I've been lurking the forums for a few days now, and decided to take the plunge and make an account. Just bought an acre and a half with my husband in SW TN, but I'm originally from NE Ohio. I've been interested in gardening and homesteading since I was a little girl reading the Little House on the Prairie books. Last year I had great intentions for having a garden once we got into our new home, but didn't have the tools/know-how to get things going once I had to put stuff in the ground... and then what little I got into the ground got mowed by a friend who was helping us out until we got a suitable mower. Whoops! Overall, I had some luck with my jalapeƱo peppers which were kept in containers (I had bell and poblano that didn't really produce or grow very large), and we'll see if I managed to overwinter them in the next month or so. We've also got about 25 native bare roottrees coming in in about a month, about most of which will provide edible fruit in theory!
Either way, I'm looking forward to learning more about sustainable practices and methods for being a good steward of my property, benefiting my local ecology, becoming more self-reliant, and building community.