Spring has sprung and even though it has been a little cool in my neck of the woods, I have still been able to start some of my plants in our green house. It has only been a few days since I started my first batch of seeds and though it was only six degrees Celsius outside yesterday, things are going well. I am very pleased that I am already starting to see the green growth of new life slowly pushing its way toward the heat and warmth of the sun. Our green house, which is the most recent addition to our tiny home, also doubles as a wood shed in the colder months of winter. Which can sometimes last five to six months, here in the NB snow belt.
The size of our time home, which was built on a concrete slab, is a whopping 624 square feet. For those of you who are familiar with concept of tiny homes, you will also know that we utilize every possible inch of space. We designed and built our home ourselves with help from some family and friends, some 20 years ago. Which was before tiny homes were a thing and became as popular as they are today. For once, we were ahead of a trend. Lol.
Though we did not know it at the time, this style and layout for our home, would later become a blessing with an added bonus. You see, because our home is all on one level, I was able to be released from the hospital and return home much sooner than originally anticipated. The added bonus was that, because everything is only one level, I was able move throughout our home and maneuver with my walker much easier, as my mobility was extremely poor at best, when I returned.
Tiny home living requires a lot of innovation and is not for everyone, but it suits my husband and I just fine. For the most part, our home is easy to keep clean and organized. Well except for the floors, depending on the time of year. I like that they are small and easily cleaned or mopped up. This is mostly because, during the spring thaw or the fall rains, they require constant attention. You see, there is usually an endless trail of cat paw prints and the odd husband foot print to be dealt with. Especially since the addition of an outdoor run for our indoor cats. Most of these paw prints are extra big and extra muddy, and are proudly provided by Jam(the homepage featured feline), with all of her extra and very absorbent toes. As far as the husband foot prints, well, what are you going to do? Lol
Another bonus to our tiny home is that it is easy to heat and easy to keep cool, depending on the year. We can get some crazy weather fluctuations here in the Maritimes. Our greenhouse was designed and built by my husband and I and was strategically placed on the south facing gable end of our home. We felt that this would allow us to make use of as much of the sun’s energy as possible, all year long. We cut and peeled all of the logs for both the frame and those to be milled into boards, from our own woodlot. My husband has a chainsaw mill which we used to mill our larger logs into boards to be used for flooring, strapping, doors and such. We then ordered some translucent panels to be placed on the roof and sides, which finished it off nicely I think. It makes a great warm or should I say hot place to grow all kinds of plants.
Our peppers absolutely love the heat and last year was our best crop ever, thanks to this new addition. In fact, all of the plants I started in the green house last year did really well. With that, I have decided that I am going to try growing more varieties and try keeping more plants inside the green house during the growing season this year. This will cut down on the amount of time I need to spend weeding and allow more space for wild flowers and herbs. I just love all of the wild flower mixtures we have been cultivating over the last couple of years, in our outdoor gardens and would like to extend that beauty as well as the nutrients available for the bees and hummingbirds. Of all of the different varieties of things that like to grow here, the brown eyed Susie’s are my absolute favourite!
I love gardening and it sure would be nice to have more food production with less weeding. It is something I find quite draining on those hot and humid summer days. By using more of the greenhouse during the season I believe I will achieve my goal. Another bonus to this approach is that the wildlife, who seem to love to dig up and snack on the freshly sown seeds and transplants, will have a real challenge in getting into the greenhouse this year. Lol
In addition to my green house strategy, all of the other plants that I put outside this year will have a chicken wire fencing all the way around them. This way Waffles and Tiny, our two laying hens, will be free to roam and hunt for their favorite bugs and treats, as they choose.
I’ll keep you all posted on how my plants are doing. I’m looking forward to having more time for fun and spending less time weeding this year. Especially on our brutally hot days. The pictures featured in this post are of some of our ongoing projects.
I hope they will inspire you to get out and enjoy nature!
As Always,
Love Tanya Jean
