{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"My Garden Journal: February 2026 - BLOG","description":"I am deep in the part of my gardening year where I am SUPER excited\u2026 and also starting to wonder if maybe I did too much. If you garden, you know this feeling. January and February are all hope and seed packets and plans. Everything feels possible. And then suddenly your dining room table is covered in milk cartons and seed trays and you\u2019re counting how many varieties of peppers you started and thinking, \u201cOh dear.\u201d But here\u2019s something I\u2019ve learned in my still-limited gardening experience: I would rather feel like I did too much than look back in July and wish I had done more. Because once the moment passes for the year, it\u2019s often too late to go back and start over. You have a small window to restart your pepper plants if they didn\u2019t germinate \u2014 but not much time. If you miss it, you miss it. There\u2019s no rewinding the growing season. So this year I\u2019m operating off one big question: What do I want my harvest to look like come mid-summer? Not what feels easy in February. Not what feels manageable in the moment. But what will bless our family in July, August, and September. Right now, it feels like a lot to take on and juggle. But I also know that 2027 Jami is going to GREATLY thank me for the work I\u2019m putting in today as I establish a brand new garden at our new house. What We\u2019ve Started So Far This year I\u2019m leaning hard into what we already have and what costs the least. In milk cartons (because they\u2019re free and we go through 4\u20136 gallons of milk per week \ud83d\ude05): Utah Celery Chives Peppermint Peppers: Anaheim chili, small red chili, cayenne, early jalape\u00f1o, and sweet pickle Rosemary Are milk cartons glamorous? No. Are they free and surprisingly effective? Yes. And when you\u2019re growing this much, free matters. In my cell trays, I just started yesterday: Pink Chinese celery White Creole onions Wild bergamot Bee balm (Spielarten mix) Stevia Agastache Echinacea Garden huckleberries Blackberry huckleberries Tresca strawberries Tomatoes: San Marzano, Caribe, and Chadwick cherry Yarrow Cauliflower Every time I look at the trays I feel that little spark of excitement. Tiny green starts are such a picture of hope. It\u2019s wild to think that in just a few months these fragile little seedlings could be towering tomato plants and baskets of strawberries. This week I still need to: Direct sow cilantro Direct sow broccoli At our new house, we have one raised bed that\u2019s ready to go, so I can at least start there while we get the rest of the garden prepped. And that brings me to the big project\u2026 The Lasagna Garden (a.k.a. The Cardboard Situation) This year, because of cost and because of how large I want this garden to be, we decided not to do raised beds. For the first time, we\u2019re trying a lasagna garden. We started by laying down cardboard to smother the grass and build up from there. I thought we had plenty of cardboard. We did not. Not even close. We didn\u2019t even have half of what we need. So now we\u2019re collecting more cardboard, asking friends, saving every box, and picking up soil this weekend to start building the rows. Right now? It looks like a mess. Truly. It looks like we just dumped recycling all over the yard. But I\u2019m trusting the process. I\u2019m reminding myself that most worthwhile things look unimpressive at the beginning. I\u2019m hoping that in a few weeks it starts to actually resemble a garden. My Tasks for Next Week in the Garden Because February energy is high and if I don\u2019t write this down, I will absolutely forget something \ud83d\ude05 Here\u2019s what\u2019s on the agenda for next week: Start my next round of seeds Direct sow everything I need to in my one raised bed outside Finish laying down the cardboard Have Jason pick up a soil\/compost mix on Saturday with his truck Lay down the soil and start forming the rows Hope we get a truckload of wood chips from ChipDrop.com soon If not\u2026 I\u2019ll probably add the $20 tip and see if that helps move us up the list. Once the soil is down and the wood chips (hopefully!) arrive, the beds should finally start looking like an actual garden instead of a recycling center. And I think that will make everything feel more manageable. There\u2019s something about structure and visible progress that calms the overwhelm. At that point, we\u2019ll be in such a good place: beds prepped, seeds started, direct sowing underway. That\u2019s when it really begins to feel real. A Little Deck Garden, Too I also have this little side mission: I want to create a small container garden on our deck. I\u2019ve been hunting for large containers that are cheap or repurposable. I refuse to pay full price for giant planters if I can help it. So I\u2019m scanning Facebook Marketplace, keeping an eye out at thrift stores, and mentally cataloging anything that could hold soil. Half the fun of gardening on a budget is the creativity. Can it hold dirt? Does it drain? Will it survive the summer heat? Then it\u2019s probably usable. I love the idea of stepping out onto the deck and snipping herbs or grabbing a handful of flowers outside the kitchen door. It feels practical and beautiful at the same time. February feels ambitious. But it also feels hopeful. And I\u2019d much rather stand in the middle of \u201cmaybe I did too much\u201d than sit in July wishing I had tried harder when the window was open. We plant in faith. We prepare in faith. And we trust that the small work of today will bless our family in the months (and even years) ahead. Here\u2019s to cardboard chaos, milk cartons, and big garden dreams. \ud83c\udf31 ","author_name":"Finding Joy in Your Home","author_url":"https:\/\/findingjoyinyourhome.com\/category\/podcast\/","html":"