Well, over the weekend I planted my first vegetable garden. I have wanted
to do this for several years but being an apartment dweller has prevented
this. Now that I am an official homeowner, it was one of my first projects.
Here are some things I learned:

- Trees have lots of roots. I planted the garden by a large willow and it
has roots everywhere. There was nary a spot I could dig without
encountering roots. I fear these tree roots till compete with the plants.
Maybe I'll need a raised bed next year.

- It's a hell of a lot of work. Even with a tiller I borrowed it was tough.
It was a good tough, though. I feel good, even though I am sore. Getting
my hands in the dirt while putting the plants in was a very rewarding
experience. I work in information security and simply cannot get this "very
basic" feeling. Very nice and spiritual.

- I bought too many plants, probably. There's only two of us and I have a
total of 36 or so plants. If they grow I'm going to have tomatoes out the
ears. That's OK, though. It gives me an opportunity to share with other
people and recruit my mother for some canning.

- If I get some kind of bug eating these, I'm screwed. I'm still at the
stage where I'm just going to point to the plants and grunt something that
vaguely resembles, "grow!"

Anyway, the neighbors have said that we have rabbits in the area. Any idea
how I can keep them away? Mothballs around the perimeter?

Tips on organic fertilizers/frequency? I used some peat moss and Nutrabrew
initially, on the advice of the local garden store. Thanks in advance.