Simply Living Homestead | Homemaking, Rhythms, Organization, Time Management, Simplify, Systems · Amanda Carlin

09 | Grow your First Garden! 3 tips for the beginner homesteader

March 7, 2025·28 min·2 clips

Amanda Carlin reveals three essential tips to start your first garden without feeling overwhelmed this spring.

This episode offers beginner-friendly guidance for starting a first garden, hosted by Amanda Carlin of Simply Living Homestead. Carlin aims to help homesteading families find peace and order through practical systems. The episode launches a dedicated month of gardening content on the podcast. The host outlines three initial tips for new gardeners, beginning with selecting the right location for a garden bed. She emphasizes the importance of observing sunlight patterns throughout the day in a potential spot. The second tip involves starting with a manageable garden size to prevent overwhelm and ensure success. Carlin advises against beginning with a large plot that could become unmanageable. She recommends choosing easy-to-grow vegetables for a first attempt, such as lettuce, radishes, or green beans. The episode previews future discussions on creating a sustainable garden system that avoids burnout. It also mentions plans to address common gardening problems that beginners may encounter. An upcoming interview with Clyde Majerus from Clyde's Garden Planner is highlighted as a resource for the month. A key insight is the strategy of beginning small to build confidence rather than facing potential failure with a large project. The host connects garden planning directly to the podcast's broader mission of reducing homestead overwhelm. The tone is encouraging and instructional, blending practical how-to advice with personal reflection. Carlin uses a conversational and supportive style, often addressing the listener directly as "neighbor." This episode is ideal for new homesteaders or anyone feeling intimidated by starting their first garden. Listeners seeking advanced horticultural techniques or scientific deep dives might find the content too foundational.

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