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[Beekissed]

I agree. What changes I'm seeing in the color and type of soil can only turn out good with time. In my annual flower beds the soil is black and crumbly and those didn't have the depth of chips/leaves/straw that the garden had on it but still managed to compost and retain moisture well.

I just think it will take some time for the compost to reach a neutral pH, which will be difficult when the chips are in a constant state of compost.

I'm really seeing some good things from these red blossomed strawberries...they seem to LOVE the wood chips and are putting out bloom and berry well, even though they were just recently transplanted into the garden.

 

[baymule]

Bee I am in the same boat as you. I can see a difference in the top layer of soil, it will just take time, lots of mulch and compost. I don't want to till, I just want to keep throwing stuff on top. I finally had my little beds at our old house to that state, I could take a spading fork and sink it easily with one hand.

 

[henless]

I agree with Mary. From all that I have read, many people have trouble the first year or so. It's a learning process. You have to find out what works best in your area using the resources you have on hand.

Bee, you have many years of gardening experience. That has to be a big plus as you figure out how to work this system in your area. Reading your posts here and on BYC has encouraged me to try this method. I want to thank you for that.

Rain again for the last 2 days. I actually needed a bit of rain for my garden. It is starting to grow, just not very big yet. Most is hard to see due to the leaves.

My hydrangeas are doing good. I put newspaper, compost and pine straw around them last year after I planted them. They were blue when I planted them. Some of them have turned multi colored.





eta: Had to fix my pic. I guess I still need a little practice with posting them.

 

[Beekissed]

I agree! This method does surely come with a big learning curve and each spring I panic as I don't see my normal garden progress with this method....but then I get to see things happening and I start to relax.

The corn is up and the maters are looking better, even had to sucker a few of them and one was big enough to send through the cattle panel squares. Strawberries are setting bloom and berries and a few pepper plants have little peppers.

I think each year it will get better and better....and I'll probably panic at the beginning of the season each year, the same as usual.

 

[Smart Red]

Whew!

 

[Beekissed]

Well...this last rain seemed to send the required nutrients down to the sickly looking maters I had in the garden. They grew a good 4 in. over night...I kid you not!

I had just checked them last night before bed and this evening most of them had greened up and grew lush all the sudden. That always amazes me and I know it sounds untrue, but I've seen it time and again...those things can grow that quickly in a short span of time.

Sort of like that hair that pops up on your chin even though you search thoroughly every evening for stray hairs....then, one evening, there is this long, black thing that wasn't there the night before!

I've decided to switch things up with my peppers. I think they don't like the cool soil under the chips, so I'm tossing all the peppers I currently have and am going to rake back the chips entirely from those rows, plant new peppers, put down some horse manure and grass clippings to get some good composting heat(not right up on the base of the plant, mind you) and cover it with a thin layer of straw to hold in the heat.

Also going to put some grass clippings on my lettuce rows and other seedling rows that are doing absolutely nothing. I think the chips are keeping the soil there much too cool for good germination.

Placed bone meal around the roses and some epsom salts around the rest of the flowers and roses as well. Planted out a beautiful poppy and delphinium this evening and more petunias that were on sale at Lowe's~a 6 pk for a $1.

Could be I'll have to use a different method for some plants in this BTE until those chips are entirely composted down.

 

[thistlebloom]

Haha! I know! What is it with those danged chin hairs? They come in blonde, then turn black suddenly when you're outdoors talking to someone. I know that's how it works...why else would they keep glancing nervously at my chin?

 

[Beekissed]

Exactly. When I find them I keep thinking, "How many people saw that and politely said nothing?" I'm very diligent on looking for them, so it's always a shock when I see one that size...and it had to grow like that over night. I'm very thorough.

 

[thistlebloom]

This is getting too personal, but what the heck, I'll tell it anyway. Just in tiny font so you'll have to work harder if you want to read it. Ha!

I was talking with a friend one time about those wild hairs, and I told her I had one on my neck once that was long enough to put in a ponytail. She laughed and said I should have kept it attached, it would have come in handy for flossing.

 

[ninnymary]

I don't know what you guys are talking about. But I do know plants seem to grow a lot after a spring rain.

Mary