Proposed garden layout. Comments & suggestions welcome (& asked for!)

[digitS']

. . . This is your tax money at work, make use of it.

-Wendy

Washington State Extension does NO soil testing, free or otherwise. They dropped the service during the double-dip recession of the early '80's.

Some folks use Idaho's soil testing but I think that is just full-payment for non-Idaho residents.

Steve

 

[897tgigvib]

Nacho, compared to last year, did you get everything accomplished and more started for this year that will all be accomplished? (I enjoy looking at older threads to see how gardens grow).

 

[nachoqtpie]

Absolutely! We expanded 3 more beds, and tho we missed the spring session, we're planting lettuce, cauliflower, and broccoli in the fall. The kiwi died... but I THINK that had more to do with Doc, our brindle Greyhound, thinking that they were his personal bathroom!

I'm also growing eggplant this year! New item for me. We started everything from seed, tho we did lose our eggplant and peppers. I did actually manage to save 2 eggplants and 1 pepper tho, so at least some of it was from seed!

Last year was REALLY rough. It was so hot and dry. Most everything perished. It was doing really well until I went on Vacation... and then somehow it managed to die... with hubby "watering" it.

 

[897tgigvib]

There are ways to get an idea of soil ph without testing. These ways are not as accurate, but can give a person a good idea.

Some plants are obvious acidic soil lovers. Blueberries, azaleas.

Some plants do real poorly in that same soil. Tomatoes.


Those are the basic ones that can tell you the ph of your soil at a very basic level.


Then, there is a way to see if the soil is "strong". Strong soil is soil that has had its ph level changed.

Changing acidic soil to neutral means adding Calcium usually.
Changing Alkaline soil to neutral usually means adding Sulphur.

Soil with lots of Sulfur is strong soil.
Soil with lots of Calcium is strong soil.

Huechera grows well in strong soil. It also grows well in acidic soil.

If a person is altering their soil ph from acidic to neutral, various forms of Calcium are good things to add. Dolomite Lime. Dolomite Lime does not do its magic instantly, but takes several months. Once it is mixed in I always plant a couple Huechera, Coral Bells. They like at least afternoon shade.

Right now one of my Huecheras is really thriving! The other one is just now starting to perk up pretty well. That tells me the Dolomite I added is beginning to make my soil strong where the slow to perk up one is. The thriving one is in soil that the lime has done its trick, and made the soil strong.

Older understandings were that Huechera only grew in acidic soil. Actually that is not at all true. Test it. They'll probably grow great in your soil as it is, but add Dolomite lime as directed on the box somewhere away from your blueberries, and put in a Huechera there. It too should thrive, but during the time the soil is mellowing from the lime, about 3 months, the Huechera will just be ok. Then it'll thrive.

Huechera are beautiful rosette perennials known for their leaves. They make a spray of flowers like baby's breath. A few make larger flowers.

 

[ducks4you]

Good design in that it's clear. Here's my advice. Put the tallest plants furthest NORTH, ALWAYS. They will block the sun from your low-lying plants. The only time you WANT this is when you are trying to grow leaf lettuce, spinach, radishes, peas--any cool loving crops--in the middle of the hot summer. Then, you want to shade them inside of a teepee that has green beans vining around them on teepee poles.

Here's my 2012 plan. My raised beds (mostly) run E-W, 3' x 12' ft. each. Going SOUTH to NORTH, here is what I've planted/and/or will plant soon.
Southmost Bed-#1
turnips / cabbage & brussel spouts
onion sets inside bed border

South Bed #2
beets
onion sets inside bed border

South Bed #3
zucchini
onion sets inside bed border

South Bed #4
spinach (planted Fall, 2011)
sprouting potatoes
radishes

North Bed #1
Potatoes /WILL BE Sweet peppers (they are potted now) after harvest ~ Mid-June
Volunteer cherry tomatoes (they are/have been relocated EVERYWHERE this year!!)

North Bed #2
Roma Tomatoes
marigolds/other flowers and herbs

North Bed #3
Beefsteak Tomatoes
marigolds/other flowers and herbs

North (N-S) Bed #4
Cucumbers
Serrano Peppers
Jalpeno Peppers
marigolds/other flowers and herbs
**Last year I grew Okra in this bed
***Corn is grown in beds that start ~8 ft. West of South Beds #2 & #3, so that they don't block the sun on the other beds.

Hope this helps!