Starting from Scratch

First, I must say that I have absolutely no idea what I am doing.  Nonetheless, I want to have a garden and in spite of the naysayers (you know who you are) I am getting started today.  I have four projects scheduled for today.  First, there is an old rusted trampoline in my backyard which I am going to remove.  It is taking up a lot of space and blocking the sun.  Also, it is just a home to creatures that I neither like nor want near me or my garden.  I have terrifying images of spiders in my mind right now which are making me shudder.  Don't get me wrong.  Some spiders I like, but black widows and recluses are free game.  I digress.

I am also going to mow the area where I think I want to put my garden and make sure that the dream translates well into reality.  To the right of the designated garden area, I have already planted some berry bushes.  I have two blueberry, one blackberry and one raspberry.  To the left, I am leaving room for a greenhouse that I would like to build this fall.  The garden area will be approximately 24' x 25'.  Even though I would like it to be at least double that size, I think this size is a good place to start.  I don't want to be overly ambitious, get discouraged and quit.  What is more, since I am starting from scratch, I will have to prepare the soil for the garden and 600 sq. ft. sounds like plenty for me right now.

Digging a compost pit is also on the agenda for today.  I wanted to build compost bin and found some excellent plans online, but digging a hole in the ground seems so much easier.  I don't really know which would be better, bin or pit, but I have a tendency to overthink things and I just want to get started.  I haven't decided where to put the pit yet either.  I have neighbors on both sides of me and I don't want to offend anyone with the smells that I have heard come with composting.  The good news is that I find myself wanting to eat more healthy so that I actually have things to put into the compost pit. 

My last plan for today is to plant some herbs in pots.  I bought some clay pots, saucers and a couple of bags of topsoil so I am ready to begin.  I am going to start with basil, cilantro and oregano.  I use these quite a bit in cooking so they seem like a good place to start.  I'll see what happens.  This summer is going to be quite an adventure which I am sure will present my learning opportunities.  Like I said before.  I have absolutely no idea what I am doing.