Anyone else ready?!

[NikAndHerChicks]

Yup~ I plan on building raised gardening beds for my mother who has back problems.. And maybe a raised garden bed or two around my coops to plant some herbs they like.. Like Lavender or mint and some tall grasses just to make it look nice.. I also have about 15 acres of pasture we're going to plant clover and timothy grass in for our cows and bees we're getting this spring.

Ooh! Very excited for you! I've been wanting bees for a couple of years now. Hubby says maybe after the orchard expansion.

 

[MrsMistyReal]

I miss smelling the flowers

 

[KathryninQuebec]

We are going to try row covers this year. I lost all 40 squash and pumpkin plants to frost on June 30th! We only have 90 frost free days up here (zone 3b) so everything is quite challenging but not impossible. Root crops of course is our best bet and they do well. I managed to have tomatoes that were killed back by the frost but recovered in time for green tomatoes which then ripened indoors. Squash and beans are my loftiest goals. I'm sure once we can afford to build a green house all will be OK. My favorite cold weather seed company in Canada is
https://www.heritageharvestseed.com/
All of their seed is open pollinated, non-hybrid, non-GMO, untreated, natural seed with many rare varieties.

 

[Snuggiepug]

I can’t wait for spring! My hens love it when the garden is in full swing because they know I’ll be giving them treats and scraps. I definitely miss warm weather haha

 

[NoNameHomestead]

Yes! Yes! Yes! I grow a one acre plot every year. I use the back to eden method. It really cuts down on the weeds in the garden. If you're not familiar with this method, I suggest searching it on youtube, there is a lot of information on there.

 

[dunnmom]

I've been scheming about it all winter. Chomping at the bit! I definitely want to start some vegetable seeds indoors this year. Also thinking about doing my salad greens in containers this year, so I can have the extra bed-space for other things. Also planting tomatoes in their own brand new bed. One thing I'm not ready to do is battle the squash vine borers!

 

[lazy gardener]

We are going to try row covers this year. I lost all 40 squash and pumpkin plants to frost on June 30th! We only have 90 frost free days up here (zone 3b) so everything is quite challenging but not impossible. Root crops of course is our best bet and they do well. I managed to have tomatoes that were killed back by the frost but recovered in time for green tomatoes which then ripened indoors. Squash and beans are my loftiest goals. I'm sure once we can afford to build a green house all will be OK. My favorite cold weather seed company in Canada is
https://www.heritageharvestseed.com/
All of their seed is open pollinated, non-hybrid, non-GMO, untreated, natural seed with many rare varieties.

Cattle panel green houses are super easy and inexpensive to build. Until you put up your green house, you might consider a hay bale cold frame. 5 or 6 bales make the frame: three lined up end to end on the north, one each for east and west walls to make a "box" which is opened on the south. Lay some 2 x 4's across the top for support of glass panels. I use a patio door sized storm panel, and drape some plastic down over that to close in the opening on the south side.

 

[Louise Waffles]

I have a stack of seed catalogs. I am making lists, and charts. I'm reading Ruth Stout books.
My garden was a failure, I broke a bunch of bones in my leg and just couldn't take care of it. I spent so much time on pain killers that made me loopy and stupid that I couldn't even THINK about the garden: everything died before I got off of the serious painkillers. So I've started some herb seedlings inside to help me get through til spring.

 

[KathryninQuebec]

Cattle panel green houses are super easy and inexpensive to build. Until you put up your green house, you might consider a hay bale cold frame. 5 or 6 bales make the frame: three lined up end to end on the north, one each for east and west walls to make a "box" which is opened on the south. Lay some 2 x 4's across the top for support of glass panels. I use a patio door sized storm panel, and drape some plastic down over that to close in the opening on the south side.

That sounds great. Unfortunately we are already under 6ft of snow in the yard with more to come. The snow never melts away until the end of May so any structure we build must be able to take the snow load and be tall enough not to get buried. I haven't been able to put plants in the ground here until the 2nd week of June and even then. Perhaps I could use the cold frames after the snow melts.I do use 4 sliding glass doors to box around my Tomato plants in the Summer. It really helps to warm them up and block any frost winds.

 

[lazy gardener]

Unfortunately we are already under 6ft of snow in the yard with more to come. The snow never melts away until the end of May so any structure we build must be able to take the snow load and be tall enough not to get buried. I haven't been able to put plants in the ground here until the 2nd week of June and even then. Perhaps I could use the cold frames after the snow melts.I do use 4 sliding glass doors to box around my Tomato plants in the Summer. It really helps to warm them up and block any frost winds.

A cattle panel green house is almost 6' tall, and 8' wide. The cattle panels are 16' x 50", so the length is easiest when planned in 50" increments. They are amazingly stable to snow loads if built appropriately with a ridge pole, and triangular based framing on end walls. I just knocked 18" off the top of mine, prior to the most recent 18" dump of snow. I have no doubt that the thing would have easily survived being totally buried under the snow. If you wanted extra height, you could also build a cinder block base for it. What ever you do for a green house, I strongly recommend that you have a fan system in it. Mine overheats.

You could also work some micro climate systems into your gardening plan, if you have not yet done so: Take advantage of slope. A gentle Southerly slope (North side a bit higher) takes advantage of the warming pattern of the sun. Something as simple as a row of cinder blocks or stones along the north side of the garden would create a warm zone in front of the blocks.

If I had your climate to work with, I think I'd put a permanent wall along the north side of the garden, 2 blocks high. That could be the back bone of some wonderful cold frames. It doesn't matter that they get buried under heavy snow load, if they are appropriately designed. Simply harvest until snow load makes that impractical, and resume harvest when snows start to recede in the spring. A cold frame could be as simple as a cattle panel laid across the top of the blocks and angled down to the soil in front. perhaps some blocks in front as well. Some 2 x 4's for structural support, then cover the whole thing with plastic.

When you plant your tomatoes in their glass boxes, you could add some gallon jugs of water (if you have not already done so) to act as heat sinks. Put some dark dye in the jugs, or even wrap them in black plastic. Or put a couple cups of compost in each jug so you can brew compost tea while also taking advantage of the heat sink.

When I do my hay bale cold frames, I simply put them in a safe area, and mark the area with fence posts. That way if they get totally buried, I'll still know where they are. Then, when the snow starts to melt, those cold frames will be the first to be uncovered (especially if you use metal fence posts) As soon as the sun hits the plants inside they take off growing like mad. If they are watered very well before the ground freezes in the cold frames, they won't need any attention at all until the plants start growing in the early spring. A hay bale cold frame will easily give you 6 extra weeks at each end of the growing season. You could even put some tomato seeds in your cold frame in the fall, under a milk jug with the bottom cut out. Don't plant the seeds until very cold weather, or even a bit of frost in the ground, and you very well may have some wonderful seedlings pop up there in the spring. I've not done this, but have noted that self sowed tomato seedlings often start producing fruit at the same time as my indoor started seedlings do. It would be worth a try!

I'm reading Ruth Stout books.

Ruth Stout got me going on deep mulch gardening many years ago. I never looked back. My gardening style is a combination of BTE, Ruth Stout, and heavily planted wide beds.