Pathways to a Successful Garden

Posted on by admin Posted in Fertilizing, Soil


Mulch Path beside the garden bed

It’s been extremely warm these past two weeks here in “Zone 5”, so much so that several other gardeners are planting already.  Definitely feels like the right time, but there’s still big chances of frost.  Since we have an abundant supply of wood chips, they are going in between the beds every time I pass by a pile near our “transfer station” (this is where we bring our garbage and recyclables).  The next thing to bring in is the manure, since we’ve still got two months before our “growing season” begins.  There are some plants that will go out into protected areas, like spinach (which I’ve not had much success with yet), lettuce (also protected with rabbit proofing), and peas.  An interesting post from 2011 from “One Straw Rob” shows me that wood chips – when properly used – will only benefit the soil.  If I can find the other post I’d read last year, I’ll put it here too – it was about nitrogen depletion myths and facts, showing that the nitrogen depletion was only at the point of contact between the wood chips and the soil, roughly translating that wood chips on top of the soil only depleted the nitrogen within the first couple of millimeters of the soil, not it’s depth and breadth, as long as it was used as a top covering and not mixed liberally into the soil.

One other thing learned last year with the experiments is that soil that lays fallow doesn’t replenish itself – it still needs help.  The box gardening bed proved this when a/b’d with a box of soil that was set up “Lasagna Gardening style”.  As our neighbors have a lot of horses and the waste that has been piled over the winter is about to be spread out over their fields, I’ll be making a “stink run” shortly.  Here’s a great resource for working with your garden (and your neighbors): “A Horse Owner’s Guide to Good Stewardship“.

 

I’m wondering if mixing spent horse bedding in with alfalfa pellets would make a good compost?  I may have to plant some alfalfa just to add to the mix, but my intention after reading the Horse Owner’s Guide (link above) and the forum thread noted here will be to add “pre-rabbitized” alfalfa and epsom salts (since I have some) to the garden beds – laying it between the rows, and hoping the slugs find it unappealing.

One other thing to be thinking of is the span of the root system.  As noted in “A Hidden World of Plant Roots“, the crops will be reaching out probably well beyond their beds, into and under the pathways as well.

Mini Farming: Self-Sufficiency on 1/4 Acre

 

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2011 Garden Layout in Review

Posted on by APerkins Posted in Container, Hugelkultur, Lasagna Bed, Wicking Bed

 

Chart of the different beds for 2011-http://gardenhacker.com

scale in ounces

Now that we’re in February and the catalogs are coming in at least once every couple of weeks, I am getting back to this site, and planning the new garden.  First, though, a review of last year’s garden layout and what worked in a wet and weird season:  As you can see, the lasagna bed and the hugelkultur bed were pretty close!  The advantage of the hugelkultur bed is that it is not supposed to need any additional materials this year, and should start offering up the nutrients from the buried logs from last year for the next three to five years.  Good thing, as this was quite labor intensive!  The lasagna bed will need an additional 1″ of composted manure, and a covering of compost.  The wicking bed sprang a leak and will have to be redone this year, and the box bed will need new boxes or be converted to lasagna beds to be viable again.

Also last year’s wicking beds were relying on fallow soil from a previous garden, and the box beds were several experiments rolled into one: some with minimal soil, some with lasagna layers, and the potatoes with fallow soil/grass clippings mix.

Box Beds:

  • Best Crop per plant in 2011: bush beans, though patty pans did well too – they were in a box with added compost as opposed to fallow soil
  • + easy to set up
  • + customize-able for each type of crop, including “mini-wicking beds”
  • + easily weeded
  • – lower yield in most cases (due to mix of experiments including minimal soil/fallow soil)
  • – without dressing up the borders, they looked ugly

Wicking Beds:

  • Best Crop per plant in 2011: Cucumbers
  • + low watering requirements
  • – susceptible to leaks (dependent upon the substrate used)
  • – lower than expected yield – most likely due to using fallow soil

Lasagna Bed:

  • Best Crop per plant  in 2011:Snow Peas
  • + highest yield
  • + low maintenance
  • – compared to the hugelkultur bed, would have to be “refreshed” annually

Hugelkultur Bed:

  • Best Crop per plant in 2011: Tomatoes
  • + good yield for most crops, especially the heavy feeding squash
  • + low maintenance after initial setup
  • – labor intensive initially
  • – root crops did not work well in the first year

This year the experiments should include:

Box Beds Year 2 – good soil mix, strawberry pyramid, box on box, and mini wicking box beds with bush beans (were tomato plants last year)

Hugelkuture Bed Year 2 – 1/2″ of composted manure and a killing mulch, crops rotated, nothing more

