10/17/2026
Saturday October 17: this morning I was thankful to wake up to the sound of rain hitting our metal roof. We've suffered such a drought this year that any precipitation is welcome! Despite the lack of rain over the summer, however, the self-watering raised bed garden that I built last spring for my handicapped sister Theresa, who lives in the farmhouse with our mom and is a pescatarian, did amazingly well! The beds needed to be refilled only 1 time per week during the worst of the dry spells. We started with 5 beds, and they kept Theresa in egg plants, tomatoes, basil, and sweet peppers all summer. She spent a lot of time working in her garden and got a lot of satisfaction in growing her own food. She is not fond of being in the heat but found gardening to be calming and good for her mental state, and is excited to plant some beet seeds next week now that the weather is a little cooler. Here is a picture of her with the last harvest of her peppers! These 5 beds were a successful experiment and we have plans to improve the layout and spacing and add a LOT more beds. The whole experience was so good for her, both mentally and physically, that we are trying to plan ways to share the positive benefits of gardening with others, as part of our farm mission of helping folks spend some quality time outside getting more connected to their food. Exciting times ahead!
