What did you do in the garden today?

[BarredBuff]

Planted a bunch of spring crops today. I have worked since lunch and just got in. I cleaned out a raised bed, and planted onion sets in it. Then planted another bed with cabbage, and some green onions. I cleaned the small bed out, and set out a few kale plants. I've never grown kale before. I then tilled the garden will my new rototiller. It works better than my other one, but still not as good as the old Troybuilt we had. The ground worked up amazing though. Loose and fluffy as could be. We set five 50' rows of Kennebec potatoes, and then a row of broccoli and a row of sugar snap peas. I haven't grown peas since 2011. I am excited to eat a mess!

My next gardening project this week will be to reclaim the berry patch, and get it cleaned out. I also want to finish cleaning out my raised beds, and fill the last one. Then I will plant my last cabbages. I also want to sow another tray of tomatoes, and herb plants this week.

The best part about this pandemic has been the renewed urgency and time for homesteading stuff.

 

[Mini Horses]

The best part about this pandemic has been the renewed urgency and time for homesteading stuff.

True for those of us who want to do it!

I am still working, however. Essential businesses....grocery, meds, personal products, laundry goods, etc. Yep those manufacturers are required to reset product periodically in the stores, for the stores. Laughingly, I suggest that I move things around until you can't find it. But, I did work at home all day today. Same tomorrow.

 

[Daisy]

More weeding for me here I know I am a weirdo who enjoys that. I am just glad to see any green that comes up, even if it is a weed to start with. This property was so poisoned when I moved in and there is still bits of asbetos and glass all through the soil. I am always glad to remove a bit more while ripping up the weeds.

I trimmed the front hedges at sunset last night. It was just stunning outside at that time. So peaceful. It is so rewarding to see the finished product, I never remember to take before and after pictures, it was such a big change from all wild purple flowers to a neat green line. I still have more hedges to do but none were as wild as that one was. The timing was perfect though with some light rain today so it will recover well. And after the shire has finished its weed spray and the rain washed that all away.

I react so much to the moon myself, that it makes sense for me to garden by it too. I like having a simple "rule" to follow. Makes life much easier for me. My seedlings are going ok, still a few to pop their heads up. I will fertilise on the full moon so hopefully that goes a bit further as I am attempting to grow a lot more than usual.

My strawberries are going great, although all of my fruit produce, while plentiful, is very small. I definitely want to have a few more strawberry plants in the future. I only have one right now but it goes well here. I like the plants I dont have to do much too. The dill is going so great as well, it makes me really happy to see! Slowly slowly, I'll expand and be a real gardener haha.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

You've been busy!

 

[flowerbug]

More weeding for me here I know I am a weirdo who enjoys that. I am just glad to see any green that comes up, even if it is a weed to start with. This property was so poisoned when I moved in and there is still bits of asbetos and glass all through the soil. I am always glad to remove a bit more while ripping up the weeds.

I trimmed the front hedges at sunset last night. It was just stunning outside at that time. So peaceful. It is so rewarding to see the finished product, I never remember to take before and after pictures, it was such a big change from all wild purple flowers to a neat green line. I still have more hedges to do but none were as wild as that one was. The timing was perfect though with some light rain today so it will recover well. And after the shire has finished its weed spray and the rain washed that all away.

I react so much to the moon myself, that it makes sense for me to garden by it too. I like having a simple "rule" to follow. Makes life much easier for me. My seedlings are going ok, still a few to pop their heads up. I will fertilise on the full moon so hopefully that goes a bit further as I am attempting to grow a lot more than usual.

My strawberries are going great, although all of my fruit produce, while plentiful, is very small. I definitely want to have a few more strawberry plants in the future. I only have one right now but it goes well here. I like the plants I dont have to do much too. The dill is going so great as well, it makes me really happy to see! Slowly slowly, I'll expand and be a real gardener haha.

any time you can scrounge up bits of wood or other organic matter if you see it someplace just ask for it and bring it home. all wood products, if they're not full of preservatives/treated end up breaking down into humus eventually. i will also tell people that if they bring me clean organic materials (leaves, trimmings, etc.) that i will give them a share of my crops. it works out nicely. worms and worm composting of food scraps and paper scraps. weeds too sometimes end up in my worm buckets.

that is what strawberries love, woody semi digested wood stuff, etc. they are woodland edge plants.

i too love to see weeds growing rather than having bare soil. once they are pulled and left on top to dry out and get eaten by worms that is free energy and fertilizer from the sun. it doesn't hurt to leave a few weeds here or there if the ground is otherwise left bare. i would rather have the ground protected and shaded and it gives the beneficial bugs a place to hang out whle the garden veggies are getting going. to me having a too bare garden is like asking for trouble. alas, Mom doesn't get this and won't change her ways. weeds to her look untidy. i have to compensate by having perennial gardens here or there for the bugs to have places to hide out. not as much diversity as a field but better than nothing.

i also have to clean up bits of trash in the gardens. once in a while someone would give me a bag of shredded leaves with candy wrappers or stuff in there and i didn't always find all of it before putting it into a garden so i find it later. a lot more work than i'd like so i stopped taking leaves from them. i also made the mistake for a while of shredding some boxes up which had plastic incorporated into the cardboard or it was coated with plastic. i've stopped doing that too. not worth the work of having to sit there and get the plastic bits out of the worm compost/worms. so now i only use plain cardboards and very simple stuff instead. *whew*

and then one time i also bought some compost from a place without inspecting it first. bad mistake. it had all sorts of trash ground up and mixed in it. what a horrible mess that has been through the years since to keep cleaning that crud out.

i guess the title of this post should have been lessons learned the hard way! lol

 

[Mini Horses]

My "reminder" of past gardens was seeing the chickens in the newly turned soil. Of course, it's ok right now and the gate was open. Have about 30" of CPs on one side that I will cover with chicken wire before planting. OK for now.

Now I need to pull my list of plant set & mature times, to plan out what I need. In this 90X100 space....1/2 can be animal feeds working. The pumpkins turnips, etc. And much of that will require minimal heavy effort. I will sow clover as cover in that area with respect to weeds. Let me tell you, I have enough seed to plant 3X this spot. Plus was wondering where to plant the animal feed efforts to see how/if it helps me.

Good things -- close to house, barn, water, good drainage, full sun. excellent soil. Can see it from my kitchen window. So, I can deal with "too big" Hey, I could even grass 1/2 and mow! I actually use cut/bagged grasses for chickens & goats & mulch anyway. Unplanned garden space will probably work well.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

That's awesome. If you make it - the garden will come, lol!

 

[FarmerJamie]

I raked the front yard of sticks and fallen branches to curb for village pickup tomorrow. Also drug some larger branches from the back yard. Does this count?

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Of course it counts!

 

[YourRabbitGirl]

Picked and ate some juicy rhubarb, scuffed up some weed seedlings out of the wood chips, fashioned a new garden gate out of an old section of picket fence.

It frosted heavy here last night and supposed to do it all again tonight, but nothing looks the worse for wear out there. The lettuce and other greens seem to love this cold weather, of course.

Because of covid19, Not much really. just watered the plants, trimmed some leaves, that's all. We really can't go out, because of the quarantine.