What Did You Do In The Garden?

[majorcatfish]

took the day off and it has rained ever since i changed the oil in the truck, so grabbed a pencil and paper and layed out how i am going to plant the main garden tomorrow..

Plans are worthless, but planning is everything.
Dwight D. Eisenhower..


edit.. forgot to mention dw and i are going the herb fest down at the farmers market in the morning... you never know what your missing till you go...

 

[Nyboy]

Herb fest cool bring your camera.

 

[Smart Red]

I decided to smother the grasses in one of my raised beds. It is the bed I left fallow last year and filled with coop cleanings as well as other compostables. I fear the weeds grew up through the bottom and there is a VERY healthy growth of grass.

Daughter-in-law recently went into the tattoo business with a friend instead of working for others shops. One of the things they had done was the removal of all the carpeting in all 7-8 rooms. Score one big one for me, I had son bring all the cut up carpeting home.

Before covering the bed, I removed some of the nearly composted material in places where the grass wasn't growing. I had this great idea to use the material . . . later.

I used two pieces, (they were cut just over 4 feet and I needed 5 feet wide) to cover the bed and held the carpeting down with treated lumber 25 years removed from a prior veggie garden once I learned of the leaching dangers.

It will make mowing a bit more difficult, but I am happy with the results. Anyone know how long I need to leave the carpeting before the area is smothered and the grass is dead? My grasses seem to be an insidiously sturdy variety.

The nearly composted material I planned to put into one of the other beds. First I dug a hole as deep as the shovel would go. Then I tossed a bit of the material into the hole and filled the top six inches with garden soil. The idea was to get the composting material well below normal root systems, feed the adventurous roots that reached the material, and hold more moisture in the bed.

While I still like my idea, Spouse wanted to 'help'. He wouldn't dig the holds deep enough so there are places where the material is barely covered by soil, and he wouldn't follow my pattern so I have no idea where the material ended up and where I still need to dig it in. Sigh! Not worth a quarrel, but it wasn't being done the way I wanted. So when I said he could continue and do it his way he threw the shovel and left the garden.

It seems I can't work in the garden because he needs me watching him do something else or I can't work in the garden because he wants to do the work for me, but not the way I want it done, or he wants to go somewhere, anywhere, other then work in the yard.

The oldest compost bed is delicious looking! I needed to empty the wheelbarrow so I can get some of that beautiful, rich compost for the rest of the garden.

 

[Gardening with Rabbits]

Lettuce? You must have started that very early.

Spinach? I just gotta try overwintering spinach!

Steve

I planted the lettuce Feb. 24 and spinach and mustard, Swiss chard and cilantro. I had a row of lettuce and spinach I planted in the fall and I have been eating that and the new lettuce plus the mustard. I planted and put plastic over. I did not realize the spinach would do this so well or I would have planted more. No aphids, no leaf miner. The cilantro and Swiss chard was very slow to grow, but it made it. If I had kept the plastic on it would have done fine, but I took the plastic off because the lettuce and spinach did not need it. I weeded the box today and I have cilantro and Swiss Chard in there. This is a picture of the lettuce April 6. Not the older lettuce.

 

[Gardening with Rabbits]

Today, I planted parsley and more cilantro, transplanted gold raspberries growing all over the place, planted some mint I bought, catnip for the cats too, oregano and thyme I started from seed, weeded the herb garden, dug some mint and chives for the neighbor and gave him some collards and cabbage plants, and some gold raspberry starts. Yesterday, planted a few onions and the last of the kale, and planted beets with rows of Swiss chard and red mustard in between the rows and a few beet plants I had started. Hardening off the tomatoes and some flowers, took the squash and cucumber plants out to the patio under plastic. Had so much fun!

 

[digitS']

Now have all the onion seedlings in the garden.

Yes, it has taken all month and yes, onions respond to day-length. However, staggering the plantings, from sowing seeds to setting out, does lengthen the harvest season.

Lots of gardeners around here like to do the one day sowing and transplanting. Harvest is for the final weeks and winter storage. It seems to me that there is a difference between gardening and modern day farming. I'd rather be out fussing around right through the season. My compost pile is always hungry but it has taken some training to watch my crops go round the bend with any measure of complacency. Joy in having "fresh," as often and frequently as possible - of everything! Makes me feel pampered.

Steve

 

[ninnymary]

I agree with you Steve. Fresh is better and more joyful! Second best is freezing and canning.

Mary

 

[aftermidnight]

All I did was surround the newly planted bean plants with copper mesh and did a bit of watering, did some heavy duty digging and weeding yesterday and planted out a few bean plants, today I'm hugging my liniment bottle . I'll be good to go tomorrow, that Veterinarian strength Absorbine is great stuff, kind of stinks you up for a bit but it works wonders for me .
Annette

 

[Smart Red]

I spent a short time weeding the garlic/onion/et. al. bed and even shorter time pulling grass from the Alpine strawberry section. Dreary and cool today means I've time to work in the house.

 

[aftermidnight]

I spent a short time weeding the garlic/onion/et. al. bed and even shorter time pulling grass from the Alpine strawberry section. Dreary and cool today means I've time to work in the house.

LOL Dreary and a cool day, that's when I'm at my best in the garden , as long as it isn't pouring rain. Sunny and hot I'm hiding in the house with my homemaker hat on .
Annette