#20 - Planting Bed #1

Planting Bed #1

I decided that I wanted to create a border to outline Planting Bed #1. It was too muddy to do much else. Although I have to admit, I found the task easier with the ground being wet. It was easier to pound the boards into the ground. I used 7 cedar pickets normally used for fencing as the border.

The next task I have, is to figure out how to construct a structure that will allow me to keep grasshoppers off anything I plant. I have a few ideas...

#7 - 13 in 13 - Gardening

Planting Bed #2

 

Planting Bed #2 is a mirror to Planting Bed #1. It was planted with the same over winter mix (field peas, oats and vetch) as Planting Bed #1. Planted October 2012.

The picture above is the over winter mix I bought from Johnny's Seeds.

The picture above is Planting Bed #1.

The picture above is Planting Bed #2 in December 9, 2012. You can see that the peas are flowering.

The picture above is after a cold front came through just before December 16, 2012. Hopefully the Vetch will come up in the spring.



On a side note...The new album from that little ol' band from Texas is good!

 

#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