Lasagna Bed Year 2 – 1″ manure, 1″ compost and a killing mulch

Wicking Bed Year 2 – REDO – dig up, lay down plastic again, fill with good mix of soil/manure/compost

Beyond that, we have

  • the strawberry plants that were transplanted last year next to the comfrey
  • Asparagus plants that have to be moved into a new bed
  • possibly some other experiments, depending on how adventurous I am and how much time I have.

ary and the catalogs are coming in at least once every couple of weeks, I am getting back to this site, and planning the new garden.  First, though, a review of last year’s garden layout and what worked in a wet and weird season:

Chart of the different beds for 2011-http://gardenhacker.com

scale in ounces

As you can see, the lasagna bed and the hugelkultur bed were pretty close!  The advantage of the hugelkultur bed is that it is not supposed to need any additional materials this year, and should start offering up the nutrients from the buried logs from last year for the next three to five years.  Good thing, as this was quite labor intensive!  The lasagna bed will need an additional 1″ of composted manure, and a covering of compost.  The wicking bed sprang a leak and will have to be redone this year, and the box bed will need new boxes or be converted to lasagna beds to be viable again.

Also last year’s wicking beds were relying on fallow soil from a previous garden, and the box beds were several experiments rolled into one: some with minimal soil, some with lasagna layers, and the potatoes with fallow soil/grass clippings mix.

Box Beds:

  • Best Crop per plant in 2011: bush beans, though patty pans did well too – they were in a box with added compost as opposed to fallow soil
  • + easy to set up
  • + customize-able for each type of crop, including “mini-wicking beds”
  • + easily weeded
  • – lower yield in most cases (due to mix of experiments including minimal soil/fallow soil)
  • – without dressing up the borders, they looked ugly

Wicking Beds:

  • Best Crop per plant in 2011: Cucumbers
  • + low watering requirements
  • – susceptible to leaks (dependent upon the substrate used)
  • – lower than expected yield – most likely due to using fallow soil

Lasagna Bed:

  • Best Crop per plant  in 2011:Snow Peas
  • + highest yield
  • + low maintenance
  • – compared to the hugelkultur bed, would have to be “refreshed” annually

Hugelkultur Bed:

  • Best Crop per plant in 2011: Tomatoes
  • + good yield for most crops, especially the heavy feeding squash
  • + low maintenance after initial setup
  • – labor intensive initially
  • – root crops did not work well in the first year

This year the experiments should include:

Box Beds Year 2 – good soil mix, strawberry pyramid, box on box, and mini wicking box beds with bush beans (were tomato plants last year)

Hugelkuture Bed Year 2 – 1/2″ of composted manure and a killing mulch, crops rotated, nothing more

Lasagna Bed Year 2 – 1″ manure, 1″ compost and a killing mulch

Wicking Bed Year 2 – REDO – dig up, lay down plastic again, fill with good mix of soil/manure/compost

Beyond that, we have

  • the strawberry plants that were transplanted last year next to the comfrey
  • Asparagus plants that have to be moved into a new bed
  • possibly some other experiments, depending on how adventurous I am and how much time I have.

 

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    Wearable Garden?

    Posted on by APerkins Posted in Tangents

    I always thought the little vase in the VW’s was cute, but I didn’t have a VW.  This is truly novel, and a great way to “cultivate” conversations about gardening:
    http://fab.com/sale/3525/ shows a wearable vase for your lapel, your tie, your bike, and more.wearable vase  Obviously you won’t be growing pumpkins here, but it gives you a little bit of gardening to bring with you everywhere, and draws other gardeners like a magnet.  Many styles available, I couldn’t resist sharing this with the rest of the gardening community.  Maybe some pungent sprouts for your salad? You couldn’t get much fresher than that! http://fab.com/na74m4

     

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      Carrots in my Cellar

      Posted on by APerkins Posted in Wicking Bed


      After a couple of big freezes and thaws, the snow has finally come (January 11, 2012 was the first accumulation). Before this, I had successfully pulled my carrots, soil and all, and placed them in the cellar. They were frozen solid, as the insulation helps keep in cold as well as heat. So I brought the box – soil, frozen water and all into the cellar. A week later, this is what it looks like:

      The one I had tried pulling from the box while everything was still frozen is the one I pulled out.  It was nicely formed and tasty, especially with some dip according to my daughter (I did take a test bite before I gave it up – I prefer them without the dip).  This makes me wonder if I should move my grow lights downstairs, where they would be neglected in the 57 degree dampness for weeks at a time.  At least they wouldn’t dry out as quickly as they do upstairs…Carrot pulled from the insulated grow box. Nice! - gardenhacker.com

      carrots in the cellar in their insulated grow box - gardenhacker.com

       

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        Received the D.Landreth Seed Company Catalog

        Posted on by APerkins Posted in FYI

        Got our catalog from the D. Landreth Seed Company.  Lots of good information, excellent varieties.  Will be perusing this one first, then Seed Saver’s Exchange for more varieties, but will need to check my stock first…  I tend to over buy seeds. Hoping to experiment with more winter squash this coming year, as well as some rabbit proofed carrots (still have some from the container garden I have to pull).  Holidays first, then back to gardening…

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          D. Landreth Seed Co.

