Do you want to go on vacation but have a garden, too? I know the frustration here. It never failed. Whenever I wanted to go on vacation, our garden was at its peak. Green beans that needed canning, sweet corn to freeze, or potatoes to hill. Something needed to change. I decided a few years ago that I needed a vacation-proof garden. I hated the lost food, the mess that we often came home to, and what seemed like, working the rest of the summer to regain control. I’d had enough! Now when we go on vacation, I vacation-proof our little spot of earth and my life has become so much easier. Our garden isn’t perfect, but we love it, and benefit from it, just the same!
How to Make a Vacation-Proof Garden…
- Till before leaving on vacation. I know there are a ton of other tasks to do before you hit the road, but this little bit of weeding will end up saving you time when you return from your trip. Some people also believe in the use of Preen after weeding to help keep the weeds at bay.
- Use grass clippings to save water and keep weeds from growing. My step-grandfather ALWAYS used grass clippings in his garden. In fact, once the plants were tall enough, you weren’t able to see any dirt thanks to copious amounts of grass clippings. It helped to maintain the level of moisture during the hot weather and also smothered any weeds that dared try to grow.
- Read the back of those seed packets. To best vacation-proof your garden, you must plan ahead…way ahead…like planting time. Seed packets all list the days to maturity. Simply do a little math to figure out if the plants will be mature when you’re on vacation. You might have to alter planting by a week or two, but in the end, it’s well worth it!
- Put up your tomato cages, poles for beans, or cover strawberries with netting before leaving on vacation. For some reason, just leaving seems to make the plants grow! You’ll be shocked at the progress your garden makes in a week’s time.
- Hire the neighbor. If all else fails, hire the neighbor kid to water your garden, or weed if you trust him/her, while you’re gone.
I wish you all the luck at vacation-proofing your garden! Truthfully, you’ll probably come home to a few weeds…it’s just the way it goes! (If you look at the pictures in this post closely, you’ll see all the weeds in our garden from before we went on vacation!!!) However, my motto is that as long as we’re getting produce from the garden, it doesn’t have to be perfect. 🙂
Have fun, get your hands a little dirty, and enjoy the bounty God’s given you! Your little green space will reward you with tasty and healthy herbs and vegetables. Heck, just sharing a little of the bounty with others will help you be happy and do good in your little corner of the world. 🙂 Happy Growing!!!
If you’re interested in other garden-related topics, please check out my posts on starting your own plants indoors and using the phases of the moon to grow a better garden. 🙂 Both have tips for getting ready for planting success.
