We are nearly done getting the garden ready this year! Matthew and I have been working hard on each sunny day that we have had the last couple of weeks (there haven't been many of them unfortunately) and I see the end in sight!
We scooped out pathways and beds about a week ago. It took all day long, but we really put a lot of thought into it and the layout is going to work not only for this year, but for the years to come. We have been reading a lot lately about the benefits of not tilling your garden, so we wanted an arrangement that would be permanent. Crop rotation is important to us, so we had to take that into consideration (making beds that would work for more than one type of plant. Here is the (hopefully) final layout:
To the left along the fence posts will be potatoes, and along the back fence will be shelling peas in spring and tomatoes in summer. In the middle we have 8 beds that are 14 feet long and 2 feet wide, with the exception of one that is 3 feet wide. There is another small bed near the water post, and a larger square on next to it that will be home to my pumpkins this year. At the bottom of the picture is part of the trellis bed, but it wasn't up in this picture.
A few days later we got another sunny day, and did manage to get the trellis netting put up. Last year we only had 15 feet of trellis, this year we have 30 feet:
I don't know what it is, but this layout makes it seem like we have at least twice the space that we did last year. Which is good because I plan on growing about twice the amount of veggies! At first I was worried that we wouldn't have room but seeing it all laid out I am sure we will. The same day we got the trellis up, I planted a row of super sugar snap peas under it, and 12 shelling pea plants along the tomato bed. Peas are best as a spring or fall crop, so my plan is that they will be finishing up by the time the tomatoes are big enough to start crowding them out. That's the idea anyway!
I put in stakes to mark where the peas are until they germinate. You can also see in this picture the broccoli bed and the cabbages behind them. We are trying the cloth this year in the hopes of keeping out those pesky white butterflies that lay eggs to hatch little cabbage worms. Those little buggers have voracious appetites and I am determined to keep them out of the garden this year. In the past I have sprayed BT on the affected plants, which is a natural bacteria accepted in organic practices that kills them. I would rather not use anything though, so up went the row covers. Except that the one we bought isn't really wide enough for our beds, and we don't have hoops or anything to secure it to. I need to look into making our own hoops and buying more cloth cover!
We managed to squeeze in another small bed, near the playground fence. We will grow lettuce here this year. Next to it is a big pile of compost/dirt for hilling the potatoes:
We haven't had a chance to plant our fruit trees yet, which doesn't really bother me since they would still be in pots at the nursery had they not come home with us. But we know where they will be planted, so I guess that's half the battle! This is where the apple trees will call home, the pluot is in the trellis picture above next to the pear tree.
Somewhat related to the garden is our purchase of a rabbit hutch! For months our friend Linda has been offering to give us one of her rabbits (she raises them for meat and for pets) but we haven't been able to find a used hutch for a reasonable price. I found a lady on Craigslist a few days ago who was selling a bunch of hutches for just $40! I hurried over and picked the one I want, and then Wayde drove back with us later that night and threw it up on his truck. Hurray for neighbors with trucks!
The hutch is structurally sound, but it needs a lot of cosmetic work:
I am planning on repainting it, and replacing the hinges and latch. I also need to cut some plywood pieces to fit the sides so that our bunny can have some protection from rain/snow/wind. But before I can do any of that, it needs to be cleaned thoroughly. There is fossilized poop clinging to the wires, and check out this gnarly mess:
BLECH! It looks like big clumps of rabbit fur, at least that's what I am hoping it is because anything else is to yucky to think about. I am excited to get a sunny day to begin working on it, and hopefully we can bring our bunny home soon! She is going to make a great addition to our family, and her poo will make a great addition to our garden :)
We scooped out pathways and beds about a week ago. It took all day long, but we really put a lot of thought into it and the layout is going to work not only for this year, but for the years to come. We have been reading a lot lately about the benefits of not tilling your garden, so we wanted an arrangement that would be permanent. Crop rotation is important to us, so we had to take that into consideration (making beds that would work for more than one type of plant. Here is the (hopefully) final layout:
To the left along the fence posts will be potatoes, and along the back fence will be shelling peas in spring and tomatoes in summer. In the middle we have 8 beds that are 14 feet long and 2 feet wide, with the exception of one that is 3 feet wide. There is another small bed near the water post, and a larger square on next to it that will be home to my pumpkins this year. At the bottom of the picture is part of the trellis bed, but it wasn't up in this picture.
A few days later we got another sunny day, and did manage to get the trellis netting put up. Last year we only had 15 feet of trellis, this year we have 30 feet:
I don't know what it is, but this layout makes it seem like we have at least twice the space that we did last year. Which is good because I plan on growing about twice the amount of veggies! At first I was worried that we wouldn't have room but seeing it all laid out I am sure we will. The same day we got the trellis up, I planted a row of super sugar snap peas under it, and 12 shelling pea plants along the tomato bed. Peas are best as a spring or fall crop, so my plan is that they will be finishing up by the time the tomatoes are big enough to start crowding them out. That's the idea anyway!
I put in stakes to mark where the peas are until they germinate. You can also see in this picture the broccoli bed and the cabbages behind them. We are trying the cloth this year in the hopes of keeping out those pesky white butterflies that lay eggs to hatch little cabbage worms. Those little buggers have voracious appetites and I am determined to keep them out of the garden this year. In the past I have sprayed BT on the affected plants, which is a natural bacteria accepted in organic practices that kills them. I would rather not use anything though, so up went the row covers. Except that the one we bought isn't really wide enough for our beds, and we don't have hoops or anything to secure it to. I need to look into making our own hoops and buying more cloth cover!
We managed to squeeze in another small bed, near the playground fence. We will grow lettuce here this year. Next to it is a big pile of compost/dirt for hilling the potatoes:
We haven't had a chance to plant our fruit trees yet, which doesn't really bother me since they would still be in pots at the nursery had they not come home with us. But we know where they will be planted, so I guess that's half the battle! This is where the apple trees will call home, the pluot is in the trellis picture above next to the pear tree.
Somewhat related to the garden is our purchase of a rabbit hutch! For months our friend Linda has been offering to give us one of her rabbits (she raises them for meat and for pets) but we haven't been able to find a used hutch for a reasonable price. I found a lady on Craigslist a few days ago who was selling a bunch of hutches for just $40! I hurried over and picked the one I want, and then Wayde drove back with us later that night and threw it up on his truck. Hurray for neighbors with trucks!
The hutch is structurally sound, but it needs a lot of cosmetic work:
I am planning on repainting it, and replacing the hinges and latch. I also need to cut some plywood pieces to fit the sides so that our bunny can have some protection from rain/snow/wind. But before I can do any of that, it needs to be cleaned thoroughly. There is fossilized poop clinging to the wires, and check out this gnarly mess:
BLECH! It looks like big clumps of rabbit fur, at least that's what I am hoping it is because anything else is to yucky to think about. I am excited to get a sunny day to begin working on it, and hopefully we can bring our bunny home soon! She is going to make a great addition to our family, and her poo will make a great addition to our garden :)