Main Vegetable Gardens

The main vegetable garden was installed in 2016 with nine galvanized livestock troughs. I started simply with the summer staples – tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and squash. I was sad at the end of the season when the garden was empty. Then I read Eliot Coleman’s “Four Season Harvest” and discovered that I could grow year-round in zone 7b with the right plants and a little wind protection. I installed cow panels across all the troughs and this helps tremendously in a number of ways (see separate page for these tips). For the winter it allowed me to cover the panels with a garden fabric to create a protected cold house. This garden also gets extra protection being between the house and the potting shed.

Books and More Information

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| Four Season Harvest by Eliot Coleman

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| USDA Zone Map

About Me

Theresa Tillinger

After careers in IT and education in the Northeast, my husband and I returned to the rolling hills of Middle Tennessee. We built our dream home, which we named “Homecoming”, on 3o acres containing woods, pastures and and a spring fed pond.

I finally had time to explore various interests, including gardening, bee keeping, raising chickens, and even paper making. I have since learned so much about pollinators, the importance of native plants, as well as sustainable and regenerative gardening. I am grateful to my fellow gardeners and a host of other resources who have generously shared their wisdom. I have discovered the tangible, and even more importantly, the intangible and soul filling benefits of all that nature so generously provides.