Starting a garden is expensive! Help Please.
fumasterchu
11 years ago
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helenh
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agofumasterchu
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoRelated Discussions
Starting a balconey garden. Help please!
Comments (2)Hi and welcome! I think all of us here struggle with finding more room in our garden spaces. Often people come up with innovative ways to fit more in including groiwing "vertical". Where are you located? Based on your name, I'm going to guess somewhere in the SE. Where you are might make a difference for recommendations of plants and taking care of them, since each region of the country has a different type of climate! Regarding planting different plants together - generally, plants that need the same types of growing conditions, whether they are sun lovers or shade plants, are drought tolerant or prefer moist conditions, can grow in neutral soils or are acid-lovers - these are the things that you want to look for when deciding what goes with what. Eg., if the location of your container is in full sun most of the day and in a hot dry location, you might not want to include tuberous begonias or fuchsias that like shadey conditions, in the same container as say, a lantana (or any of the verbenas), that like the sun. Usually the plant tag has some mention of preferred amount of sun. If your location is part sun - then you can often put many mixed plantings of part sun/sun plants together. Regarding the bees - are you sure they are bumble bees? They tend to be solitary. It seems to me that you might be seeing carpenter bees, which look almost like bumble bees and generally live near places with wood beams or wood fencing, wood sheds, wood decks, etc. And even those tend to stake out a territory and chase others away. Could be that you have wasps instead. In any event, if they are bees, they tend to come out en masse in a spring and lessen later in the year. The wasps seem to gradually build up through the summer. If you see swarms, you may have a nest near by and it might be better to talk to your landlord (assuming you rent) about pest control as they can get someone to find and remove the nest. Sprays might not help much if the nest is still intact nearby. Regarding watering - it depends on the plant. Some prefer it dry (eg., oleanders, many herbs like rosemary, bay, but except the mints). Others prefer moist like impatiens, begonias, cannas, bee balm, spearmint, etc. You have to experiment a little. If you wait before watering, eventually the plant will start to droop a little, and if you give it a drink and it perks up, that sortof gives you an indication about when to water. It will depend on the temperature, humidity, amount of sun, the soil, and even whether you mulch or not (mulching will help retain some moisture). Finally, regarding herbs - depends on what kind you plan to grow. The most common ones seem to like sunny locations with moderate to light watering....See MoreLate start, New garden location soil info please
Comments (8)Well, your situation is neither unique nor a show-stopper. There are two ways of going about solving the problem, and hatchjon has suggested one: ammending with organic matter. The reason some suggest this is because they have been told, or read, or observed through experience that organic matter improves tilth, drainage, and fertility. While this is not incorrect, it is not necessarily the case for all soils in all locations. For instance, adding organic matter to a sandy soil will do little to help because a full season of irrigation and rain will wash away most of the OM ammendment (unless we are talking about over 50% additions, but that would be a few truckloads). With heavy clay, organic matter ammendments are going to have difficulty penetrating the clay, and will likely suffer the same problems as with the sand. If you are blessed with a sandy-loam, or a sandy-clay soil, then yes, generous amounts of organic matter will make a difference in the long run. I say in the long run, because you will need to add generous amounts of compost/OM each year for the first 3 to 5 years. The reason being that as the OM is broken down, it is carried into the subsoil by erosion and by soil organisms (including worms). This does create a better tilth in theory, but in practice those yards of compost that you added last year will be so dispersed through the large volume of soil in various strata that it will seem to have made little progress. Each year, adding a not insignificant amount of OM, you will see some progress. Finally, after 3 to 5 years, you will probably stabilize the soil at around 3-5% OM level, with a reasonable improvement in the soil structure. If you can wait and have the patience (and the time to till in a few yards of compost every year) then by all means go ahead. If you can't, there is an easier solution, albeit more expensive and less "romantic" - have a dumptruck dump half a dozen yards of sandy-loam triple-mix garden soil onto your plot, and build some raised beds. They don't need to be the fancy boxed beds, and they don't need to be very deep. 8-10 inches should suffice. Then, at the beginning and end of each year, you mix in a few inches of compost/OM into the surface. Combine that with a good, complete organic fertilizer and you will have some soil to be proud of. The maintenance of that soil is important, but that is another discussion altogether. Best of luck! Michael Here is a link that might be useful: Complete Organic Fertilizer Recipe...See MoreHelp PLEASE! I started lasagna, do I need to start over?
