#6 - 13 in 13 - Gardening

Planting Bed #1

Hello again, this post will help document the start of my Gardening skill. I am mimicking Ecology Action's Bio-Intensive Gardening methods. Where you prepare beds by Double Digging them. They do not use the long row approach that you might be used to. They prepare 100 square foot - 5'x20' Beds instead.

What you see in the picture above is Planting Bed #1. I have outlined a 100 s.f. - 5'x20' Bed, and using a Broadfork (pictured below), I first began to break up the soil. The Broadfork has 5 - 12" tines. It is used to sink into the earth and aerate the soil.

I used this approach because this was the first time for preparing the beds. After this intial preparation, I will be able to much more easily Double Dig the beds in the future.

The picture above shows a different angle.

The picture above and below shows the completed bed. Broadforked only.

Let me tell you that this is alot easier after a good rain. The Double Digging is way harder.

The picture above shows both beds Broadforked only. A view from the North. I did this in September 2012. For some reason I can not locate my pics of the beds when they were Double Dug. They would appear as if someone made a mound. Check the Bio-Intensive method out for a really good tutorial. Double Digging was really hard for me because my land has alot of clay. Everytime I would begin the second 12 inches with the Digging Fork, it felt like I was trying to go through concrete! I almost quit, but didn't. And I'm glad I didn't. Because once you Double Dig, you really wont have to do it again for a long time.



On a side note...If you are looking for Raw Honey, the kind that Dr. Bones and Nurse Amy use in their Med Kit. Or if you need it for your 72 hour Kit, in that squeezable pouch, go to The Honey Company

#5 - 13 in 13 - Composting

Composting is the most important part of any gardening endever. It is magical. Ok bad description of what Compost really is. It is Mother Nature's way of taking what most would consider waste, and reobsorbing it into itself, and turning it into soil that is alive. Any orgainc matter that was once alive, will break down or decompose into  Compost. Leaves, newspaper, and kitchen scraps to name a few things. Compost happens on its own really. If you leave a pile of leaves in the corner of your yard, it will decompose eventually.

Making Compost can be as simple as piling up leaves and grass clippings, and then forgetting about it. Or it can be something you consciously think about and design. For example, the picture above shows two Compost piles I started. The one on the right I started in the Fall of 2011. I just piled up leaves, grass clippings and top soil. It is now December 2012. And so, it has been breaking down for over a year now. The pile on the left was mainly started in October, with a mixture of leaves, grass, top soil and remnants from the summer garden (tomato plants, pepper plants, etc.). I filled it up to the beginning of the white part of the "T-post". As you can see, it is already almost half way down.

I used 6 "T-posts" and wire mesh to construct my Compost Bin. I took the cheap route, probably cost around 50 dollars. I wanted there to be enough surface space for oxygen to penetrate the material breaking down. 

The picture above shows a hand full of the Compost from the pile on the right. You can see how black it is, what people call black gold in soil amendments. I believe that by Spring, it will be ready. I forgot to mention that water is important to the breaking down of the materials. You need to keep the pile moist so that the microbials can do their job. Or else the breaking down will stop. Once the materials in your Compost pile are unrecognizable, your Compost is ready to use.

A better example of putting together a Compost can be found at Ecology Actions' website. I don't have the videos here because I want you to check them out and see what Bio-Intensive Gardening is all about.

The picture above shows bags of leaves I've collected from other people. Thses bags are destined to go to the landfill. I consider that a huge waste of a resource. I just drive around sometimes and look to see who has bagged their leaves. I stop and pick-up these bags and say "Thank you Zombies"! Because clearly they are still "Conected to the Matrix", and are producing nothing for themselves. Sorry, now I'm going into a rant. Anyway the bags of leaves will go into my Compost making here at the "Home" and at the "Homestead".

Again I can not state the importance of Composting. If you want to build your soil, and you need to, then learn this skill. You wont need any other fertilizer, unless you want to use Seaweed and Liquid Fish.The minute I can apply this amendment to my Garden in Spring, I will consider this skill complete for my 13 in 13.



On a side note...Soundgarden is back! Love this new album. I recommend this album if you are a fan of this band. I consider Chris Cornell to be one of the best vocalist around.