The Garden
Welcome to our 1500 sq. ft. garden, called Hortus Beatitudinem.
That's Latin for 'Garden of Happiness'.
Because that's what it is.
Welcome.
Building this garden was a dream come true and it changes every year. In 2021 we doubled the garden in size to 1500 sq. ft., and grew some amazing things. Like fourteen kinds of tomato, twenty-four kinds of Morning Glories, two kinds of corn, five kinds of potatoes, peppers, greens, sunflowers, and a complete herb and tea garden, with a total yield over 200 lbs.
The Future
For spring of 2022 we moved the entire garden over about 30 feet, and redid the entire design. There's some info below about exactly what that will entail, but check out this video of Hortus in its 2021 prime.
2021 Design
Building off of the 2020 garden, which was the whole top half of this diagram, we added four 5 x 10 beds, and four 4 x 4 beds (not shown). It was an amazing design and performed beautifully. However maintenance became difficult, and our needs changed so we have to move the garden over. So why not rip all the beds down their length and start totally over with a new, more functional footprint?
2022 Redesign Plans
For 2022, all the beds will be at most 2.5 feet wide, which will allow much easier maintenance, weeding, and general upkeep. We sacrificed some space to add a 6 x 16 greenhouse, but gained a bit back by removing the lounge area, which will be built right in from an existing area surrounded by climbing roses.
The left side will be squash, peppers, potatoes, corn and cabbage, as well as the greenhouse, the pots, and the fountain.
The upper left quadrant will be curcurbits and some squash, and a bit more potatoes.
The bottom right will be all tomatoes, or Tomatotown, as I have already started to so affectionately call it, and should allow for about 30 plants.
The center box in Tomatotown will be for the determinate plants, San Marzano, and Roma mostly, and the outside beds will be for indeterminates, and be backed by cattle panels for tying up in an espalier type support system.
This new layout will also encompass the big shed, and allow mowing with the cub cadet.
We will also be adding a fourth cattle panel archway, and a second entrance that opens out onto the, now, totally open yard.
What Actually Happened in 2022
Well that didn't go as expected! But one of the things we have learned in the last few years is that few homestead projects ever do. And that's ok!
We wound up scrapping the other design for the most part and not getting to the boho or greenhouse at all, but instead focusing on getting the main growing area settled.
Specifically, the main growing space is now eight, 24 foot x 2.5 foot rows, which can be planted, weeded and maintained from either side. We also stuck a couple 16 foot rows in back for trap crops and garlic. Each set of two rows had a 10ft back cap to make a U shape.