Comments (6)Not to worry Mari. As others have said tilling is not necessarily needed. My tiller was never effective in this rocky, hard clay and usually just bounced all over creation so I stopped trying. I've been doing exactly what you did for the last two years with great results. I'm slowly reclaiming what I thought were impossible areas just by putting down a couple of layers of cardboard right overtop of thriving weeds and making sure it overlaps properly to prevent sunlight from penetrating. Then I cover that with a thick layer of mulch/dirt, etc... (heck, sometimes I don't even mulch if it's an area that isn't easily visible and won't be an eyesore. If there are already established plants in the area I just cardboard around them and pull whatever weeds may reach out around their bases. Otherwise I just wait until the weeds are dead before planting new things. Even if a few stray weeds or runners find a way through it's much easier to eliminate those few once all the rest are dead. I had an area that was completely taken over by wild blackberry vines taller than me. They spread 15 feet closer to the house in just one season! So I whacked everything to the ground and then blanketed with the cardboard in the summer and everything underneath is dead now(yay!) I have yet to find a chemical brush or weed killer that actually does what it's supposed to and kill the root of the annoying weed grasses, thorny vines, etc... This takes a little longer but will not waste your money or time like spraying. I also just borrowed a large rubber liner from a relative and I'm going to use that to try and retake my gravel driveway and parking area one section at a time. I have heard this "solarization" is not always recommended for areas where you intend to plant though because the heat will also kill the beneficial microbes & organisms that are in that soil. Weeds in gravel are an awful pain. I look forward to a day when we can afford to blacktop it. Sincerely, Danielle...See Morehelp to start a garden
Comments (7)Bumping topic as it's that time of year... Sharing what we've learned in order to help others... Your experience will be different because your site & habits are different. Vegetables & small fruits grow either in the ground gardens or in raised boxes as long as you provide them with good drainage, nutrients, sun & water. To be able to harvest you'll also need to bait for slugs and go on slug hunts after dark or rain. Also, be attentive to garden daily during growing season to be on alert for changing conditions. You can't plant it & forget it or you won't get a good harvest. Our sunny location is along the driveway next to the forest, so we're also on a slight slope. We held back the soil with rocks initially as dug from dirt, but now have concrete blocks. We layered compostable materials right on top of the pit run/native soil and used mulch to control weeds & hold moisture. Permanent plantings are fruit trees, raspberries, rhubarb, strawberries, and perennial herbs & flowers. Annual vegetables are rotated in 3 main areas as well as 3 raised wooden boxes built from untreated 2x6 scrap lumber. We also tried straw bale gardening for tomatoes in a previously ungardened spot that prepped it nicely for planting now 2 years later. intermix of zucchini on left fruit trees on right with boxes in background to the right edged with concrete blocks filled w/ herbs, seating area also to right along with some herbs in pots From 2010 flower garden Due to the slope and our previously planted perennial fruits not all this area is suitable for garden boxes, so we just converted the one flatter part of it for 3 raised boxes amending soil one box at a time mostly followed the square foot gardening recommendations: 1 part garden soil 1 part vermiculite 1 part compost (mix of purchased + homemade manures, etc.) + lime + complete organic fertilizer in the top 6" of soil We achieved a loose mix, but lost some of the stability of the soil to hold large plants upright. Tilting of tomato, cabbage, & even bush beans is a bit annoying even with staking (cages, stakes, bamboo poles, twiggy branches, etc.) The soil is just too light there. The fertilizer was a new thing for us & we had 4'+ purple cabbage plants with huge heads leaning at 45 degree angles. Bonus the soil warms earlier, but it also drains quickly needing more watering July until fall rains. Yes, I use mulch & lots of it as well to maintain moisture. Even though we heaped it high the compost decomposes quite a bit & we must add more after each harvest to maintain the soil in the boxes. Harvest has been good in intensively planted boxes as long as I watered at least every other day in dry summer weather. It's fairly easy to mix up the plantings according to the square foot gardening recommendations and I'm finding I prefer a bit less densely planted in order to water, mulch, and harvest easier. I like the potager look with edgings of chives, parsley, thyme, oregano, and annual flowers in my boxes and the concrete block holes. I also find I prefer to concentrate my crops for ease of watering, fertilizing & staking especially for the nightshades & squashes, so prefer the open garden areas for rotations of staked vegetables (tomatoes, cucumbers, beans), mulched potatoes, and bush zucchini along with annual flowers. If I were starting over & had a choice of whether boxes or open ground I think I would go with 4 boxes & do a simple rotation through the various families for vegetables and keep the perennial fruits and trees separate with lots of mulch. The mix up I have now is lovely, but does take some TLC to keep it that way as the plants tend to spread especially raspberries & strawberries. We also would lay down wire at the bottom of the boxes as the moles found us after switching to SFG there. Ugh! SFG raised bed mid summer with background view of composter and currently unused 5 gal self watering planters for tomatoes. Not exactly neat & tidy, but productive gardening in action. Burlap bags are laid on paths & edge of slope for weed control. From 2010 flower garden...See Morehelenh
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoLisa_H OK
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoseedmama
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agomulberryknob
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agomjandkids
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoNancy Fryhover
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoNancy Fryhover
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11 years agolast modified: 9 years agooklaben
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoOkiedawn OK Zone 7
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoOklaMoni
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoMacmex
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agofumasterchu
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoOkiedawn OK Zone 7
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoMacmex
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoMacmex
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agochickencoupe
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agooklaben
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoLisa_H OK
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoMacmex
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoLisa_H OK
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoOkiedawn OK Zone 7
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoOklaMoni
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoLisa_H OK
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoLisa_H OK
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agofumasterchu
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agofumasterchu
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoLisa_H OK
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agofumasterchu
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agosusanlynne48
11 years agolast modified: 9 years agoLisa_H OK
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11 years agolast modified: 9 years agomerrybookwyrm
11 years agolast modified: 9 years ago
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