New to Growing in Alabama

Honestly, I've barely even begun my planning stage. I'm still just studying. I read everything I can get my hands on about just about everything pertaining to gardening. I have been playing with composting though. I started my pile at the beginning of September. I've had it cooking for about a month now, it seems to be doing pretty good, and I'm currently building my second pile. I've been adding the bedding from my chick brooder (and my gerbil cage) to it. I am using a deep litter system in the chicken coop/run. I've also partly set up a sheet mulched raised bed.
 
@baymule I currently live in Florence. Actually, a small community in the county called Cloverdale. I have family in Killen.

I have every intention of starting small. And by small, I mean I have two small seedlings in my laundry room. A tomato and a bell pepper.
 
Some of us on here collect bagged leaves from neighborhoods to put in out gardens and chicken coops. I have done that for years. Pour in leaves 3 feet deep in the coop and run and in a few months it's 6 inches deep, dark and crumbly--garden gold!

We just moved in February to 8 acres, we have SAND, think beach without the ocean. First year garden was a total FAIL. So, even experienced gardeners can have a total wipeout.

Sounds like you are on the right track with your compost and sheet mulching. Keep up the good work!
 
lafaye616 said:
@baymule I currently live in Florence. Actually, a small community in the county called Cloverdale. I have family in Killen.

I have every intention of starting small. And by small, I mean I have two small seedlings in my laundry room. A tomato and a bell pepper.
Click to expand...

Haha! My DH figures ya'll might be related! But he hasn't lived there in over 40 years!

Go pet your tomato and bell pepper and tell them that you have lots of new friends on TEG!
 
I have dug in my yard, it has great drainage...it also has lots of rocks, nails, bits of metal, and even glass. I figured raised beds might be the way to go for the moment.

I collect bags of leaves in city neighborhoods. I can easily get a trailer-full in less than half an hour.
 
I love raised beds! That's something you'd be bound to learn in time. All my veggie gardening is currently being grown in raised beds. . . well, mostly. A few veggies are tucked into my flower beds.

You are surely on the right track with your compost piles. THE best thing you can do for your soil is add compost at the proper times and in the proper amounts. I say proper amounts only because here is a case where more is not always better. Except for a very few veggies, most do not do well in pure compost. Besides, spreading the benefits of compost over your whole garden makes a lot more sense.
 
There is a post called "Back to Eden Gardening" that you might find interesting. Some of us are trying it out. You can find it under the Everything Else Garden section.

Mary
 
I have heard new gardeners say they were no good at it because it all turned to weeds. Planting is easy. Weeding is never ending. Use mulch-I use grass clippings on my most difficult to weed plants. You can use corn glutton as a weed inhibitor. It helps but it is expensive and some weeds get through anyway.
 
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