Summer 2010 was the first year for our new outdoor garden and greenhouse. Putting the new garden in the dogs' yard turned out to be the right choice to keep out the critters. It established a kind of DMZ that the deer and bunnies, et al., couldn't cross to get to our delectable little plants. We got a late start on planting and running a line up from the rainwater tank, but overall it was a good first try, I think. The girls were enthusiastic (albeit ineffective) helpers, and I'm glad that they are enjoying the garden chores. The greenhouse was the real winner last summer. The harvest was bountiful by subalpine standards, plus we were able to extend the growing season in there by heating it. Since our house forms one side of the greenhouse, we originally heated it just by opening a basement window. This worked fine, but it seemed a tad inefficient in terms of energy use, so we eventually got a little electric heater.
I heard that there's a book out now about some guy's gardening experiences called "The $64 Tomato." That is spot on for us because we are always talking about our two-hundred-dollar salad. Hopefully, we are just paying for the initial infrastructure, or investing in healthy habits for our children, or saving the planet, or something, because this is not turning out be an economical way to obtain produce. It is, however, turning out to be a lot more fun than I thought it would be. 
