What did you do in the garden today?

[GardenTillers44]

I had fish tanks back when the had ss frames, slate bottoms and tar to hold them together. Used to spend my baby sitting money on fish.

Stainless steel tanks...that's a blast from the past. My first job in high school was at the local aquarium store cleaning the ss tanks. I was thrilled when All-glass tanks came out and we retired the old slate bottom beasts.

 

[CapricornFarm]

Basically, you just plonk the garden materials on the surface and forget about whatever horror-story is underneath.
http://www.abc.net.au/gardening/stories/s867068.htm

There are lots of videos on youtube and other info online. I'm low on data so can't look for a good one.
After a few years (?) the underneath will also get easier to work with the worms working on it.

Sounds interesting but i only have one bed left to do and i don't have all the ingredients for that. But i do have sand and manure. Guess i am a glutton for punishment. I use the rocks as a border around the garden to deter digging varmints. The roots go on the burn pile , the ash goes in garden and soon compost. Building a compost bin from pallets. Started painting them today. Maybe once i have compost i can try that method in the flower beds.

 

[User395221]

and i don't have all the ingredients for that.

The soil here isn't undiggable, but it's water-repellent bassendean sand. I've turned much of my backyard into "proper" soil by mulching with cow poo, wet newspaper and straw, sheep poo on top. Lots of lovely worms now, and it's dark and holds water, unlike the "normal" stuff.

It's worth trying just as mulch, even if you don't go "the whole hog" with it. (Mrs Deans was in Sydney with clay soil that you can't even stick a spade into, that's why she started that no dig garden)

 

[chickmom3941]

no dig gardening? yes please tell.. alright impatient me found her on google


Over 20 years ago Esther Deans wrote a small book called Growing Without Digging. This book has been reprinted 19 times and has sold almost 100,000 copies. Her revolutionary method of gardening has become famous worldwide as the 'no-dig garden.'
Esther, now 88 years old, lives with her husband, Tom, in a leafy retirement village on Sydney's North Shore. Esther and Tom cultivate their own garden there, as well as parts of the village's garden. 'I've had a pretty wonderful husband who supported me in all this sort of thing - without Tom I couldn't have done it all.' She is also grateful to her ancestors. 'I inherited my gardening ability from my lovely Scotch grandmother - she was a wonderful gardener. I'm the only one in my family that's followed her.'
Esther tells the story of the transformation of her backyard garden. 'You couldn't dig the ground - it was just clay. I suggested to Tom that we make a concrete edge and build a garden above the ground. On the first garden it was only lucerne hay and then compost. Then, after building a frame, I put a layer of paper, about 1/4 inch thick; on top of the paper, padded lucerne hay as it came from the bale and then on top of the lucerne hay a little fertiliser. That was chicken manure. On top of that, about 8 inches of loose straw, a little fertiliser again and on top of that about 4 inches of compost. I planted the seeds and it was just like something magic. The zucchini just grew and grew and the beans just grew - it was incredible what happened.'
Writing her little book was something that did not come so easily at first. Sitting at her table with pen and paper in front of her for hours on end, she finally put the pen down, muttering to herself, "I don't know how to write a book". 'I went to talk to the stars,' she says, grinning. 'And the little voice said, "Why do we want to have a garden?" I said, "That's it!" My first words. At 3.30 the first chapter was written and I don't remember writing it - it just fell off my pen.'
Her book opened doors for her. 'Garden clubs wanted me and then television wanted me and then interstate wanted me.' Then came overseas appearances. Much later, Esther was awarded an OAM for her services to people with disabilities, who receive most of the royalties from her books. Recently she was included in the 10th Royal Edition Who's Who. 'I've never been trained in any of this sort of thing but it all just came naturally.'
While Esther acknowledges that 'all these tremendous things have happened', it is the response from her readers that is most important to her. 'The letters are from everywhere - from Africa, America. I correspond with a lot of people overseas and it's beautiful correspondence.'
One aspect of her success that Esther does take credit for is her attitude. 'Whatever I do, I apply myself, whether I like it or not. And I think that is a number one lesson we should all learn.' She describes the need for this attitude at the house where she developed her no-dig method of gardening. 'Builders had buried all sorts of rubbish - I couldn't dig a hole without finding something, so I dug all that stuff out by hand. It made me very strong - I'm very grateful that I had to do that, and you see what has happened since then.'

Using hay is a great idea! Hubs has been steadily working on our new garden (like the one pictured in my post on page 746 in this thread). Once it's done, we'll need a lot of soil to fill it all. We have great soil here, but not enough extra to fill our big new garden. But we could get hay from one of the farmers around here and use that along with a little soil & compost, and "viola!" great growing medium! I wonder if it would be similar to the trendy "hay bale gardening"? I've heard that works great for growing huge veggies, but I've never tried it.

 

[User395221]

along with a little soil & compost,

and poo, you need the poo. Yes, I reckon you could get your garden going that way, without having to spend a fortune bringing soil in.

 

[chickmom3941]

and poo, you need the poo. Yes, I reckon you could get your garden going that way, without having to spend a fortune bringing soil in.

Oh yes, plenty of poo! We bought quite a bit of llama dookey a few years ago, plus our neighbor gave us a huge scoop of his aged cow manure, plus we have lots of chicken dookey of our own (of course). With all those "goodies", plus some rich soil and hay, I think we could have some great veggies next year!

 

[lazy gardener]

Ok, here's a list of books for your reading pleasure:

https://www.amazon.com/Four-Season-Harvest-Organic-Vegetables-Garden/dp/1890132276

https://www.amazon.com/Lasagna-Gard...=1504970770&sr=1-3&keywords=lasagna+gardening

https://www.amazon.com/STRAW-BALE-G...04970825&sr=1-3&keywords=straw+bale+gardening

Other topics:

Back to Eden: http://www.backtoedenfilm.com/

Hugelkulture: https://www.permaculture.co.uk/articles/many-benefits-hugelkultur

 

[pennyJo1960]

I use potting soil in the tires this first year cutting chicken manure into it the plant
go nuts in it I only use really old manure now I also have old wormy compost two years old to add this year and mix in adding six more sets of 2 tires high to our garden

 

[Mama Runner]

Na, on the aquariums. I think we all just love animals of all shapes and sizes.... As for gardens again living things that need me to talk sweet and Mama them. Even a pet rock needs a hug every now and then

 

[Mama Runner]

Yes the Ducks are ok. I on the other, well let's just say my husband told me to save myself next time. I got mulled. After all was said and done. We tried hard to chase the dog away, but he went after my son and husband had to shoot the dog. It's the last thing we ever wanted to do. But after it attacked me and the Ducks he went for my son, and that I can't have. I really wish people around here would take care of their animals. I got stiches in upper thigh in two spots, seven fingers and for arm. I cried over having to have to shoot the dog.