Restarting the garden

[secuono]

Getting started with setting up for the next season. New light holder, new starter trays and a new, 2nd heat mat.
Part of it will be for the cuttings. Haven't decided on what to grow nor do I know when I should start them yet.

 

[Branching Out]

That is quite the set-up you have there. Impressive!

 

[ducks4you]

Check out the seed starting schedule that I got from a local U of Illinois Professor Emertis (on my thread.)

Ducks ALIVE in 2025!

Sun 05 | Day 23° 86% NE15 mph Watching a potential winter storm. Snow likely. High 23F. Winds NE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of snow 90%. 3 to 5 inches of snow expected. I cannot operate a snow blower right now. Best I can do is move my shovel to the basement so that I can shovel behind the...

www.theeasygarden.com

You can start earlier, but he recommends not starting tomatoes too soon bc they grow fast, get leggy and are prone to breakage.
I would start you peppers early, then you can prune them to make them bush, something that always gets away from me.

 

[secuono]

I should probably first figure out what I want to grow...
Red is no zone.
Teal show slope lines. Nothing is flat here. That left area is pretty steeply down n out over there. Center is a bit flat. Right is more sloping away from porch, steeper the closer to the fence.


Blue is fenceline.
Have two 2×4ft raised metal beds. Was thinking of using them by the stairs and putting a cattle panel up for an arch. Then plant cucumbers.
Then I have 2 sizes of fabric bags and then the big plastic pots. Hmm, guess kinda just out there, maybe in rows or just dotted. Can see the fabric bags in the pic, actually.
I have landscape weed fabric I'll put down first. Don't want to deal with any darn grass. The whole area where any beds will be will be layered in it, probably two layers for good measure.
it'll probably be concentrated at the center where it's somewhat flat.

Maybe I should do a dry placement to mess with.

 

[flowerbug]

are you planning on covering the weed barrier fabric with something?

i do also recommend putting a few layers of cardboard (overlapping edges to make sure nothing has an easy path to come back up) under the weed barrier fabric and then covering it with some wood chips or some other mulch because the sun tends to degrade it if it is left exposed.

the cardboard layers are gradually eaten by worms but it helps provide both some cushion and protection to the weed barrier fabric as it all settles and the underlying grasses/etc decompose.

 

[secuono]

are you planning on covering the weed barrier fabric with something?

i do also recommend putting a few layers of cardboard (overlapping edges to make sure nothing has an easy path to come back up) under the weed barrier fabric and then covering it with some wood chips or some other mulch because the sun tends to degrade it if it is left exposed.

the cardboard layers are gradually eaten by worms but it helps provide both some cushion and protection to the weed barrier fabric as it all settles and the underlying grasses/etc decompose.

I've seen nurseries use it bare.
I won't be adding anything on top, definitely not mulch. It hurts knees, stabs, let's weed seeds grow, rots and needs replaced.
Claims to have 50yr warranty.
Don't think I have enough cardboard.

 

[Shades-of-Oregon]

I have used the weed barrier cloth in several,areas. I swear by it. In my experience it blocks moles, voles and ground squirrels . They cannot get thru it and any weeds that grow are easily pulled because the roots are not deep but spread out over the weed cloth . Keeps creeping plants within their boundaries.
The areas in my garden are the only areas I have not had issues with ground critters.

 

[secuono]

 

[ducks4you]

@Shades-of-Oregon , glad the weed barrier works for you. At DD's house they are constantly pulling up old weed barrier in tatters.
@secuono
"Don't think I have enough cardboard."
Do you have an ALDI nearby? ALDI shoppers use their boxes as shopping bags, and the have plenty.
Also, most grocery stores restock on one day of the week, like Tuesdays, and I have asked for broken down cardboard boxes from them before, too.
IF you use cardboard, be sure to peel off the packaging tape and throw it away, or you will be finding later to throw away...years down the line.
Don't ASK how I know this!