What did you do in the garden today?

[chickengr]

Yep. I have been moving my raised bed gardens alongside my chicken coop and run where I make all the compost. Also, carrying buckets sounds like a lot of work. I have a couple of 4-wheeled Gorilla carts that make my life so much easier....

View attachment 3749163

Although more expensive than buckets or even a good wheelbarrow, the Gorilla carts are worth every penny to me and allow me to move heavy stuff with ease - even at my age.



Have you considered making some kind of mobile chicken coop/tractor and moving it to the resting plot every year and letting the chickens work the soil - and fertilize it - and then rotating it to a different plot each year?

At one time, I think Justin Rhodes on YouTube was advocating that type of system.

the only thing that works on a slope is carrying buckets. I need a donkey, lol.

 

[gtaus]

the only thing that works on a slope is carrying buckets. I need a donkey, lol.

Well, I suppose that all depends on how steep the slope is. But if you need a donkey, it sounds like you are dealing with a very steep slope and I suppose buckets are maybe one of the few options left to you. I have some gentle slopes on my property, but can easily drive my riding mower up them.

 

[Sally PB]

Yep, there are a lot of good reasons to garden at home, but saving money is not on the top of my list.

I do save money if I look at it as "what did it cost this year" versus "what did I get out of it this year."

It's the other reasons you mentioned, especially the personal satisfaction, that keep me gardening.

Ok, I will mention the "what if the SHTF" possibility too.

 

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

I finally started my leeks and some Texas Grano onions. After they sprout I can move them off the heat mats and start the white and red onions.

 

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

My amaryllis is looking good. It really brightens up the sunroom.

 

[Molpet]

the only thing that works on a slope is carrying buckets. I need a donkey, lol.

 

[TJAnonymous]

Well it appears the onion and broccoli seeds from my mom's gardening shed are a bust. Nothing germinated.... Not terribly surprised but it didn't hurt to try. I will toss out the rest as bird seed.

On the other hand, the strawberry runners I cleaned up from my barrels ARE coming back to life. These are runners I never potted and were left hanging in the cold winter air. I will pot them up this weekend. I just have to figure out where to plant the overflow because my barrels have only a couple open spots.

I'll probably start more seeds this weekend too... Just gotta figure out what is next. Arugula and lettuce have sprouted in the garden.

Ordered a Dwarf Everbearing Mulberry tree from Stark Brothers that was on sale. I miss the wild mulberries from my childhood.

I'll probably go to Lowe's this weekend and pick up the rest of the wood for my new self-watering raised beds. Building 3 of them in hopes of saving a bit on the water bill over the summer. I'm following the plan that someone on here posted from the YouTube video for the nursery in Russellville, Arkansas (which isn't far from me).

 

[WthrLady]

Well, I know you can get some bitter cold winters in Nebraska as well. One thing about the bucket gardens that concerns me is that I know I would have to empty them out before winter, so no water is in the bucket to freeze and crack the plastic. Maybe not a lot of work, but still more work than my hügelkultur pallet wood raised beds require....

View attachment 3749187

I already use buckets to garden in for some things. They stay out in the winter all season long. They have drain holes and don't crack or expand. So far, for the past decade down to -22F real temp. They're fine.
The table set up would just bring things up higher to work with.

 

[WthrLady]

the only thing that works on a slope is carrying buckets. I need a donkey, lol.

I am the donkey.

 

[jerryse]

I had an idea that worked out well. I used home canned tomato juice to make spaghetti today. I cooked the noodles in the tomato juice. This absorbed some of the liquid making it sauce. I added my homemade Italian dry herb mix. A little salt and a little sugar. No need to boil juice for hours to make sauce.