ARRGH! Chipmunks digging in new lawn and garden paths!
woodyoak
last year
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woodyoak zone 5 southern Ont., Canada
last yearlast modified: last yearRelated Discussions
New Beds, Dig or Till?
Comments (5)Usually, the first pass of the tiller loosens a few inches. Then a second and third pass is done to get to the full depth. I haven't personally run into a tiller that seems to get more than 6 inches deep unless the loosened area is dug out, and the tiller starts again in a large hole. And that is with the largest tiller anybody can manage to get their hands on. Another option is to price renting a backhoe. Landscapers often have smallish ones. The vegetables are probably fine with what a tiller can do. I'd personally want to go down a good 12" for the perennial plantings....See MorePhotos of new bed and path
Comments (24)I'm not saying that graceful presentation is somehow contradictory to the display of a correction, far from it. But I do think that the particular style which relies on repetition of plants, etc. may not be the best suited for the purpose. An outstanding collector's garden would rely instead on a pleasing juxtaposition of elements as you mention, and as we see in the scenes from Coenosium Gardens you link to. Thanks everyone for your comments. The initial rock placement is never the final one and and I appreciate specific suggestions. Perhaps I'll start by moving the some of the smaller rocks out from periphery and accumulate them at the bottom of the bed. Moving the discussion onward, here's the list of varieties planted in the new bed (the central ellipse-shaped bed), which is approximately 32’ x 18’. Some I grafted myself, many were purchased over the past several years and maintained in containers, a few are new purchases. 41 plants in all. Groundcovers and perennial material are not in yet. Abies balsamea 'Wolcott Pond' Abies concolor 'Bryce Canyon' Abies concolor 'King's Gap' Abies concolor 'Morton' Abies koreana 'Blauer Eskimo' Abies koreana 'Blauer Pfiff' Abies pinsapo 'Glauca' Abies procera 'Glauca' Abies procera 'Sherwoodii' Acer palmatum 'Murogawa' Acer palmatum 'Tana' Cedrus brevifolia 'Kenwith' Ginkgo biloba 'Troll' Ginko biloba 'Mariken' Larix kaempferi 'Bambino' Picea engelmannii 'Bush's Lace' Picea glauca 'Eagle Rock' Picea omorika 'Pimoko' Picea omorika 'Wodan' Picea pungens 'Blue Pearl' Picea pungens 'Mint Julep' Picea pungens 'Sharp Cheddar' Picea rubens 'HB' Pinus aristata 'Joe's Bess' Pinus banksiana 'Wisconsin' Pinus densiflora 'Edsal Wood' Pinus flexilis 'Blackfoot' Pinus flexilis 'Comanche' Pinus flexilis 'Damfino' Pinus koraiensis 'Blue Ball' Pinus koraiensis 'Gee Broom' Pinus monophylla 'Tiny Pout' Pinus mugo 'Little Delight' Pinus parviflora 'Billie' Pinus ponderosa 'Mary Ann Haecock' Pinus pungens 'Doughton Park' Pinus strobus 'Diggy' Pinus sylvestris 'Calle' Pinus uncinata 'Baby' Pinus virginiana 'Driscoll' Tsuga candensis 'Jervis' This post was edited by maple_grove on Tue, Nov 11, 14 at 12:24...See MoreMaking a new bed out of lawn- how I do it
Comments (17)I saw some one mention needing a sharp shovel. Yes, get a file (just a simple hand file for sharpening metal blades will do, less than $10 at a big box hardware store.) and sharpen all your garden tools, especially shovels and hoes. If they are high quality metal, it might be slow going but the edge will last longer. If it is really quick and easy to sharpen, the metal is soft and you will need to sharpen often. Tools don't come from the store properly sharpened and most places won't sharpen them for you. I like the new bed. I've been known to use the yard trimmings on top of the cardboard to help hold it down until I get a good thick layer of mulch over it. I've also used this method to make veggie garden beds. We lay out the cardboard and put down a really thin layer of chip mulch to keep the cardboard from blowing away and then get a load of mushroom compost piled on thick and plant in that. So far this has worked well for me for everything but corn. Great pictures, showed the process very well! Here is a link that might be useful: TCLynx...See Morewho's digging in the garden after I dig?
Comments (11)Hi Linda I know this is a little late commenting on this post, but I just came across it. I have the same thing happen to me all the time. First off I'm saying skunks because this is always done overnight and squirrels aren't night critters I don't think. Plus we have skunks out here almost nightly. This year alone I've had many of my glads dug up and just pushed to the side,and two perennials I put in. I've just gotten used to going out first thing in the morning the first couple of days after I plant anything in the ground and see what's been dug up. I also end up putting large rocks around singular plants I plant and cover big area's of planting seeds or what not with a light leaf mulch..... My question is, could they be attacted to the fertilizer I'm putting down which is a mixture of 2 parts Pro Grow, 1 part green sand, and 1 part rock phosphate? Although just the other day we put in a shepard hook and dug up the area around the hook and the next a.m. there was 6 to 8 holes all over the area we had been digging. So maybe fresh dug up area's attact certain critters the skunks like to eat. The reason I ask about them eating the fertilizer is because I catch my cat and the neighbors cats eating the fertilizer I put down all the time. Doesn't seem like that would be good for them, but I can't be there to monitor what they do when I'm gone. Anyhow I guess the good thing is as long as they don't break the stems of the freshly put in plant it's not that bad. All I do is replant it. Now the woodchucks I have do much more damage, but that's another subject all it's own. Just wanted to let you know you aren't the only one dealing with this problem....See Morewoodyoak zone 5 southern Ont., Canada
last yearlast modified: last yearmxk3 z5b_MI
last yearcecily 7A
last yearwoodyoak zone 5 southern Ont., Canada
last yearlast modified: last yearcyn427 (z. 7, N. VA)
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