from 'comunity garden' - into 'first try at a garden'..

[897tgigvib]

oh yes, planning a watering system will help a whole lot. Plan the hose system and put it in as you make the beds.

dragging 200 feet or even more, down and back up rows between beds gets real tiring in the hot of july and august.

I actually purchased i think it was 7 fifty foot hoses. I also go a whole lot of those plastic hose end repair things, male ends, female ends, and a lot of splitters. At any rate, you'll need at least a small bag of hose washers. Get the good ones. Money is tight, and economy prevails, but do figure on some hosing system. Pounding sticks or stakes into the ground at strategic places will help stop a dragged hose from mushing down some plants, especially at corners, and where the hose makes wide turns.

Expensive hoses are good, but there is one drawback that some of the cheaper hoses will not have: cheap hoses often weigh less, and make a smaller radius turning a corner. that's 2, lol.

You might want to sink a hose and have its end come out of the ground tied to a firm stake, the other end coming from a Y splitter. The out coming end can then have a splitter on it for 2 hoses. I actually ran a series like this under my main beds. Each row now has its own hose. Actually, for next year, I'm gonna experiment with some soaker hoses.

...still trying to think...

 

[897tgigvib]

oh...

there are some great gardening books out there. Search through the online seed catalogs. I am going to be buying one called a long name shortened to "how to grow more vegetables..." by John Jeavons

Some things that folks who say they can't grow anything should know first:

You have to have a brown thumb before you can have a green thumb. Your hands will be in the dirt.

Plants grow best when there is plenty of air in the soil. Repeat this one.

Soil is totsally all out teeming with life, bacteria, fungus, molds, most of which are good for most plants.

Plant roots mostly get their nutrients from the fungus and bacteria in the soil. Do you know that us animals get our nutrients mostly from the bacteria that live in our stomachs?

Plants "transpire" molisture. Up from the ground, through a vascular system, to the leaves, some of it used, and some of it right out pores on the bottoms of the leaves.

For many common vegetable plants, a rapid transpiration rate makes a better plant, especially things like lettuce and peas.

Rapid transpiration works best if there is plenty of air in the soil, because, most common vegetable plants do not like it when their roots are in soil that is wet with no hope of much air in the soil.

 

[897tgigvib]

The garden half an hour ago. days grow short fast in the forest.

 

[baymule]

Since winter is coming, could you run the chickens or horses in the garden-to-be area? The horses would reduce it to bare earth shortly and drop manure everywhere. Then you could cycle the chickens through to break up the horse "apples" and scratch up the soil.

 

[canesisters]

Wow yall! So much GREAT advice!

Thank you Marshall. I hadn't considered a plan for getting hoses in, out, and around. Burrying a few is a great idea. Your gardens are fantastic! How much work you must've put into them!!! How long has it taken to do all that?

Baymule, I actually do put the horse and pony in the yard later in the fall. It's the only green grass left by then. With the garden in mind though, I'm going to put up a temp hot wire to keep them in the garden-to-be area.

I was thinking that it would be good to get one (or two) of those nasty, gross OLD round hay bales and just unroll it over the garden area - after the horses have eaten it down, of course. Would it smother the remaining grass??? Or just mulch it for a bumper crop next year? I was thinking that it would rot into the ground over the winter, and with the chickens' help, would be really good 'soil prep' for spring.

I've been looking at Kassundra's (not sure if I've spelled that right) garden and I am SO impressed with it. I was talking to some friends last night about it and they came up with a sketch of a plan that would be similar - but would work with where my coop is. What do yall think? It's just a sketch - not at all scale - lol.

Keep in mind - this garden is going to be pretty much worked by (clueless) me. Just about all of my near neighbors have gardens of their own. The people I'm hoping to help would not be able to regularly make the 30-45 min trip out to me - although I'm sure they will come when they can. So I'm really looking into ANY methods that will cut down on the amount of time I have to spend weeding. Mass plantings - deep mulch - chicken help - whatever.

W
S N
E

 

[897tgigvib]

Canesisters, I really enjoy your accent. I lived in Norfolk Va. for 6 months, and I really enjoy the way y'all speak. Sounds comfortable. I can tell by reading your words what you sound like.

Horses might do the trick, but it'll take all winter. And it'll be all winter working to make the garden. That'll make a mighty tight schedule. I think yall should start now. Here's why. No matter how many good plans you make, it always takes longer than you thought, then you find it's april, and you are forced into a big rush. Another thing is the work parties. Getting the folks to come. They need enticing, and even then some don't show. That'll slow things down.

Check in about the regulations for burn permits and such. I do suggest you start with burning some leaves and wood at one spot. Then do another burn at another spot. It kills the grass. It adds Potassium, that's a natural fertilizer. It gets the job done fast. What areas between your burns are then much smaller to clear out.

 

[canesisters]

Ok. Looks like the girls aren't gonna get their late grass this year. I have a brush (dead stick/branch) pile .... but it's ALL the way across the yard and outside the fence. )o:
Funny - I drug it OUT of the yard a year or 2 ago.. LOL Oh well, there's nothing like a good bonfire to kick off the fall, right?

What do yall think of the rotten, rolled hay idea? Would it rot down and be helpful, or just seed the ground for spring? I think the chickens would LOVE to have this space all winter as their own special teeny, tiny little game preserve.

I don't know about the 'garden parties'. I might be able to get a few folks to pitch in once, maybe twice... I know that this summer when I was building the coop and starting up with chickens, help was pretty scarce. The neighbors who moved the shed from it's former home down the road - and then manuavered it into place tucked into those trees - were lifesavers! I got my Dad to help one day when I was on attempt #2 to build a door. And a cousin has said he'll help me run elect to the coop - if it's not during hunting season(s) or planting time or harvest time. LOL Maybe the bonfire will entice a few workers.

 

[897tgigvib]

Several smaller bonfires, have a couple 6 packs of some fancyt beer, and a bottle of wine, and some good hot dogs and marshmallows to roast, but not until AFTER most of the work party for the day is done!

Oh, the hay bale thing: Make sure the bon fires are cold out first. Might take a couple of those rolly rolls. Set them out there, especially at places where the bonfires did not burn, and then sic the chickens in there. Lots of chickens. Some sheep too. Ya want to get it done soon as possible. Then, hopefully by december, brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr for most folks, good temps for neanderthals like me who like it cold, work can start on making the garden.

Mine was made for 3 purposes.

Beauty
Production
Enjoyment

But that's just a course outline.

 

[canesisters]

there's no such thing as a good marshmallow

 

[bobm]

I just joined this group. You are taking on quite a project. From my experience in starting a large garden (60' x100' for family and city friends with the idea of saving labor over time) on my 20 acre horse ranch ( 32 horses, and many batches of CornishX meat chickens) that was a former high desert open range 10,000 acre cattle ranch in Cal.. First, I rototilled the area 3 times untill the soil became powdery. Next, I spread 6" thick of horse manure over the area, then rototilled it in. Next, I watered the area well. About 2 weeks later, when the weeds have sprouted, I rototilled again. ( repeat about 3 more times or more untill weeds no longer sprout). Next, I dug 18" deep trenches and installed 3/4" plastic water lines with risers for faucets and connection points for a drip irrigation system using black plastic lines with emmitters for the rows. Then, after I used a hand shovel to make walkways about 2' wide placing the dirt on a 3' wide planting row for raised beds. After harvest, I pile on 6" more of horse manure and repeat. This proceedure saves many many hours of labor for weeding and watering. After 3 years, the original rock hard soil became very nice organic rich productive soil. As for using chickens or horses for weed control, it will work to a point but not enough to make a huge difference on a large garden area. As for the roll of hay, if grass hay it depends on how many seeds are in the roll. You may just be reseeding the area with weeds. If, all alfalfa hay, you are good to go. Also, the hay stems may not break down fast enough and increase digging/ rottotilling/ discing time. I hope this helps some in saving you time and LABOR and have FUN.