I love living in Florida. The sunshine and green all around makes my heart happy. Gardening during the winter in Florida is actually my favorite time to garden. The summer is just too hot and most days are best spent at the beach. But the winter is perfect for garden making. Be the keeper of the garden with me.
The people who owned our home before us were avid gardeners and planted 9 varieties of camellia trees. The camellias start blooming in December and last until the end of February. They are gorgeous! They are well established, so they take very little effort to maintain. I’m so thankful for the hard work of those before us so that we may now enjoy the beauty of their labors.
We live on the edge of a forest, a state park. We see interesting wildlife all day long, such as white tailed deer, rabbits, opposums, raccoons, bobcats, and coyotes. All of these animals mean that the garden needs lots of protection. Green deer fences and gates surround most of the garden.
In our food garden, we are currently growing varieties of herbs such as cilantro, basil, mint, oregano, and rosemary. I added an onion patch recently to a new part of the yard, and it’s thriving! We have cabbage, carrots, wild beauty berries, mulberries, and Muscadine grape vines using the pergola as a trellis.
We recently built a pergola and deck in the back yard. Replacing a rotting deck you could easily get your foot stuck in when stepping on it. The pergola, new deck, and pea gravel have added such a warmth to the garden. It gives the garden height and doubles as a trellis for the grapes.
The hard work of gardening is worth it. I think about the immediate satisfaction of things such as our herbs and onions that we get to harvest each season. But I also think about the garden for the future. The grape vines and mulberry trees. These things will last for many seasons and generations to come. Whether that future is for us or someone else living in our home. They will get to benefit from the love and attention placed in the garden.
So be the keeper of the garden for today and for generations of tomorrow. Enjoy your garden. Relish in the toiling and hard work. Enjoy the sunshine. Hard work brings good things. Beautiful things.
Follow along @homesteadonlakeside to see pictures of our gardens throughout the seasons. Thank you for stopping by and sharing in our gardening journey with us!
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