What Did You Do In The Garden?

[ducks4you]

I had trouble with black kow manure compost this year. That long lasting herbicide was in it.

Find a stable. Check to be sure that the horses are eating pelleted feed, maybe with some pasture. Hay is unlikely to have much or any residual herbicide bc the most sensitive part of the horse is the digestive system and owners are fussy about their hay. I feed hay 1/2 of the year and I NEVER have had my used bedding compost kill off seeds. Every sweet feed AND all pelleted horse feed comes in plastic 50 lb bags which the owners throw away. Get permission from the stable owner, bring a New roll of duct tape and a shovel and bag up about 1/3 full, so that it doesn't spill, plus it will be heavy. They ALL have manure/stall bedding piles. Your only problem will be grass/straw seeds, but probably the bedding will be pine shavings or sawdust, or even paper. It takes about 4 months for this to cure and be ready for gardening. A little bit of sweat equity and a good tiller will really help.

 

[ducks4you]

Yesterday, I started with burning the 20 small, about 12 ft. limbs that I hadn't removed from under the pine trees in the South Pasture. They were from a 3 ft diameter volunteer tree that my friend sawed down in late 2018, and I only have a small patch left before we can start bush hogging the area. All burned, all ash, and t storms last night. High of 92 and Very Humid.
I slow watered, kinda drip watered, even though my drip hoses are toast, on the 2 beds north of the garage. Surrounded the plants with compost, FINALLY. Been walking by the beds promising this for a week now.
I also "puddled" my pepper plants. 2 days ago I puddled them. They were really droopy, but revived. I surrounded each with compost yesterday. I also dug up about eight 1st year burdock trying to grow there and tilled, plus I tilled and planted 3 rows of corn,, should grow about 31 plants. I like to do research and several online articles suggested putting about 3 kernals of corn in each hole. This area was the first that I dumped used stall bedding last Fall, so it is well rotted and fluffy.
When this corn is up, I will do a 2nd planting, and then plan for a 3rd. Around here I watch the farmers. We had a freeze not even a month ago, and they are planting their corn late, so I am not worried.
I think the freeze got most of the blossoms on my smaller cherry tree. No worries, since the Other one is covered with green fruit. I got a scaffolding for Valentine's Day and I think I will haul it out for my cherry harvest bc it's safer than a ladder.
I may have gotten a little bit of heat exhaustion, even though I took breaks in the shade and drank a LOT of liquids, but I had no appetite, so good for losing weight. Today will be only 83 so I can get some more planting done.

 

[seedcorn]

Single spacing of corn will be more effective than hill drop. Although hill drop done like the 40’s is interesting to see. Especially if you top it.

 

[TwinCitiesPanda]

I have been too busy to even read or post much! My tree order came in last friday: 500 hybrid willows for three sides of the property, 5 cherries, 5 plums, 5 filberts, 4 oaks, and 35 mixed conifers. I used a week of my vacation to get these squared away. We made great progress friday and saturday, took a break sunday and got back to work Monday. Then the heat and humidity kicked in Tuesday and hasn't left yet - yesterday was about 85*F and 96% humidity. I simply can't do manual labor in that. I dug a few hostas for the neighbor (< 30 minutes work) and afterwards was darn near dead. Hopefully we can finish up the planting today we've only got 4-5 hours of work left to do.

I also got some seeds in the ground I've been meaning to for some time. Corn, squash, pumpkins, and some wax beans. My potatoes and sweet potatoes still aren't in, I need to find some dirt for them. Its been very hard this year, having to fight for every inch of garden since it means removing grass. I even interplanted radishes, carrots, onions, broccoli, cauliflower, and tomatoes into the foundation garden beds between existing plants. My attitude this year with all veggies is "sink or swim." I don't have time to baby them with frequent watering, nor money to buy amendments, so if the soil they got stuck into isn't good enough I suppose they just won't produce. I'll use that feedback to know where improvements need to be made going forward. It all sounds whiny maybe, but I am still enjoying the heck out the work and can't wait to see how these trees change the property in the coming years.

