Getting started in Maryland

AE invited me to share my experiences gardening here in Maryland. But, before I get ahead of myself, here's a little snippet of who I am and what I'm doing here.

For the past 2 1/2 years I half years I've lived in Baltimore County, Maryland, and have taught gardening to elementary and middle school kids in Baltimore City at the Living Classrooms Foundation. I LOVED MY JOB! My greatest joy was watching kids sneak vegetables to nibble instead of candy, help kids overcome their fears of creepy crawlers and understand how worms are gardener's best friend, and teaching my little ladies create perfumes by rubbing combinations of herbs in their wrists. My favorite was thyme and lavender! January of 2008 I learned I would be growing something outside the garden, and welcomed my son, Keirnan in September. After much soul searching and a whole lot of tears, I resigned so to stay home with my son, Keirnan, and work part time from home for my father's company.

One of my main goals as an at home mom is to save as much money as possible now that our family income has been reduced. And as an overachiever, I try and limit our weekly grocery bill to no more than $40 for a family of 3 with two pets (so really the way the cats eat, it's more like a family of 5!). I like the challenge, and especially like coming up with creative ways of making it happen.

In the past two years I've been able to start my garden in the Living Classrooms greenhouse in late January with the snow still falling outside, the sun going down around 5, and the gas heater providing the temperature needed to germinate. Instead of gardening in a big beautiful plot with a greenhouse and ample sunshine, I am now planning a container garden on my second floor apartment deck, which measures approximately 4 feet by 6 feet with a table and recycling bins already occupying a bit of space.

Here's my To Do list:

1. Come up with a list of what to grow
2. Locate and purchase organic or locally grown seeds.
   
3. Find a location for starting seeds that is both baby and cat proof.
   
4. Outfit and supply my container garden for no more than $50.
   
5. Design the container garden layout so it is both aesthetically pleasing and makes an efficient use of space, allowing enough space for my husband and I to enjoy our summer dinners and thunderstorm watching.
   

Here we go!