          Posted on by APerkins Posted in FYI, Tangents

           

          D. Landreth Seed Company Catalog2012

          D. Landreth Seed Company Catalog 2012

           

          Update: We have been in contact with the D. Landreth Seed Company, and while they’re not out of the shark infested water, an island of hope appears to be closer!  According to their latest post:

          "...Landreth has received funds to help pay off the notes that the company owes from three
sources: (1) the sale of catalogs, (2) the sale of Landreth products and (3) donations to
the www.chipin.com account. As of the morning of 10-17-2011, Landreth has processed
7,645 orders and attended 7 Fall Harvest Festivals, Master Gardeners Conventions, etc.
Landreth has sold 11,205 catalogs for $56,025, products totaling $72,876
and has received donations totaling $9,427. The total raised so far is $138,328!
. ..."

          They still need help, though!  “…To retire only the debt now in litigation, NOT THE ENTIRE DEBT, requires

          approximately $550,000. To print and ship 225,000 catalogs will cost approximately
$562,500. The total is $1,112,500. Selling 225,000 catalogs at $5.00 per catalog would
produce $1,125,000. This will allow us to pay off the noteholders who are suing us and
will get Landreth out of danger. Our hope is that when each of you receives your catalog
you will be motivated to purchase products from Landreth and that revenue will allow us
to retire the remaining debt.

          ===================Original Post====================================
          D. Landreth Seed Co., the oldest seed company in America, has fallen on hard times.  As noted in many newspapers and all over the internet – from “bigfatmarketingblog“, to cheesemaking supply co. – everyone is writing about them.  According to the news on the internet, due to financial hardhip and their creditors as well as the judges refusing to negotiate, a company almost as old as our country could go under by the end of September 2011, taking with it a rich (and flavorful) history.

          As the oldest seed company in America, D. Landreth Seed Co. has some interesting finds, such as the “Yugoslavian Finger Fruit” – located in their “winter squash” area, claiming a mild “coconut” flavor.  Okay: if you can grow it in New England and it tastes like coconut, how could you go wrong?  I ordered the seeds for these and a couple of other interesting looking plants, as well as some onions that I hope will keep the rabbits at bay, and a catalog for those long dark dawns when anything that looks like spring is sought.

          Hoping my little order, plus everyone else’s will bring them out of their financial misery.  Help if you can!  Order a catalog for yourself or for a friend for the Holidays from D. Landreth Seed Co.

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            King Harry Potato Harvest Results Come in Mixed

            Posted on by APerkins Posted in Raised Bed

            We’ve been planting the King Harry potato or “King Hairy” potatoes for several years now.  The first experiment we are currently harvesting is the potatoes with minimal dirt coverage, mostly grass clippings (other than an initial covering of dirt to keep them from getting scorched by the sun).  There were two plants in each box.  We added clippings as the plants grew, and watered them when we watered the rest of the garden.  Harvesting is super simple:

            • Remove the box (the sides come right up as the bottom has already rotted away),
            • Roll back the grass clippings with your hands, and
            • pick out the potatoes.

            Very simple, probably wouldn’t even get any dirt under my fingernails if I simply covered them with clippings from the start.  The nightcrawlers that were working their way around the soil were the largest I’ve seen in a long time, so they like the grass clippings/cardboard combination.

            In the box bed we found 3.9 lbs. (1.8 kg) of potatoes from eight plants, covering approximately 2.5 x 3.5 ft (76 cm x 102 cm)

            From the Hugelkultur bed we found 11.8 lbs (5.4 kg) of harvestable potatoes, with about three pounds of potatoes that were eaten by varmints (mice and moles, mostly).  Digging was more difficult since we’d not only buried the seeds slightly, we also did not attempt to contain them in any way.

            The Lasagna bed yielded 20 lbs (9.07 kg) of potatoes, with only about one pound unharvestable due to critters eating them.  There was also an 18 oz (0.5 kg) potato on the periphery, where the soil was clay rather than the built up soil, the soil probably being more “sour” (acid) in that area.

            Digging up the wicking bed, we found only three pounds of potatoes!  This area was rich with horse manure, and may have been too “sweet” for the King Harry potato variety.

            You can find King Harry potato seed at http://www.woodprairie.com/.  Tell them that gardenhacker.com sent you, and is real pleased with the potatoes year after year!


