• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Bless this Mess
  • Breakfast
  • Dinner
  • Sides
  • Desserts
  • Snacks
  • Holidays
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Start Here
  • All Recipes
  • Recipe Filter
  • Cookbooks!
  • Our Story
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
  • search icon
    Homepage link
    • Start Here
    • All Recipes
    • Recipe Filter
    • Cookbooks!
    • Our Story
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Bless This Mess > Life on the Farm

    Growing a Vegetable Garden in Southern Utah

    Published: Jul 2, 2013 · Modified: Sep 11, 2020 by Melissa · 8 Comments

    • Share
    • Tweet
    • Mail
    Rear-view of a green tractor plowing a dusty field

    This year has been really different for us, so I thought I'd bring you all along for the journey of growing a vegetable garden in Southern Utah.

    gardening in the dessert

    Growing a Vegetable Garden in Southern Utah

    Refresher: We just moved from our remodel to a rental in my husband's home town. In this tiny town we own a property that we bought in 2009 and call The Shanty. The Shanty has a house of sorts that is falling down and can be seen through, but it is also fenced acre of beautiful apple trees and pasture. We love it because it's ours. Here's a full post on The Shanty if you'd like to see the house a little more.

    Any how, this is the first year we've lived anywhere near The Shanty so we thought we'd raise a garden on the property since we've been paying for it for years but don't live there. Great idea right?!

    First off, the ground grows alfalfa and sweet peas and has had my sister-in-laws horses on the lot for the last 2 summers. It's tough old dirt that hasn't been worked in at least 15 years. So to conquer some of the alfalfa we brought in the big guns.

    garden at the shanty first plow

    Man the soil is dry... it's a Southern Utah thing 🙂

    We didn't plow and then till until the beginning of May, so the soil that we are working with is pretty poor. I'm currently growing more weeds than anything else. My dad reassures me that the first year after reclaiming a garden plot is the hardest because all of the grass wants to grow back, but next year will be lots better. I trust him but I'm not sure if I actually believe him.

    After plowing and tilling we made furrows for the water to run down and planted along both sides of the little stream. We flood irrigate and so the water comes to a collection area at the top and then flows down each row. We are in a big drought here so we get to water every 4 days at the most. It sure seems like the ground dries out in between but I haven't lost anything!

    gardening at the shanty

    The garden is massive! We aren't using the land for anything else so why not grow something I can can/freeze and save for a winter's meal? I'm a bit of a seed hoarder and have been collecting seeds here and there for miscellaneous tiny past gardens. We didn't have much money to put into the garden this year so I just used up all of the seeds that I had stored and only bought a few like sweet corn and green beans that I really wanted (and are cheap!).

    garden and an old house

    I've never really grown sweet corn before but I feel like it connects me so much with the Hoosier state that I grew up in. I just love it! Can you see all the dead grass in between the rows? It's a bit of a mess.

    gardening tiny sweet corn

    I also have a crazy garden obsession this year.

    Gigantic. Pumpkins.

    I have no idea why but I have it in my brain that I need a 500 pound pumpkin in my life; I've made it a goal to grow at least one that big. I went to the store to find special huge pumpkin seeds and paid $6 for 2 seed packets. I came home, dug 2 foot deep and 2 foot wide wholes in the ground and then layered the holes with soil, hay, and compost so that the pumpkins would have a lot of good stuff to grow in. When I opened the packets there were only 3 seeds in each. THREE. SEEDS! I paid a whopping dollar per seed which is just unheard of to me. I hand watered those little mounds every day in between our irrigation turns, morning and night, with tap water. And low and behold 5 or the 6 seeds have sprouted and are growing!

    Giant pumpkins here I come!

    Here are spoiled pumpkin babies:

    gardening giant pumpkins

    And lest you think everything is honky-dory in the gardening world, let me introduce you to my nemesis. No, it's not the weeds or the alfalfa that wants to live with my plants. It's the ants. Oh the ants. We have so many ants you can't believe it! They are every few feet, swarm and go insane when you disturb them in the slightest, and here's the kicker, they bite. Yes, we have a garden full of biting ants. I wore long pants, long socks, and tennis shoes today and it was 102 degrees at 10am. I didn't last long because it was so hot but I have no choice... oh the ants.

    And they don't just live in little mounds. They have hugs sprawling nests. Here's one:
    garden ants that bite

    I know that the weeds, lack of water, and ants don't sound all that appealing but there's something so magical about growing a garden. I love the miracle of sprouting seeds popping through the ground, how much fun the kids have learning, naming, and pointing to plants, and you just can't get a garden tomato anywhere else than a garden.

