Hello! Today I’m traveling to Atlanta for the Haven Conference. If you’re going too, I’d love to meet you. I don’t attend as many conferences as I used to—I’m a bit of a homebody—but I try to make time for one every now and then, and this year it’s Haven.
Some time ago a reader asked what my container garden looks like. I meant to write a full post about it for a while, but I kept putting it off.
Yesterday I stopped to ask myself: what makes a post “proper”? I don’t mind sharing the unfinished or in-between stages, and I often do. Still, I sometimes build an unrealistic idea in my head about how polished a post must be before I share it. That expectation can keep me from actually doing what I set out to do.
Even if you don’t blog, you might recognize that cycle of procrastination or perfectionism. I delay projects because I tell myself I’ll do them better “when I have more time… later,” and then later never comes.
I imagined the ideal: a full garden tour with perfectly finished beds, weed-free paths, and overflowing container planters loaded with ripe vegetables. I pictured step-by-step instructions and photo-perfect styling—something Martha-esque. But that’s not who I am, and forcing that image only keeps me from sharing anything at all.
Here’s what our container garden looked like when I first planted the pots. I had wanted to build large planter boxes, but we chose a simpler route this year: planting tomatoes, peppers, and lettuce in food-safe barrels we already owned. It was fast and easy, and it worked.
I’m glad we didn’t wait. For weeks now we’ve been harvesting fresh lettuce and kale, and soon we’ll have tomatoes and peppers to enjoy.
The photos were taken with my phone to text to my mom when we first planted the pots. I never intended to publish them—at the time the plants were tiny, barely visible in the shots—but they show the beginning of something nice, and that’s what matters.
I wondered what the reader who asked about the container garden expected. A Pinterest-ready photo spread of full-grown vegetables and styled shots? Or simply a peek at the pots and a few practical notes? Either way, I realized I was overcomplicating things.
If these quick photos were good enough to show my mom what our garden might become, they’re good enough to share with you. So here they are—simple snapshots of our container garden’s early stage.
I hope to share more of our yard as the season progresses, but this gives you a clear idea of how a modest container garden can look early on.
If you have limited outdoor space or tend to let projects become more complicated than they need to be, container gardening is a straightforward solution. It’s an easy way to grow fresh food without committing to a large bed or complicated build.
We chose organic starter plants and soil so what we harvest is as healthy as possible. It’s rewarding to prepare meals using vegetables we’ve grown ourselves, even when the setup is humble.
One last thank-you: I truly appreciate all the votes for our rug designs. You’re amazing! The competition ends Thursday, and at the moment the striped rug with cross trim is in the top ten, while the starburst rug is very close. If you’ve already voted, thank you so much. If you haven’t had a chance, a quick vote would mean a lot to us.
Voting is simple and takes only a moment. If you can ask a few friends to help, we’d be grateful—making the top ten would be a dream. Thank you again, friends!