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            Day 116 Bush Beans and Snow Peas Experiments End

            Posted on by admin Posted in Hugelkultur, Lasagna Bed, Raised Bed, Wicking Bed

            It’s been a great summer for gardening, and I wish I had kept up on the 30 minutes/day challenge, but we still have been eating well from the garden and will continue to do so.  The bush beans (providor) and the snow peas (oregon giant) have had their day, at least for the plantings in the individual garden beds and have been cut down.  The bush beans in what will be the strawberry pyramid are going strong, though – giving an additional 1.2 lbs (0.544 kg) of beans all at once from the eighteen plants.  A second harvest, and possibly a third should be in the future, as there are no pests and few weeds.  It was easy pickings, too! Walked around the bed and picked, stooping only slightly for the lower tier.  May experiment with more pyramids next year.

            Bush Beans totals are: Lasagna bed produced 31.25 oz (), followed by the Box Bed at 13.88 oz (), Wicking Bed at 9.25 oz (), and the Hugelkultur bed at 8.38 oz.

            Snow Pea totals are: 13 for the Lasagna Bed, 12 for the Box Bed, 7 oz for the Wicking Bed and 6.6 for the Hugelkultur Bed

            The Hugelkultur bed surpassed the lasagna bed, thanks to some gigantic patty pan squash.  These weighed in at 3.5 and 4 lbs (1.6 – 1.8 kg).  Some people don’t like them at this size, since the husk can be tough, but they can be steamed, grilled, baked (I am baking one now with olive oil drizzle plus fresh basil and parmesan cheese, sliced 1/4″ thin and put on a rack.  Verdict:  more parmesan, hotter oven).  The cherry tomatoes are very sweet and splitting on the vine. Those that are split at the time of picking are tossed to the outer bank for “hearty volunteers” next year if they survive, and the ones that split by the time they reach the scale are weighed and eaten.  Ahhhh – worth the far less than allotted time I wanted to spend out there, only wish I had the time to put in so I could plant some more.

            Day 107 – Spills and a Squashed Patty Pan Plant

            Posted on by admin Posted in Hugelkultur, Lasagna Bed, Raised Bed, Wicking Bed

            Managed to trip and land on one of my squash plants in the Hugelkultur bed, attempting to get at some of the tomatoes that have been almost completely covered by the amazingly large leaves of the patty pan.  Also bent the daylights out of the tomato cage (why just destroy one thing?).   We’re practically swimming in patty pan squash, which have been going to neighbors, friends, new teachers… kind of reminds you of zucchini dilemmas? I’ve got three taste tested recipes that are great for patty pan squash, as well as any other summer squash:

            Stuffed Patty Pan SquashStuffed Patty Pan Squash

             

             

             

            Cutting a Patty Pan SquashPatty Pan Squash and Couscous

             

             
            Sauteed Patty Pan Squash with Fresh Basil and Goat Cheese

            Sauteed Patty Pan Squash with Fresh Basil and Goat Cheese

             

             

            Beyond that, the Hugelkultur bed is now producing cucumbers, the box bed is forming it’s first patty pan squash, the wicking bed is now beginning to produce beans.

            One day this week (probably tomorrow, as it will be sunny) it will be time to dig the potatoes!  These are early potatoes, and they keep well in the cellar until about February, when they begin to sprout.  These are the “seeds” from the potatoes we did not finish last winter, in fact.  Normally, you want to get potato seeds that are guaranteed free of disease, but we didn’t have that option this year due to timing and finances, so we took a chance.  We’ll see how they did within a few days, or when it decides to get sunny again.

             

             

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            Day 99 – Numbers skewed but the trends continue to favor the Lasagna garden bed

            Posted on by admin Posted in 30 Min., Container, Hugelkultur, Lasagna Bed, Raised Bed, Wicking Bed
            many sizes of patty pan squash

            Wide variety of sizes of patty pan squash

            Took a week away last week, and it seems technology took a holiday as well in many forms.  First I lost (then later found) my flash drive. Then my MP3 player decided it had enough (Sansa Clip that was working great – even after being run over several months ago, just couldn’t take the rain with it’s cracked case, having fallen from my pocket while relaxing in an Adirondack chair).
            If that wasn’t bad enough, I had a neighbor set up to track the progress of the beds, only to have the scale (analog scale – no batteries or electronics!) go haywire!  They did their best, and I’ve just picked up where I left off recording what I have picked.  As you can see for 2011-08-08, the lasagna garden bed continues to do great, with the hugelkultur bed starting to perk up quite a bit, the pattypan squash really spiking the numbers.  Got our first broccoli as well, and it tastes so much better than the store bought – even the organic (I think it’s the comfrey again, but I am biased).

            The time away from gardening has let the weeds encroach, so I will be spending more time weeding this week and less time picking.

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