    This may sound funny to you but I consider myself a "hobby snob". I choose productive and work filled hobbies that give you something back in the long run and I'm proud of this fact about myself. Sure I could watch TV or spend more time on the computer, but gardening feeds my soul, my family, and my pantry. I love it!

    So there you have it, a look at my garden this year that is totally time-consuming and so much fun to me. If I ever figure out a good way to do it I'm going to make you a map of the garden of what I planted and where. Be on the lookout for that!

    Best. Hobby. Ever.

    Do any of your garden on a large or small-scale?!

    « Red White and Blue Cheesecake Bars
    Healthy Tetrazzini with Chicken and Broccoli »
    • Share
    • Tweet
    • Mail
    Craving More

    Take the hassle out of meal planning with: Dinner Made Easy, a FREE 1 week meal plan with full shopping list, easy dinners, nutrition information, serving suggestions for each meal, and more!

    Subscribe Now
    about me

    About Melissa

    Melissa is dedicated to helping parents figure out the nightly questions, "What's for Dinner?!" with her no-fuss approach to cooking. Read more...

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

      Leave a Reply Cancel reply

      Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

      Recipe Rating




    1. Vickie

      February 12, 2018 at 1:45 pm

      When do I start tomato seeds in Kanab Utah

      Reply
      • Melissa

        February 13, 2018 at 9:34 am

        I would start them indoors around the end of March to the beginning of April.

    2. Ardelle

      January 06, 2018 at 11:13 am

      Oh my, the ants ... go purchase some diatomaceous earth sprinkle it around the ant hills. It is not dangerous to kids, pets or chickens. It is a deceased marine animal that kills the ants by causing them to dehydrate. In the desert it works pretty fast. Look it up, you will love it in a short time.

      Reply
      • Melissa

        January 08, 2018 at 7:04 am

        Great tip, thank you!

    3. Natasha Rogers

      July 03, 2013 at 7:24 am

      Good luck on the garden! I love gardening, too! My kids will eat anything that comes from our garden and we love to watch it grow every day-it is magical! I hope you get a gigantic pumpkin! Have you read Farmer Boy? He grows the biggest pumpkin in the county and he watered his with milk somehow... Look that up and spoil your pumpkins a little more ;).

      Reply
      • Melissa

        July 03, 2013 at 1:23 pm

        That is my kids favorite book from the series! And we've thought about trying the trick but I'm so nervous to cut into the vine. LOL. I can't wait!!

    4. Elaine Ellen

      July 02, 2013 at 4:59 pm

      That was fun reading about your gardening! Hang in there, the grass and weeds should get better every year if you can keep whittling away at them. Maybe the ants will too. Hang in there! Garden grown food is the best!

      Reply
    5. Chantal

      July 02, 2013 at 8:26 am

      We started a garden this year! It's my first one (we finally have the room) and I am so excited about it! I haven't had a ton of luck yet, gardening in this new state of Florida is foreign to me, but I plan on sticking it out! And, living in Florida has taught me about those horrible ants. They are everywhere 🙁 Good luck!

      Reply

    Primary Sidebar

    I’M MELISSA, AND I WANT TO HELP YOU FEED YOUR FAMILY WHOLESOME FOOD.

    As a hobby farmer and mom of five, I’m all about keeping it simple in the kitchen. I want healthy meals that feed my family well, and then I want to get back to my (messy) life. Let’s work together to find something yummy for your dinner table.

    More about me →

    Popular

    • crispy chicken legs stacked on a white plate
      Air Fryer Chicken Legs
    • top view of a plate of chicken chow mien
      Chicken Chow Mein
    • no churn chocolate ice cream served up to enjoy
      Chocolate Ice Cream
    • grilled shrimp foil packet dinner on a plate with berries on the side
      Shrimp Foil Dinner
    Dinner Made Easy

    Get Recipes & More for Free!

    Get my FREE Dinner Made Easy meal plan, exclusive recipes, giveaways, and behind-the-scenes updates! Get my newsletter or a new recipe every day! Unsubscribe if you aren’t into it.

    Subscribe Now

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    SEEN ON

    About

    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Tools.
    • Terms Of Service.
    • Accessibility.
    • Bylaws.

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Contact

    • Contact
    • About Us
    • Cookbook FAQ
    • Find A Recipe!

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2022 blessthismessplease.com. All rights reserved.

    • Facebook
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter