Fencing in your garden....

[Beekissed]

BeeKissed, How big is your garden? mine is about 20x50 on the end it butts up to the chicken pen on one side it is next to the goat pasture....but they cant get thru to the garden....the rest is 4" by 4" sturdy dog wire.....I have a hard time turing my big tiller on the corners..(my husband thought i need the biggest tiller they had) it is so heavy.....I plant big sunflowers along the outside of my garden.... I have a really hard time keeping weeds out between the rows though....I love the cattle fencing also we have some of it for the goats....the goats really dont do damage to the garden if they get out ...for some reason they go for my young apple trees and cypress trees.....would rather them go for the garden because it would be cheaper and easier to replace....

My garden is approx. 35 X 65 but I'm extending the bottom of the garden for about 5 more feet to allow for the curved area. I decided to do it this way for just the reason you mentioned....so I won't run into any corners when I'm plowing the perimeter! :bee

The top row of the garden is my permanent bed for rhubarb, chives and other perennials.

I also use sunflowers throughout my garden, Gapeachy....I love their cheerful faces! I plan on planting many flowers in the garden this year: nasturtiums, marigolds, blue flax, sunflowers, and one whole row of everlastings for drying and bouquets.

As for weeds? In some places I mulch heavily with old hay, some with grass clippings and some with green mulch like white clover. I do permanent pathways of clover and a little fescue.

 

[gapeachy]

I would love to see pics....I get alot of ideas from other peoples gardens....I dont know if it is good or not but I plant my herbs in my flower garden beside my back porch...they seem to do great....also some by my pool....this weeks weather has been phenominal....87 for the next 2 days.....that is alittle hot for this time of the year even down here....I am wondering about if we will get another frost or can I go ahead and plant....I think I will wait though just to be sure.....I am getting so impatient....

 

[Beekissed]

Well, the garden fence is nearly complete and I must say....it's ugly. Very ugly. But functional!

I went with the cheapest, most sturdy posts I could find and found rough, split locust posts. My boys put them in and stretched the fence so tight that some of the posts lean....

But...that is one tight and strong fence and I can dress the garden up with the use of flowers and strategically placed vines...I think.

Also, my son forgot that I wanted the fencing in the shape of a large U and he squared off all the corners....now I have to till into a corner!!! BUT...I will salvage it by rounding off the corners and planting sunflowers and annuals in those spaces.

 

[Beekissed]

Fence is done, time to plant!!! :watering Tomorrow or the next day, planting potatoes, lettuce, radishes, carrots, onions, peas and flowers.....lots and lots of flowers!!!!!

 

[Greenthumb18]

That sounds great beekissed!

Would love to see pictures of the fence. Enjoy all your planting !

 

[Beekissed]

I will take a pic tomorrow and try to get it uploaded here. As the garden season progresses, I will try to do progression pics of the different stages...I always find it interesting to see time lapse photography.....

It all looks so baren and dry right now. Next year I will have a cover crop on the whole thing and it will be green all winter and spring until time to plow.

 

[Ladyhawke1]

I love how people plant clover and such as a cover crop, we have it growing everywhere. Can't kill the darn stuff. That and alfalfa, which smells wonderful and looks gorgeous in full bloom.... Except for the part where I have almost 2-3 acres of it which is meant to be horse pasture. The benefit of having an enormous horse who chops up the ground is that she single hoofedly killed an entire field of alfalfa this fall between eating it and trampling it hahaha. Now it just has to be seeded with actual grass and she can continue to kill the other field in a few weeks.

We have ladybugs in the trillions here, and lots of bees (I know this because they attacked me when I renovated the goat shed) plus lots of common garden wasps which are the non-threatening kind.

Our entire garden will be raised beds, with the "Mel's Mix" in them. I have 2 - 2ft x 10ft long pea beds (adding 2 more in the fall) with 6ft x 10ft trellis' on them, they're planted on both sides of the trellis in tight spacing to create a jungle of peas lol.

Mum wants Wisteria again, but we're trying to find a way to build a super strong arbor for it.

I love Mel's Mix....I wish I wasn't so mathematically challenged. I am so retarded with the cubic feet and his calculations. Doing it all by myself is even more fun, but whatever I am doing must be OK. Because, I am happy with the results.

 

[Beekissed]

As promised, a pic of my crookedy, ugly, quite strong and functional garden fence! Take no notice of the menagerie that feel like I have to be stalked every time I walk into the back yard...they are relatively harmless....

Now..next year that picture should look entirely different, as I will be planting a ground cover crop for winter so that there is no bare, packed down earth exposed. I will also have plastic covered tunnels in place all winter over the lettuce, carrots, broccoli, radish beds.

 

[lesa]

Bee, I love your barnyard gang!! I think the fence looks absolutely perfect! Once your garden gets going, it will look even better. It might be fun to plant something climbing around the post areas-peas, beans, etc. just to dress it up.. I can sure see why you needed a fence...that gang wouldn't have let you grow anything! Excellent job- Happy Gardening!

 

[Greenthumb18]

Yep, great job beekissed on the fence!! It looks great . That garden fenced in is going to be great for growing vegetables. It looks like a very sunny spot there, no close trees shading it.
I love your backyard flock & herd they look to be having a wonderful time. You have such a nice backyard .

Great Job!