Official Squatch Watchers

[staceyj]

@21hens-incharge and all the other gardening squatchers.
My soil is crap.
And full of pine tree roots.
Growing grass in my yard is a major struggle and only one area gets enough sun for a garden.
I had pallet gardens raised up for a few years.
And 12 half barrels which always do pretty well.
Then I put in a raised bed 4x8 that did well the first year but not so well the second.
It turned out the neighbors adjacent pine trees smelled all the compost and organic fertilizer I was putting in it and grew their roots in my direction to slurp all the nutrients out of that area.
It took several days over the winter with a sharp spade and a lot of effort to dig down deep enough and cut all those roots out of there by hand.

This year I’m trying a totally new approach.

Covered all the dirt that doesn’t grow grass anyway with landscape fabric and moved all my barrels to that area and one by one I’m using grow bags for my garden.

I bought two different brands from amazon and liked the first brand much better.

Then I decided wth? Why not try other kinds of bags?

So I went in the closet and pulled out SO MANY reusable shopping bags that I always get and hardly ever think to ACTUALLY TAKE WITH ME.
Snip snip snipped some holes for drainage and filled those suckers up.

So far so good!

Not home right this minute so I can’t provide an updated pic. Didn’t I post one here a week or so ago?

 

[21hens-incharge]

@21hens-incharge and all the other gardening squatchers.
My soil is crap.
And full of pine tree roots.
Growing grass in my yard is a major struggle and only one area gets enough sun for a garden.
I had pallet gardens raised up for a few years.
And 12 half barrels which always do pretty well.
Then I put in a raised bed 4x8 that did well the first year but not so well the second.
It turned out the neighbors adjacent pine trees smelled all the compost and organic fertilizer I was putting in it and grew their roots in my direction to slurp all the nutrients out of that area.
It took several days over the winter with a sharp spade and a lot of effort to dig down deep enough and cut all those roots out of there by hand.

This year I’m trying a totally new approach.

Covered all the dirt that doesn’t grow grass anyway with landscape fabric and moved all my barrels to that area and one by one I’m using grow bags for my garden.

I bought two different brands from amazon and liked the first brand much better.

Then I decided wth? Why not try other kinds of bags?

So I went in the closet and pulled out SO MANY reusable shopping bags that I always get and hardly ever think to ACTUALLY TAKE WITH ME.
Snip snip snipped some holes for drainage and filled those suckers up.

So far so good!

Not home right this minute so I can’t provide an updated pic. Didn’t I post one here a week or so ago?

Perhaps yet another use for all those empty feed bags!

Yes when the soil is crap time to go up.

I will look at how I can square the bottom of a feed bag and give it a go. It should act just like a pot.

A really big and really free pot.

May have to poke a few air holes in the sides with a gutter spike.......

 

[apryl29]

I love Negan's reaction to it you can tell he's in between ohhh taters I know you did NOT just do that! And wtf? You alright boy?

it reminds me of old cartoons where a roo goes to crow and something grabs them by the throat just after they start.

 

[Hope Hughes]

@21hens-incharge and all the other gardening squatchers.
My soil is crap.
And full of pine tree roots.
Growing grass in my yard is a major struggle and only one area gets enough sun for a garden.
I had pallet gardens raised up for a few years.
And 12 half barrels which always do pretty well.
Then I put in a raised bed 4x8 that did well the first year but not so well the second.
It turned out the neighbors adjacent pine trees smelled all the compost and organic fertilizer I was putting in it and grew their roots in my direction to slurp all the nutrients out of that area.
It took several days over the winter with a sharp spade and a lot of effort to dig down deep enough and cut all those roots out of there by hand.

This year I’m trying a totally new approach.

Covered all the dirt that doesn’t grow grass anyway with landscape fabric and moved all my barrels to that area and one by one I’m using grow bags for my garden.

I bought two different brands from amazon and liked the first brand much better.

Then I decided wth? Why not try other kinds of bags?

