Garden Plan Paralysis

I am totally mentally paralyzed by my garden plan.

Since December I've been trying to read my Week by Week Vegetable Gardener's Handbook (which is awesome by the way) and do what it says. So far its just been trying. I haven't actually done anything. When I'm lucky actually get the week's list of to-dos read. When I'm not, I don't even get that far. It makes me really frustrated because in theory it should be really easy. Just read this week and do what it says. It even tells you to buy stuff or check on your supplies the week before so you're prepared. I decided I would go easy this year and just buy transplants instead of even attempting to start seeds myself. Starting seeds just sounded like way too much effort at this point in my life so skipping lots of the early weeks wasn't a super big deal.

But then this week I'm supposed to actually plant things.

Outside.

In the garden.

In a place.

They will be.

Until they die.

Commitment like that terrifies me.

No really, I have three 4'x8' raised beds I made back in 2011 and I have yet to have a serious garden. Last year I was just way too pregnant to garden in the spring. And then way too newborn having to garden in the summer. And then way too still sleep and time deprived to think about a fall garden. So here I am, spring 2013 trying to figure out what to do with those raised beds.

The real problem is I know just enough to feel like I should have a plan and a rotation and pick good companion plants and have a succession plan to optimize the productivity of my garden, but not quite enough to just know what would be good companion plants or have a preordained mental model of the perfect succession for particular plants or rotation for three 4'x8' beds.

This is a recurrent problem in my life. My graduate adviser used to tell me, "Perfect is the enemy of done." He was right. Unfortunately, I never really embodied the idea. I still want things to be perfect and as a result I frequently just don't get them done.

Like this post. I had this great idea that I would cure my paralysis and I would post to tell you all about how I overcame.

I have not overcome.

I am still hemming and hawing and trying to make a decision as the week slips away Please, feel free to just tell me what to plant. For serious. Someone, please make a garden plan for me so I can move on with my life. I don't think I can take the stress much longer.