pesticides and fertilizers. Although I might get a sunburn from spending a little too much time outside in the sun, the pain from the burn is definitely worth the delightful taste of the food from the garden.

The whole gardening process for me begins in late spring. I begin the process by mapping out the garden; figuring out which vegetables are most compatible together, and which ones would not work well being placed next to each other. After I have finished the research, I make a small map of where I would plant each of the vegetables in the garden. My mom and I will take a trip to the local garden store and pick up seeds and a seed starter container. I will plant the seeds in the starter container and anxiously wait about two weeks for the plants to grow big enough to plant.

Once the plants are big enough and sturdy enough to plant, I go outside to my garden to prepare the garden. I dig one hole after another, following my map as a guide. When the garden is ready, I bring the plants outside, and one by one, place them in the ground. I make sure to be very careful with each plant because they are still fragile. As a place each plant into the ground, I fill the hole back in with soil and sprinkle the plant with water. When the all the plants are in the ground, the anticipation for fresh fruits and vegetables begins.

As the summer continues, I spend my days weeding the garden and watering the plants. My grandfather taught me that the best time to water your garden is right around sundown because the plants will have all night to absorb the water because the sun will not absorb the moisture out of the ground. I usually go into my garden right before dinner to get fresh vegetables for dinner and fruits for breakfast. Over the past four years, I have gained an obsession for my garden. I love being able to eat wonderful fruits and vegetables all day long and not have to worry about the foods being contaminated. I know exactly how my vegetables were grown and treated. All of my hard work throughout the summer is definitely worth the great treat I receive.