The cure for spring fever!

I'm not much of a winter person but I try to get through it and one thing that really helps is to start planning the garden for next spring. I have been receiving what seems like a seed catalog a week since mid November so I have lots of seed purchase decisions to make. (I don't know what it is but opening the mailbox and finding a seed catalog just really makes my day....)

Not only are there seed purchases to decide upon but the garden layout changes every year as well. This spring we are adding a raised bed and three potato boxes to the "family garden" at my dad's house. We determined which crops thrived best in the raised beds; namely the cabbage, broccoli and the cauliflower and decided not to change that up. In fact, the new bed is for more of the same. My theory is you can never have too many vegetables.....Below is a picture of the raised bed that my awesome dad built for me.

Last summer in one raised box we grew all of our herbs; basil, thyme, oregano, tarragon, lavender, and sage to name a few. We also threw in a few marigolds and some petunia seeds (my mom's favorite) and the petunias nearly took over the entire box. I think that was mom's way of telling us she is still with us in spirit. This year we will have one box for strawberries and two for the broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower. I am going to find a new location for my herbs since they really don't get bothered by many pests anyway. Below is a picture of the herb box from last spring. My daughter "daisy girl" found the angel you see hanging at a thrift store and since my mom was a collector of angels we thought it was a perfect addition to the garden.

In addition to the "family garden" at my dad's house my husband and I have our own backyard vegetable and herb garden to tend to. It is approximately 1000 sq feet and while much smaller than the family garden it is still time consuming. Not that I mind...it's just hard to keep up the canning when everything comes on at once. This year we decided that our backyard garden is going to be the experimental garden...that is we will grow only new crops that we have never tried before. The regulars will still be grown and perhaps "weeded out" of the mix at the family garden should I find a better suited plant along the way. (I am open to plant suggestions)
Well.... according to my spring countdown clock there are only 75 days to go....I guess I will continue garden planning and seed purchasing and before we know it we will all be digging in the dirt once again!