The gardening thread

[Baker]

I can tell you what I'm doing with a portion of my yard where I'm creating a new garden.{ about 50x50' } I got 4 dump trailers of fairly fresh un composted horse manure mixed with wood chips and hay. I spread it out with the FEl and am going to let it compost on the spot.I'll add some of my snake oil to the concoction for the process. In a couple of weeks I'm covering it with a thick layer of hardwood chips and just let the area stew for the summer.No tilling as I believe unnecessary. Soil underneath is poor and poorly drained. Doesn't matters the lasagna will add the fertility which will only get better with time and certainly adequate for fall garden. If I get the chips on in time I may even try a few summer plantings as well.

Mowing grass in a yard seems like a worthless use of time when you can have an edible yard!

 

[swat1018]

I can tell you what I'm doing with a portion of my yard where I'm creating a new garden.{ about 50x50' } I got 4 dump trailers of fairly fresh un composted horse manure mixed with wood chips and hay. I spread it out with the FEl and am going to let it compost on the spot.I'll add some of my snake oil to the concoction for the process. In a couple of weeks I'm covering it with a thick layer of hardwood chips and just let the area stew for the summer.No tilling as I believe unnecessary. Soil underneath is poor and poorly drained. Doesn't matters the lasagna will add the fertility which will only get better with time and certainly adequate for fall garden. If I get the chips on in time I may even try a few summer plantings as well.

Mowing grass in a yard seems like a worthless use of time when you can have an edible yard!

View attachment 11763

I agree that's a great way. My dilema is that I need to plant my garden this week. I have a large area, I'm going to layer manure and mulch on half for either my fall plantings, or next spring if not ready. Just trying to figure out how to attack what I need to plant now.

 

[KDdid]

This is all good stuff.. I’m a big believer in deep mulch/no dig/hugel type gardens. I’ve also done straw bale gardens, and they all have their place.

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[j-bird]

I am wanting to try something and I need some gardener's info to pull it off. I want to plant some sort of vining plant (looking at runner beans) inside an exclusion cage for the deer to eat. Yes....inside the cage for the deer. My plan/hope is to use a 3 or 4 foot tall exclusion cage like what I use to protect fruit trees and plant some sort of vine type plant inside. Whatever grows beyond the cage (through or over) the deer can have. I want to then remove the cage in mid to late September to serve as a "narrow window" food source for our youth hunt here during the last weekend of September. Like I said I am looking at runner beans, but if you all have any other suggestions I am all ears. I just want something green for the deer to nibble on all summer and then have it remain green until that one weekend.....after that I don't care. Area will be full sun in well drained soil. I have no intention of eating anything that this plant grows....as long at the deer are happy. I was thinking maybe other sorts of beans, and had other suggestions of pumpkin, squash and cantaloupe......I do not grow a garden and never have. This is a "narrow window" "vertical" food plot!

 

[Baker]

I am wanting to try something and I need some gardener's info to pull it off. I want to plant some sort of vining plant (looking at runner beans) inside an exclusion cage for the deer to eat. Yes....inside the cage for the deer. My plan/hope is to use a 3 or 4 foot tall exclusion cage like what I use to protect fruit trees and plant some sort of vine type plant inside. Whatever grows beyond the cage (through or over) the deer can have. I want to then remove the cage in mid to late September to serve as a "narrow window" food source for our youth hunt here during the last weekend of September. Like I said I am looking at runner beans, but if you all have any other suggestions I am all ears. I just want something green for the deer to nibble on all summer and then have it remain green until that one weekend.....after that I don't care. Area will be full sun in well drained soil. I have no intention of eating anything that this plant grows....as long at the deer are happy. I was thinking maybe other sorts of beans, and had other suggestions of pumpkin, squash and cantaloupe......I do not grow a garden and never have. This is a "narrow window" "vertical" food plot!

Cowpeas would work perfect here in La. and probably for you as well. other options include purple hulls, red rippers or as you mentioned any kind of bean that runs. Cow peas will last till frost.

 

[j-bird]

Cowpeas would work perfect here in La. and probably for you as well. other options include purple hulls, red rippers or as you mentioned any kind of bean that runs. Cow peas will last till frost.

I will look into these and maybe plant a few cages of different ones to see what works best as well. IF/when I do this I will try to document, just in case this interests some others to do the same. I will go to the local farm supply store and see what they have available.