 

[Dirtmechanic]

I have been too busy to even read or post much! My tree order came in last friday: 500 hybrid willows for three sides of the property, 5 cherries, 5 plums, 5 filberts, 4 oaks, and 35 mixed conifers. I used a week of my vacation to get these squared away. We made great progress friday and saturday, took a break sunday and got back to work Monday. Then the heat and humidity kicked in Tuesday and hasn't left yet - yesterday was about 85*F and 96% humidity. I simply can't do manual labor in that. I dug a few hostas for the neighbor (< 30 minutes work) and afterwards was darn near dead. Hopefully we can finish up the planting today we've only got 4-5 hours of work left to do.

I also got some seeds in the ground I've been meaning to for some time. Corn, squash, pumpkins, and some wax beans. My potatoes and sweet potatoes still aren't in, I need to find some dirt for them. Its been very hard this year, having to fight for every inch of garden since it means removing grass. I even interplanted radishes, carrots, onions, broccoli, cauliflower, and tomatoes into the foundation garden beds between existing plants. My attitude this year with all veggies is "sink or swim." I don't have time to baby them with frequent watering, nor money to buy amendments, so if the soil they got stuck into isn't good enough I suppose they just won't produce. I'll use that feedback to know where improvements need to be made going forward. It all sounds whiny maybe, but I am still enjoying the heck out the work and can't wait to see how these trees change the property in the coming years.

Ow thats a lot of work. I am with you on sunmer heat. I like to be done by mid morning even if it means walking outside with the first rays of sun to see by.

 

[TwinCitiesPanda]

Ow thats a lot of work. I am with you on sunmer heat. I like to be done by mid morning even if it means walking outside with the first rays of sun to see by.

That's probably how I'll have to garden here on out for the hot days of this summer. It nice today - lower humidity and I have until 11 am before it hits 75*, so I'm rolling out to see what I can get done. My schedule's off and I've been staying late and sleeping in. S'pose its time to use an alarm clock like a responsible adult.

 

[Prairie Rose]

I am finally done moving the piles of compost and mulch after about four hours yesterday and three hours today. All of the beds in the front yard have been weeded, had fresh compost added, and a thick layer of mulch. The fruit trees got a new layer of burlap, compost, and mulch to the current drip line. Once I had that done, I used what was left to make new garden beds. I have a big roll of brown paper exactly as wide as my current beds, so a layer of that as a weed barrier, two inches of compost topped with two inches of mulch, edges carefully tapered so water runs off. The edging to make them beds will come later in the summer.

All said I have added two 4 x 16 foot beds, two 4 x 10, and one 4 x 12. I use beds of different lengths to account for the slopes in my yard. I will plant them tomorrow...it will be much later than I would like, but spring was very wet and very cold, and it's only now just warm enough that things are taking off.

The next step is to find a stronger and longer lasting weed barrier than paper and get between the beds layered and mulched so I don't have to mow between them. This fall mom wants to fill up the open area with more beds, to expand the garden for next year. She was out there working with me today, and really liking how easy the new beds come together. They won't really start producing well for at least another year, but if we do the groundwork this year next year will be even better!

I have ten more yards of mulch coming in tonight for mom's beds in the backyard, and to paper and smother out weeds alongside the sides of the house. The goal this year is to eliminate all the areas that need small trim work, ie the push mower or the weedeater.

 

[Beekissed]

Finally getting things in the garden, but battling the heat and humidity. Got spuds in, also squash, pumpkins, maters, radishes, Mammoth sunflowers and also the more ornamental ones, with beans planted next to those. Will plant some beans along the mater trellis also.

Next is to finish building a 20 ft long x 3 ft wide raised bed....got all the materials in it~old, pithy wood, chicken compost, composted hay and leaves and mounded up soil.

Got a good bit of asparagus, rhubarb, garlic and more flowers to plant. Then will fill the other spaces with whatever suits my fancy.

 

[seedcorn]

Re planted cucumbers for too many times to remember with fresh seed. Also weeded kohlrabi, okra, peppers, cabbage and carrots. Crab grass has been a real pain n the xxxx. Every day, I swear 1M new starts come up.

 

[Dirtmechanic]

That's probably how I'll have to garden here on out for the hot days of this summer. It nice today - lower humidity and I have until 11 am before it hits 75*, so I'm rolling out to see what I can get done. My schedule's off and I've been staying late and sleeping in. S'pose its time to use an alarm clock like a responsible adult.

Never.