Skip to main content

New Year, New Garden. Getting Organized!


So this is the year I said I was going to be more organized in my gardening efforts.  And by that I mean both planting and documenting my crops.  

In past years I've planted in a very unorganized and probably unhealthy patterns. Usually based in what areas were growing hot spots.  My yard has about 8 raised beds and all get different amounts of sun and moisture due to their location in relation to the yard and exposure.  Some were built with better soil preparation than others.  Some were built early on in my gardening endeavors and suffered from a lack of experience and knowledge on how to set a proper garden box.

I set out this winter to rectify my garden boxes in a way that I hadn't done intially. I removed or transplanted all my existing plants to either new locations or pots to facilitate a soil change.  I went about digging down a few feet in each box to ensure good root growth but also to turn the soil in a way so that I wasn't just pulling nutrients from the topsoil.  I also supplemented the soil with additives like organic fertilizer, perlite for drainage, and vermiculite (for moisture retention).  I know it seems a bit redundant to have a perlite and vermiculite but figured it couldn't hurt.

Finally I set out specific boxes for specific vegetables.  Two of which were set up with varieties of Garlic. In the above pictures you can see two other boxes, one for carrots and onions, the other has beets and other root based vegetables.   I've opted for rows to optimize the limited space my boxes have. 

Along with my neat rows I've kept detailed notes on where, when, and what I've planted. In past years I've tried to rely on my memory to identify vegetables and it hasn't worked out that well for me. 

And the green vines on the fence line are Peas (Sugar Snap and other varieties).  I've always had sucess growing them and easy to maintain.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Recycled sunflower stalks used to make grapvine trellis

So a little while back a posted about my grapevine extending out from my fence into the alley. It needed some support for it to continue its growth. So I brainstormed and thought what better way than to re-use the stalks from the sunflowers as a natural trellis. So I found a few tall stalks that were great for the task. I literally had to hatchet the stalks down. My clippers weren't strong enough to cut through their thickness. I already broke one set of pruners trying. I stripped the leaves off and dug them into the ground. Then used a smaller stalk as a cross beam for the vine to travel down. I think they really work out well. They similar color to the vine itself and add a natural touch to what would probably be an artificial structure. I have no idea how long they will hold up but I'm hoping a long time.  Especially once the vine become entangled. I've also used some of the smaller sunflower stalks to create support sticks for leaning plants. I reccommend trying to...

Grapevine reaching out for support

 So my grapevine is reaching out for support. I've tried to weave this vine into my fence but there are places where its just reached beyond for more. So i think I might try to build somekind of support structure into the alley. Maybe a simple pole or piece of wood to create a natural grapevine arch.  My strategy has been to weave each independent vine into others to create a super vine that can still reach out and support itself. Sort of looks like an elephant.

Pest Control. My methods of extermination.(Gophers mainly)

So if you've seen some of my past posts you know that I've had encounters with possums and raccoons in my backyard garden. I've trapped 3 raccoons and eliminated 2 possums but gophers had been a problem in the past I wasn't really willing to tackle. At least until recently. The gophers in my backyard alley were ruining plants and soil everywhere. I'd had enough. So after some serious research I chose my weapon.  A Victor Black Box Gopher trap.  The amazon reviews were great and it was under $15. Now as you see the trap here it's set and ready to go. You would just point that end (the open end) towards an open tunnel.  It works like a reverse mouse trap, instead of pinning a rodent down it pulls them up and pins them to the roof of the trap.  The trigger is that coat hanger looking metal piece in the middle.  It packs quite a punch when triggered. Now you can't just look for an open hole and stick it in front of it. I watched YouTube for about an ho...