Years ago, our daughter and her husband created this garden box at the bottom of the property. When we moved back in, I used it a few times but sailing, Rving etc got in the way so we covered it in plastic and forgot about it. I pulled back the plastic and started to resuscitate the garden bed. Grass roots, horsetail roots and salmonberry roots all tried their best to get through the plastic I was quite surprised that the plastic didn't disintegrate when I rolled it up and picked it up. It has probably been down for 10 years. I dug up and screened all the dirt that was in the bed. I used an old box screen that my grandfather made for my grandmother a long time ago. Once the dirt was screened, we spread 4 bales of peat moss on top. Sorry, no picture of the screen dirt. I forgot campinspecter rolled out the rototiller that has been hibernating in the basement for 10 years. Filled it with gas and it fired up. Goes to show when you put something away properly, it works. Next we layered a topsoil/fish compost on top. Mix was 60/40. When we were down island last week, we took the truck and trailer to have some work done on the connections. As we were leaving town with an empty trailer, I spotted a topsoil place open. Did a u-turn and went back to get a yard of topsoil. campinspecter was the lucky one to transport the topsoil from the trailer down to the garden bed. Again, the rototiller fired up and campinspecter did another round or two on the bed. Here it is all raked and ready to go. I started taking down the chain link fence and getting rid of the grass around the perimeter. I will have to put something up after I plant or the crows and doves will pull everything up. Here is a picture of my thatch bed. We de-thatched the lawn and got massive amounts of thatch. We bought seed potatoes and planted them in the thatch. The pile in the background will be used to hill the plants when they start popping through.
That garden soil looks luscious! I would put some tomato plants in. The birds wouldn't pull those up, would they? And that's a huge amount of thatch! I hope it works out with the potatoes.
That soil looks primo! Nice sunny spot! Your hard work will certainly payoff come harvest time! X2 on a few tomatoes!
I would like to put tomatoes in there but the wind is too cold in the summer. Tomatoes around here have to be in a very protected spot or in a greenhouse. All though it was quite warm today especially for May, it doesn't always get this way in summer. Late morning fog and early afternoon fog limits what you can grow outside around here. I did get two and half rows of peas and two short rows of carrots planted and then we put up the chain link and put netting over the top to keep the birds out. I will get a picture on Sunday to show you. I am too tired to wander down and take a pic.
I hope so. I am not the most successful gardener and it has been awhile since I have tackled anything bigger than a container.
So I wandered down and took some pictures on Sunday. Just a few weeks later than my last post. Plants are popping up everywhere. Potatoes are up in the thatch. The row of potatoes on the left are Yukon Gold. The patchy row on the right is Warbas They aren't coming up as fast. Dandelions are loving the thatch. On either end of the thatch I have planted a buttercup squash plant. I was given six by a friend. I hope they do well. Three went in the main garden plot. I have peas coming up. The older pea seeds didn't come up so today I planted a newer batch that I bought Friday. They are hard to come in this area as we are in a climate that is generally good for peas. I got my broccoli in the ground and made collars for them so the slugs won't get them. I am going to start more seeds in the house to fill the empty spaces. Between the broccoli and the walk board is a row of carrots and a row of radishes. My protected garden. Crows and doves will do a number on small plants so the chain link will support the pea plants and the netting over top will protect from birds - I hope. Lost my balance while planting the new pea seeds and step on the carrot row - twice. I hope they survive. The sixth buttercup squash I planted in a tub up by the back door with radishes surrounding it. Hopefully the radishes will be harvested before the squash gets too out of control. I will try to take a picture of the tub before too many days go by.
My garden is slowly getting there. I think I have lost a broccoli or two to the colder weather. I think a bird got inside the netting and a couple of peas have been pulled out. Most of the Yukon gold potatoes are up and almost ready for hilling. The Warbas are much slower. Took a picture of my tub with the radishes. Radishes are really making a showing here and in the garden. the nasturium hanging basket is coming along. I always get too rich a soil in the basket and they get more foliage than flowers. We will see what happens this year.
My second harvest of radishes. The ones in the garden bed did very well. the variety is China Rose. the ones in the tub garden bolted and didn't produce a root. I am going to plant carrots where the radishes are coming out of. I have pea pods on some of the pea plants and the buttercup squash is taking over. Next time I will plant the squash by itself somewhere else. The broccoli is coming along great and I planted more. Potatoes are coming but I think they should be greener. I added sea soil to the two squash plants as they were going a bit yellow. Midwinter mention awhile ago that it looked like a nice sunny spot for tomatoes. I always thought it was too windy down there but after working down there, I think with a plastic sheet along the fencing on the windward side, you might be able to grow tomatoes. I love growing cherry tomatoes. Next time I plant the garden, I am going to try a couple of plants.
Well, I pulled all the radishes as they were going to flower. This variety gets really big and hot but I found by cutting them up and stir frying them, they weren't hot at all. Leaves made good spinach. I pruned the squash back as it was going to take over and now I have small broccoli starting to head. Peas are in full bloom and we each have had a taste of the pea pods. Carrots are fingering size and we had a couple to taste. I will have to leave them alone now so they can grow. Potatoes aren't looking that great so I guess I will have to research what fertilizer to use on them.