{"id":40208,"date":"2022-05-05T09:05:33","date_gmt":"2022-05-05T16:05:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/womensvoice.com\/en-ca\/?p=40208"},"modified":"2022-05-09T10:59:34","modified_gmt":"2022-05-09T17:59:34","slug":"women-who-inspire-us-holly-capelle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/womensvoice.com\/en-ca\/articles\/living-culture\/women-who-inspire-us-holly-capelle\/","title":{"rendered":"Women who inspire us"},"content":{"rendered":"

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ fullwidth=”on” _builder_version=”3.22″][et_pb_fullwidth_image src=”https:\/\/womensvoice.com\/en-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2022\/05\/wv-article-V17-WomenWhoInspireUs.jpg” alt=”WOMEN who inspire us” _builder_version=”4.6.6″ z_index_tablet=”500″ box_shadow_horizontal_tablet=”0px” box_shadow_vertical_tablet=”0px” box_shadow_blur_tablet=”40px” box_shadow_spread_tablet=”0px”][\/et_pb_fullwidth_image][et_pb_fullwidth_code disabled_on=”on|on|on” admin_label=”Text – Fullwidth Leader Text” module_id=”fullwidth-leader-text” _builder_version=”4.6.6″ z_index_tablet=”500″ disabled=”on”]Organic food is expensive, so feeding a large family on a tight budget didn\u2019t allow us to buy the healthier options. That\u2019s when my love of gardening turned into my mission.<\/pee>[\/et_pb_fullwidth_code][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.22″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.25″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″ custom_padding=”|||” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text admin_label=”Born and raised in Oregon, I am a mother of six, married to my high scho” _builder_version=”4.6.6″ _module_preset=”default”]<\/p>\n

Born and raised in Oregon, I am a mother of six, married to my high school sweetheart Kevin. We\u2019re entering our 31st<\/sup> year of playing house together. For the last 20 years, I\u2019ve had the privilege of working full-time in radio advertising from home while raising my babies at the same time. This meant a lot of time spent at home, allowing us to build our backyard homestead, including different gardens and a flock of five chickens.<\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_code module_id=”fullwidth-leader-text” _builder_version=”4.6.6″ _module_preset=”default”]Organic food is expensive, so feeding a large family on a tight budget didn\u2019t allow us to buy the healthier options. That\u2019s when my love of gardening turned into my mission.<\/pee>[\/et_pb_code][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text – Body Content” _builder_version=”4.6.6″ header_font=”|700|||||||” header_text_color=”#509aa6″ header_font_size=”40px” header_line_height=”40px” header_font_size_tablet=”” header_font_size_phone=”30px” header_font_size_last_edited=”on|phone” header_letter_spacing_last_edited=”off|phone” header_line_height_tablet=”” header_line_height_phone=”30px” header_line_height_last_edited=”on|phone” z_index_tablet=”500″ text_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=”0px” text_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=”0px” text_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=”1px” link_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=”0px” link_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=”0px” link_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=”1px” ul_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=”0px” ul_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=”0px” ul_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=”1px” ol_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=”0px” ol_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=”0px” ol_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=”1px” quote_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=”0px” quote_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=”0px” quote_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=”1px” header_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=”0px” header_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=”0px” header_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=”1px” header_2_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=”0px” header_2_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=”0px” header_2_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=”1px” header_3_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=”0px” header_3_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=”0px” header_3_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=”1px” header_4_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=”0px” header_4_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=”0px” header_4_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=”1px” header_5_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=”0px” header_5_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=”0px” header_5_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=”1px” header_6_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=”0px” header_6_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=”0px” header_6_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=”1px” box_shadow_horizontal_tablet=”0px” box_shadow_vertical_tablet=”0px” box_shadow_blur_tablet=”40px” box_shadow_spread_tablet=”0px”]<\/p>\n

I was on a quest to grow as many organic fruits and vegetables as possible to provide for my family. Our garden started as two raised beds in the corner of our yard. Today, we have over 16 raised beds and several trellises for vertical growing in every part of our 10,000+ sq ft lot. This includes our front yard, too! Over the years, we\u2019ve incorporated as much edible landscape as possible. Our urban homestead continues to be a work in progress as we are self-taught gardeners, making plenty of mistakes along the way. But mistakes have taught us the most significant lessons.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve become quite successful at growing, maintaining, harvesting, and preserving our food through trial and error. We sow our seeds, dry all our herbs and edible flowers, and dehydrate and freeze the harvests. We save everything, and very little gets wasted. I love to grow anything and everything!<\/p>\n

Our favourite garden produce are tomatoes, peppers, artichokes, zucchini, herbs, and lots of edible flowers. We also enjoy growing strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, elderberries, hawthorn berries, and grapes. In the last few years, we\u2019ve even produced our fall decorations, such as pumpkins, sunflowers, ornamental corn, and cornstalks. For us, gardening has become a way of life. We are incorporating as many things as we can into our sustainable urban garden, and I\u2019m making culinary delights, wildcraft projects, and even homemade beauty products. Our garden is a treasured family project and a love story that gives back tenfold to the health and wellness of my family and the planet.<\/p>\n

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My advice for anyone who wants to give gardening a try? Go for it, and don\u2019t overthink it. Believe it or not, nature does all the heavy lifting. Start small and grow what you love.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

When things get challenging, don\u2019t give up. Every season is a brand new one, and no two seasons are ever alike. Remember, gardening is not a competition. It\u2019s your connection to the planet. So, dig in and happy gardening!<\/strong><\/p>\n

The following are a few successful tips to start your own organic garden.<\/strong><\/p>\n