What did you do in the garden today?

[lazy gardener]

Gonna raise some chickens???

 

[1FlewOver]

Today I planted chicken seeds.

I tried that once. First, I planted them 2" deep, and none sprouted. Then I tried planting them beak down 1/2 in the soil. They didn't grow. So I tried planting them 1/2 way heads up. They lasted less than a week, didn't get any bigger and then died.

I contacted my local ag agent and told him of my dilemma.

He thought for a bit, then said: "Send me a soil sample."

I haven't done anything in the garden, but , I've started a bunch of tomato and peppers in six packs.

 

[lazy gardener]

Quote:

 

[politicalcenter]

Today I planted chicken seeds.

How old were the seeds?

 

[Beekissed]

Planted some very healthy, big raspberry canes in my garden today.....sweet courtesy of Lazy Gardener!

Also planted some very pretty and healthy looking garlic from the same source. Everything pretty frosty under there but I covered well with wood chip and leaves in hopes the roots still are able to take up moisture and nutrients enough to supply a dormant state.

LG, your soil looks lovely!!!! Sandy, dark and rich looking. I made sure to deposit it on the garden, not letting a bit of it go to waste. My garden just may go in to shock with that stuff hitting it.

 

[Harvest Mint]

Man, everyone seems to be doing something where as I am stuck inside staring at my pile of seed packets and sketching garden layout ideas. Is there anything I can do this time of year?

 

[Beekissed]

Man, everyone seems to be doing something where as I am stuck inside staring at my pile of seed packets and sketching garden layout ideas. Is there anything I can do this time of year?

Make compost in yer chicken coop!

That's what I do all winter...that and drool over seed catalogs, draw endless garden plans that never...ever...make it to the actual garden and talk about "next season" with anyone who stays awake long enough to listen to your whole plan.

 

[Harvest Mint]

Make compost in yer chicken coop!     That's what I do all winter...that and drool over seed catalogs, draw endless garden plans that never...ever...make it to the actual garden and talk about "next season" with anyone who stays awake long enough to listen to your whole plan. 

A compost would be a great idea. I am trying to figure out how I am even going to plant my garden and this is the first time doing it on my own. I always did it with my family when I was a child. This time I would like to include my chickens in the process to cut down on feed costs for them and myself. I also need to finish my fish pond and chicken manure would be great in the surrounding flowerbeds. All the flowerbeds need so much TLC. My mom kind of let them go before she moved.

 

[dan26552]

Gonna raise some chickens???  

Yep. Bunch of EE's.

I tried that once. First, I planted them 2" deep, and none sprouted. Then I tried planting them beak down 1/2 in the soil. They didn't grow. So I tried planting them 1/2 way heads up. They lasted less than a week, didn't get any bigger and then died.

I contacted my local ag agent and told him of my dilemma.

He thought for a bit, then said: "Send me a soil sample."

I haven't done anything in the garden, but , I've started a bunch of tomato and peppers in six packs.

Same here.

How old were the seeds?

Oldest was 8 days, newest were 1 day.

 

[lazy gardener]

Man, everyone seems to be doing something where as I am stuck inside staring at my pile of seed packets and sketching garden layout ideas. Is there anything I can do this time of year?

Lots of ideas. Your gardening options are only limited by your available space. Indoors: Go buy a sweet potato, and start some slips. Got a space in the house where you can set up a grow frame? Shop lights are inexpensive, and do a great job raising up those seedlings. Build a frame of 2 x 4, (or buy a set of shelves) and suspend the lights from chain so you can have the lights almost touching the seedlings, and raise the light as the seedlings grow. Start sprouting some grains for your chickens. Favorites: lentils, wheat, barley, whole corn, BOSS, millet. Sprout some seeds for yourself: Favorites: lentils, alfalfa, prepared mixes from the health food store. Start some herbs from seed, or go the lazy route, and buy a couple of pots at the grocery store and re-plant them. Be sure you have at least one plant in your home that will bloom in the winter. Oh how much doing that one thing improves my mood to see a flower. Right now, my prides are: geranium, and a lemon tree. I bought a paint brush yesterday so I can play bumble bee. Start just a couple early tomatoes, peppers, and even a cucumber. With a cold frame, you can plant those things out super early.

Outdoors: Is your ground frozen yet? Covered with a lot of snow yet? If you can get down to the soil, make yourself a hay/straw bale cold frame. You can set it up facing south over where one of your garden beds is going to be. Even if the soil is frozen, still set it up. The solar gain in that area will let you be planting in March, or even earlier. Simply lay out the bales in a rectangle with the south side open. (you'll cover that south side with plastic) I'd put a layer of plastic directly on the soil, and then cover over the top of the frame with glass. I buy storm door panels at the Habitat for Humanity store. Each one will cover a frame that is 2 bales long. I made a frame for my glass so the wind wouldn't be as apt to send it sailing. To access the interior, I slide the frame off the bed on 2 x 4 skids which are laid across the bales on the back, and across the open front on the south side. Even without the "build" of the top, you can still make a hay bale CF and cover it with plastic, with some sort of support to keep the plastic from sagging with water/ice/snow load. I'm partial to cattle panels.

As Bee said, start composting. You could even put your compost materials under plastic and give them a dose of high nitrogen fertilizer to get them cooking well. I use Urea for such projects. Urine also works nicely!!!

Access to a truck? Start collecting manure, compost ingredients if you can get that truck to where you want to dump them in your yard.

Do you have your chickens yet? Either way, and it's something you'd like to have, make a chicken tractor. You could design it so it would be light weight and would fit over one of your garden beds. Multi purpose design! Keep chickens in or keep them out.

Quote: You're going to have a great time making this space into YOUR gardens! You'll be surprised at how getting out and working the soil/gardens in the spring will bring back so many fond memories. To this day, I can't go out in my garden, or tend my flocks without memories of my Dad joining me. That man could grow a 2# tomato in a gravel driveway. He has always been my gardening and spiritual mentor. Go to your local library and check out as many books as you can carry home about all things gardening and poultry. Do an internet search about gardening topics, and then have your library order the books for you that you don't want to buy for your own library. To get you started:

Any thing by Ruth Stout: She first popularized permanent mulch in the garden. Elliott Coleman: he's the guru of year round gardening. Harvey Ussery: takes a look at all things poultry, including how to be sure you don't overload your soil with nutrients from your poultry flock. Patricia Lanza: Lasagna gardening. Mel Bartholomew: Square Foot Gardening. Also, take the time to view this video. It just might revolutionize your view of "how to garden."

Look at all of these gardening styles, look at your available land, and you are likely to come up with your own hybrid gardening style that will meet your needs. Nothing in farming is static. That's why I love it so. Every year is a cause to reflect on what worked, what didn't and how to make it better next season.

Quote: 1 Flew Over: Every spring, I go out and buy a lot of 6 packs. I use them all up and then go out and buy some more. Funny... how they don't mess with my equilibrium a bit!