What did you do in the garden today?

[Beekissed]

Wow, beekissed, You sound serious.

I need to get serious about vermin.
I need to make a trench, and then bury hardware cloth. But how deep to keep voles, and moles, and mice and things that burrow out?
I could grow less- if I actually got what I planted.

I'm always serious about making food!

We always erect a temp fence around the garden to keep out the chickens and dog, but this year we are trying a different gardening method in hopes of improving this crappy, acidic clay soil here and so we needed a permanent fence around it the chickens couldn't breach. I don't care about the rest of the vermin, as the dog takes care of all that.

The method we are trying this year is called Back to Eden: http://www.backtoedenfilm.com/ It's what I've been looking for...we've tried everything possible to improve these soils in the past 20+ years, but to no avail, so we are giving this method a try...going for a smaller garden but with a higher yield. Most don't till before they put down the wood chips as they are doing it in the fall to prepare for the following spring, but we don't have that luxury, so removing the sod and breaking up the soil before we lay down the chips.

Hopefully this will be the last time I till that nasty soil. Going to do that method in the orchard as well, to improve the soils and yield there also.

 

[hennible]

Deep mulch has helped me with my clay soil, this year I'm going with wood mulch in my greenhouse (rather than hay) hopefully that will stop the slugs...

 

[jerryse]

Planed my pole beans yesterday . Rain predicted most of this week . Warm an humid all week Things should start to grow .

 

[3goodeggs]

Quote: @Beekissed I just watched the entire thing.
I have two gardens. I have odd weather down here, so I have my winter garden growing when my spring garden needs to be planted. Summer is the down time. I can get eggplant and peppers to grow and that is about it. The spring/summer garden did not get prepped in time because I had a rather awful respiratory infection, so it is weedy and dry and full of varmints.

One of the people my husband works for has horses and they fill a huge green box full of pine shavings and horse manure.
From what I got from the documentary, if the chips are all the same size they pack. I might take the bunny/chicken barrior down. Let the girls (Chickens) run through the weeds and seeds. lay down the horse chips and then get some wood chips. To be honest, I would want to til the manure chips in. then add the wood chips on top. I like fluffy soil.
Do you think if the pine chips and manure pack,-maybe- the burrowing varmints won't be able to get through as easily and go find something else to eat?

That is my biggest problem. My garden is their only food source.
If I move it each year or so I can out run them, but I would need to have ten garden plots set up to do it.
I really have nothing to lose, but time and labor.
What do you think? Did I miss the part about varmints? Did he go over that?

We are sand. sand, and more sand. By the time I get the organics up I have to move because of the nematodes. We do not get cold enough to kill them. He did not mention them. Did I miss that?

Here is my plan: Get rid of the weeds, then manure/pine chips, chicken yard soil, then wood chips.
What do you think?
I am thinking that I might just try a 20X30 first, and the other half next year.

 

[Beekissed]

He has all kinds of follow up vids on YT and one addresses garden pests. He uses cats and his dog for any four footed varmints and he also describes a trap that he has used...never heard of it before. I'll try to find that vid later on and post it here.

 

[hennible]

I got a load of mulch and used it all already... I'll get more tomorrow, thankfully it's free.

Mulch mountains

Full load

Before

After

 

[Beekissed]

What a wonderful blessing to have free mulch in that quantity!!!! What I wouldn't give to have that here.

 

[hennible]

I'm very blessed
Free hay, manure, and mulch... Rocks and gravel too. I usually give eggs and veggies to these generous people.

 

[Arielle]

Tilling it up...for the 4th time. Will likely till another time this week. Firming up the post we set around the garden, cutting them off to the right height, mounting gates, placing landscaping timbers around the edge, and placing deer netting around the whole thing. Will also be cutting cattle panels for trellising and pounding in the stakes for that and mounting them, if we still can walk, that is.

This garden is about 48x40 ft. only, so not a real large plot but today it seems enormous.

lol

My mom had a garden like that-- feed all 8 of us. . .. . well contributed to feeding all 8 of us!! lol Bet you are still vibrating!!

 

[Arielle]

Planed my pole beans yesterday . Rain predicted most of this week . Warm an humid all week Things should start to grow .

5 mulberrries planted . . . 5 with buds!!!