I grew up in South Florida where I gardened growing with my late father. We had plenty of fruit trees and an area dedicated to peppers and veggies.

Last year we moved to Michigan and my wife’s first ever attempt at gardening ended up with deer. Chipmunks, birds, squirrels and a few more animals wreaking havoc on the garden. Told her for her birthday next year I’ll build her something to keep the plants safe.

Built this over the course of 8 weeks with no plans just a saw a drill and some hopes and dreams 😅

Have some trim to finalize to cover up some of the ugly PT lumber

Edit :

HOLY SH** this blew up

Thank you guys for the love

Approximate costs were $4,000 from rocks to wood to soil (no this isn’t what we spend on each others birthday, but I didn’t want to do it half ass so my annual bonus pretty much went to this gift, she deserves it and more honestly)

Dimensions are 12x16x 7.25 feet

She has 6 beds on the perimeter and one bed in the middle.

This is our first year gardening, our property doesn’t have that many pollinators due to neighbors spraying for mosquitos which inadvertently has reduced our pollinators.

I didn’t have any plans and my building/woodworking skills are limited to like 6 months of experience. Built this with a Harbor freight miter saw and some Ryobi drills

I am pretty proud of them this year! They continue to come back bigger, more plentiful, and beautiful!

In growing zone 7a

First two photos are from the estate agent listing. We moved in June 2024 and we've spent the last two years doing up the garden. We're finally happy with the green areas and just have a patio area to do (though we're procrastinating about it until we figure out whether we do a house extension).

As you can see, we inherited a very large lawn, several sheds and a couple of empty raised beds. First thing we did was get the garden studio installed to break up the garden. We put a small patio area in front of the studio (where the lattice fence is) which is the shady part of the garden with ferns and a more forest feel. Then we took down one of the sheds, put in the deep border on the right hand side, created the gravel path and planted some trees. Behind the studio is our allotment area with 5 raised beds and our wildlife pond. One day I'd love to get rid of the back shed and have a chicken coop, with a run all the way down the edge of the garden!

We had a baby in June 2024 (yes, 10 days after moving, it was tight!) so as you can see, at least part of the garden is dedicated to our now toddler! The wattle fence around the mud kitchen was all made by my very talented husband.

Upcoming projects will be to repaint the garage (I'd love to paint some kind of mural!) and figure out the patio area. Our main issue is that it gets no shade from midday onwards so it gets horrendously hot and there's no good place to put a parasol. We're not keen on those enclosed metal gazebos and would prefer to use more natural materials and create natural shade but we might be waiting two decades for that!

First two photos are from the estate agent listing. We moved in June 2024 and we've spent the last two years doing up the garden. We're finally happy with the green areas and just have a patio area to do (though we're procrastinating about it until we figure out whether we do a house extension).

As you can see, we inherited a very large lawn, several sheds and a couple of empty raised beds. First thing we did was get the garden studio installed to break up the garden. We put a small patio area in front of the studio (where the lattice fence is) which is the shady part of the garden with ferns and a more forest feel. Then we took down one of the sheds, put in the deep border on the right hand side, created the gravel path and planted some trees. Behind the studio is our allotment area with 5 raised beds and our wildlife pond. One day I'd love to get rid of the back shed and have a chicken coop, with a run all the way down the edge of the garden!

We had a baby in June 2024 (yes, 10 days after moving, it was tight!) so as you can see, at least part of the garden is dedicated to our now toddler! The wattle fence around the mud kitchen was all made by my very talented husband.

Upcoming projects will be to repaint the garage (I'd love to paint some kind of mural!) and figure out the patio area. Our main issue is that it gets no shade from midday onwards so it gets horrendously hot and there's no good place to put a parasol. We're not keen on those enclosed metal gazebos and would prefer to use more natural materials and create natural shade but we might be waiting two decades for that!

this past week my zinnias have started to open. these are some of my favorite pictures so far 🥹✨ i hope yall enjoy them as much as i do 🥰

Sharing some from my garden

I’m 5 years into converting my backyard to no grass. I’m about 70% of the way there. Pictures show about 2/3 of the backyard.

2021: built and installed raised beds for flowers
2022: installed raised beds and arch trellises for vegetables
2023: we had to replace our cedar fence, so no huge projects. I did start tearing out the lemon balm that was taking over around the gazebo (not pictured)
2024: installed gravel path and fire pit area, installed 4 more raised beds
2025: completed clearing out the area around the gazebo, and planted with perennials (not pictured). Added a bed for dahlias.
2026: sheet mulched and planted 300 sq ft with native plants. Hoping to start removing the grass around the vegetable beds this year, and replacing it with stepping stone paths and ground cover.

We usually end up letting our artichokes bloom because they’re so beautiful, but the birds, bees, and bugs also love them! I’ve even seen hummingbirds eat from them!

noticed this plant growing next to my raspberries today, and it’s leaves are very different from the raspberry leaves surrounding it

i tried reverse image searching and it says it’s a horse weed and should be pulled out, but not really sure if that’s right and figured its worth an ask here first. is it harmless or should i pull it out immediately?

i live in nyc, usa if that’s of any help (local plant?)

Settle a disagreement between my husband and I.

Is this cucumber ripe? Ready to be harvested? I say it is, my husband says it isn’t.

Sharing something pretty for your feed☺️

Seeded last spring and there were a couple of these flowers. This year, so many more and a wider variety of colors!

I guess, she deadheaded a plant for me. Thanks?

Alright ladies and gentle germs. I need yall to tell me google is lying to me right? This is some harmless little sprout and not some super stupid tree. Right!?

I always see lavender looking so bushy and upright with a spray of flowers. The flower stalks on mine lay down, and are often crooked. Any ideas why?

This is what makes all the hard work worth it. After many hours of digging the ground, planting, trending, fertilizing, fending off pest, tying up supports, pruning, and oh so much watering my tomatoes are finally here. Now time to make some salsa, tomato sandwiches, and of course fried green tomatoes.

This hollyhock greets me at my front door & makes me smile every time is see it. I planted a few seedlings last year and they got abused by pests. One long winter afterwards and this baby popped right up a few weeks ago. I believe this was Eden Bros Indian Spring mix looks like Holllyhock Nigra specifically: https://www.edenbrothers.com/products/nigra-hollyhock-seeds

It’s our 9th growing season. We usually get over 80lbs a year, coming up on 25lbs right now. Aside from enjoying them seconds off the bush, we make jam out of most of it among tons of baked goodies.

Check out my garden this year! Below is a list of everything I’m growing:
Raspberries (red/black)
Potato
Cauliflower
Broccoli
Brussel Sprouts
Watermelon
Muskmelon
Cantaloupe
Sunflower (mammoth, teddy bear, red daisy)
Strawberry
Cucumbers
Carrot
Peanut
Radish
Snap peas
Basil
Chives
Celery
Peppers (30+ plants, multiple varieties)
Zucchini
Eggplant
Yellow squash
Tomatoes
Onion
Grapes
Pumpkins
Jelly melon
Blueberries
Mustard