From concrete to veggie garden

Credit: Blair Smith

Beets, carrots, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, banana peppers, green beans were the “picks” of the day from our backyard garden this summer. It was our first major crop yield.

When we purchased our house in East Vancouver last October, one of the elegant features of our place was the “sea of grey” concrete backyard. As this was our first growing season, I took it upon myself to start a vegetable garden to reduce our carbon footprint (and to add some greenery to the back driveway).

Although a 14 by 9-foot garden isn’t huge, it was a bit of a chore pounding out all the concrete with a sledgehammer (with the help of my dad) and then building a wood frame for the garden bed. Once the soil was delivered, the seeds were planted. With some guidance from my mother in law Becky, we are now eating healthily from our yard.

I never thought growing our own food would be so rewarding.

Here are some shots from the first sledgehammer swings to now (I’ve also included a picture taken of the garden in late August).

Blair Smith is a freelance digital editor and videographer; see some of his work and his new blog, The Right Foot Forward, here. He became a self-proclaimed gardener after wanting to “green up” his family’s new house and trying to live as socially responsible as possible.

The former Vancouver Area Cycling Coalition member cycled to work for seven years. He’s currently a Surfrider Foundation member and a board member of CLICK, a Vancouver based charity focused on improving the lives of inner city kids. Twitter: @goofyfootBlair