If you're at that point, it might be time to truly dive in to this homestead adventure that many of us are on. I've found that it is not only satisfying to sum up some of my thoughts, and lessons learned from this year, but that documenting what was a success and what was not would really allow my to look at my garden with a "critical" eye. Winter is a good time to reflect on the past year, be thankful for all you grew, put up, or donated, and to plan for the upcoming spring season. So let's do that- here's the template I used:

Reflection for 2010-2011

Planting & Food Production-

Worked well:
ex. Potatoes did really well- 20 lbs!
ex. Onions were awesome, easy to care for. More, I say!
ex. Tomatoes... mmm! Canned over 18 quarts of tomato sauce. More next year!

Not so well:
ex. Strawberries did not produce like I wanted, didn't have enough. No strawberries next year
ex. Celery was kind of a cool novelty, but took up vital space for other stuff
ex. Glacier tomatoes kind of unsatisfying. I'll just wait for the real thing!

Seed starting-

Worked well:

Not so well:

Preserving-

Worked well:

Not so well:

Storing/Root Cellar-

Worked well:

Not so well:

Purchasing-

Worked well:

Not so well:

Living-

Worked well:

Not so well:

My Planting Plan for 2011-2012

Plant/Food Production-

Seed Starting-

Preserving-

Storing/Root Cellar-

Purchasing-

Living-

Remember, when setting goals for your garden, just like most anything else, making measurable, track-able goals makes actual achievement of those goals SO much easier! Thanks for reading!

First coop with diy ladder

Back view of the old coop

After putting together our first coop a year and a half ago, we were is desperate need of an upgrade.  After months of inaction we finally traded in our unrealistic coop dreams for a pimped out chicken coop de ville renovated with the junk accumulating in our backyard.  Shabby chic(ken) coop design at its best.

Phase 1 of the new chicken run

Damaged air mattress new living roof liner

With any luck, our misadventures in urban homesteading will inspire you to step away from the lifestyle and leisure magazine and pick up a hammer, http://www.germainesolutions.com/gs-lazy-urban-garden-almanac.html.