So I went in the closet and pulled out SO MANY reusable shopping bags that I always get and hardly ever think to ACTUALLY TAKE WITH ME.
Snip snip snipped some holes for drainage and filled those suckers up.

So far so good!

Not home right this minute so I can’t provide an updated pic. Didn’t I post one here a week or so ago?

I definitely want photos!!! Such a good idea, use the bags that never get any use!

Perhaps yet another use for all those empty feed bags!

Yes when the soil is crap time to go up.

I will look at how I can square the bottom of a feed bag and give it a go. It should act just like a pot.

A really big and really free pot.

May have to poke a few air holes in the sides with a gutter spike.......

Feed bag planters!! Love it. I have like a billion bags! Let me know if it goes well! Would definitely have to try! ​

 

[staceyj]

Ok @Hope Hughes and friends. I’m home.



Ok I have all kinds of bags going right now.

My favorite ones are the Trader Joe’s bags.they hold their shape very well. They hold way more than a 5 gallon bucket of soil with several inches of head space at the top.

I have a few tractor supply and world market bags. They are bigger but more rectangular.
I don’t think I like them as much. Top doesn’t stay wide open. (Snipped lots of little drainage holes in these.)

The official grow bags I bought online are the black ones.
They are like a felt material.
The first ones I bought were a brand called *vivosun.
I chose the 7 gallon size.

Then when I got them I though I wanted even bigger ones, but when I went back to reorder they were sold out darnit.

So I ordered a brand called *growsun, in a 10 gallon size.

They are bigger in diameter but no taller and a much thinner “fabric”, is not nearly as thick or sturdy as the *vivosun brand.

I am happy so far with how things are growing. I planted 3.5 weeks ago.

I think my water useage will be much better than last summer because the water is going right where it needs to be instead down to the water table or to my neighbor’s dang trees.

Also I really like having everything in one spot!

And aside from a few errant weeds that came up in the load of soil I ordered, I’m not wasting time or resources weeding.

 

[staceyj]

@21hens-incharge ,
Feed bags would definitely work. Easy peasy to square off especially with a sewing machine, in fact- probably a 50 lb bag would work well cut in half at the middle.

Yes poke holes for drainage.

 

[21hens-incharge]

I have lots of short pvc pieces....... Could make a frame to hold the tops open.

We are so incredibly dry here that I am thinking of doin soda bottle waterers for deep pots to get water deep and slow.

Yup a home depot run is in order.

 

[CapricornFarm]

@21hens-incharge and all the other gardening squatchers.
My soil is crap.
And full of pine tree roots.
Growing grass in my yard is a major struggle and only one area gets enough sun for a garden.
I had pallet gardens raised up for a few years.
And 12 half barrels which always do pretty well.
Then I put in a raised bed 4x8 that did well the first year but not so well the second.
It turned out the neighbors adjacent pine trees smelled all the compost and organic fertilizer I was putting in it and grew their roots in my direction to slurp all the nutrients out of that area.
It took several days over the winter with a sharp spade and a lot of effort to dig down deep enough and cut all those roots out of there by hand.

This year I’m trying a totally new approach.

Covered all the dirt that doesn’t grow grass anyway with landscape fabric and moved all my barrels to that area and one by one I’m using grow bags for my garden.

I bought two different brands from amazon and liked the first brand much better.

Then I decided wth? Why not try other kinds of bags?

So I went in the closet and pulled out SO MANY reusable shopping bags that I always get and hardly ever think to ACTUALLY TAKE WITH ME.
Snip snip snipped some holes for drainage and filled those suckers up.

So far so good!

Not home right this minute so I can’t provide an updated pic. Didn’t I post one here a week or so ago?

Idk, but i have been so busy i might have missed it!

 

[Molpet]

Then I decided wth? Why not try other kinds of bags?

shallow rooted , like lettuce can be grown in a bag of dirt cut open

https://www.gardening-advice.net/how-to-grow-lettuce.html

 

[drumstick diva]

Really great ideas! Would you know if the 99cent shopping bags from Marshall's and T.J.Maxx would work?