 

[Heart shot]

KDdid I would love to learn more about your method?

 

[Baker]

Harvest day for the last of the cauliflower, broccoli, napa and regular cabbage as well as a pile of collards. Will plant black beans and more squash where these plants were removed. Makes me smile!

 

[KDdid]

KDdid I would love to learn more about your method?

Google no dig, or deep mulch gardening method for a ton of info. Roger Reynolds did a great talk a few years ago in Wisconsin, and he’s pulling this off on deep sand soils with little supplemental watering!
http://www.pbs.org/video/university-place-deep-mulch-gardening-ep-685/


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[lakngolf]

Well, my gardens don't stack up to the production of Baker's, but they are looking good so far. No rain for almost three weeks but we have some predicted in the next few days. I LOVE the color of healthy green!

 

[Baker]

looks mighty good to me.

 

[KDdid]

Just got the first tomato and pepper plants in the garden this morning, trying to get ahead of a rainy weekend. 24 tomatoes and 40 peppers. Next step, get the cattle panel tomato trellises in place.


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[lakngolf]

Just got the first tomato and pepper plants in the garden this morning, trying to get ahead of a rainy weekend. 24 tomatoes and 40 peppers. Next step, get the cattle panel tomato trellises in place.


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Got a picture of trellis? Upright? Horizontal? I've tried both ways and always go back to concrete reinforcement wire cylinders. Bought a new roll yesterday

 

[KDdid]

I usually drive t-posts about a foot away from the plants, and lean the panels back at a little angle. This helps keep the plants upright without having to tie them . I’ve never tried the horizontal method, but I have a bunch of concrete wire cages, and they still work great-some have them have found their way into my tree plantings!


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[Chainsaw]

[/QUOTE]
Your gardens look super as usual LAK. Ours today are a few days away from even planting! I am curious as to why you grow tomatoes on the dock. Is it to temporarily "make" more land or are there other advantages to growing plants on docks that you have discovered?

 

[lakngolf]

Your gardens look super as usual LAK. Ours today are a few days away from even planting! I am curious as to why you grow tomatoes on the dock. Is it to temporarily "make" more land or are there other advantages to growing plants on docks that you have discovered?

Few reasons 1. Yes to expand the garden site 2. Sun. I have way too many tall trees to the south of garden so takes awhile for sun to get high in spring. The small pier faces north and gets sun quicker than garden 3. The boaters love it. I tell my wife that I am going for show not production 4. The pier was an extra and not being used. At first I tried to find two old boats or canoes to fill with soil for the pier garden

 

[Chainsaw]

Few reasons 1. Yes to expand the garden site 2. Sun. I have way too many tall trees to the south of garden so takes awhile for sun to get high in spring. The small pier faces north and gets sun quicker than garden 3. The boaters love it. I tell my wife that I am going for show not production 4. The pier was an extra and not being used. At first I tried to find two old boats or canoes to fill with soil for the pier garden

Thanks for the explanation Lak. I really like your pier garden ideas and may apply a variation of it at our cottages. Your pier garden is a very creative way to get the garden more sun. It is pretty common for waterfront properties to lack in sufficient sun-filled garden space. And the old saying "all show and no go" certainly doesn't apply to your pier garden; I remember the pictures of your pier garden from years past showing "tons" of beautiful, large ripe tomatoes.

 

[F12Mahon]

Are you pumping lake water through the sprinkler? Free source of fertilizer aka fish poop?

Eugene

 

[lakngolf]

Are you pumping lake water through the sprinkler? Free source of fertilizer aka fish poop?

Eugene

Yes, I irrigate lawn and garden with lake water. In dry season the pier gets sprinkler every afternoon as those containers tend to dry quickly. I have corner spraying units that hit the whole garden about every third day.

 

[Baker]

It's squash season. Wont be long before people start hiding from us afraid we will be bringing more squash for them . Have to give credit to my wife. She is amazingly creative at 1,287,644,429 different ways to prepare squash! Rest of garden on fire as well. Bush beans starting to crank, tomatoes kicking in, just picked the rest of the onions and garlic to cure, all the potatoes are up, egg plant producing, cucumbers rolling,Kale, salad greens collards chard all prolific and on the list goes.