It's how the garden grows. Soil improvements without tilling

Soil improvement without tilling

Because I'm not inclined to rent a tiller, pay for fertilizers, or generally do more work than I think I have to, I have decided to try an idea I found that should allow the soil to improve over the winter.

This idea came straight  from:http://oldworldgardenfarms.com/2012/11/27/preparing-and-planting-the-raised-row-bed-garden/

This is a great website for organic gardeners!

So this is a photo of the start of this process. Eventually I'll be doing this across more of the covered areas. The plastic now covers all of the straw and rocks from the original pond are holding it down.  Those rocks may have been a pain to move (which I've now done at least 3 times) but so worth it in usefulness!

The local Wilco provided the large bales of straw (did you know you can fit 2 of these in a Scion?)  It made a total mess in the car but I didn't have to wait to borrow a truck.  The straw is 3-5 inches thick and hopefully by next spring it will be happy planting time!

DIY Teacup Bird Feeders

DIY Teacup bird feeders or bird bath

I originally got this idea elsewhere on the internet - if I find the instructions I'll be sure to add the link.  But basically you take glue, teacup, saucer, an old spoon if you want, a copper cap, a stick or post, glue them together. Stick it in the ground!

tea with the feathered friends!

Weekend warriors, water barrels and concrete!

Weekend Warriors woo hoo!

This past weekend  I didn't let the blazing heat keep me from work on the yard (or anything else for that matter) The downside is the need for constant fluid breaks.  When it's over 90 degrees and 50% humidity, being in the direct sun is exhausting. Nevertheless, Sunday I couldn't sleep so I got up around 5:30am (normally I sleep until 10am on my days off)  and began cleaning, organizing, and project fun. When Tim (my husband) wasn't melting he pitched in wherever needed.   Much of the work was in the garage but the yard and garden got a bunch of work done too!

  Cleaning and upgrading the shed...

  We added a shelf in the shed made from an old cupboard door and a spare 2x4 (kindly included in the purchase of the house). This meant I could hang up all those hoses that I keep tripping on.  I re-used twist ties that came with yard products (or string) and simply twisted or looped on a nail on the front of the shelf. They kindly turned themselves sideways improving my original plan and allowing me to put them very close together. 

The shelf turned out to be the perfect length to make a support space for some of the garden tools in the corner.  Excellent!

It's all about concrete

Mixed 12 buckets of concrete using a hand shovel and the grass edger turning myself into a human version of cement truck. This was used to stabilize the woodshed front posts (the back already had concrete) and the brick pathway that is under construction (picture below).



I kindly let Tim move the 80lb bags of mix. 

Concrete as stabilizer and weed reducer

I had originally started the path project without using sand or any intent to use concrete.  Mistake. Trying to get brick remotely level without sand is, well, almost impossible. Walking on it shifted the brick and weeds starting growing in the open squares.  Sure it looked good for a couple of hours but then the soil shifted, got wet, compacted etc.  As a result I had to re-set sections and there is more to correct.  I'm not so serious about  this project that I'm using a level - it's all eyeball. There is no doubt it slopes downward, but no worries - this will ultimately keep the rainwater run-off away from the house in the winter.  This area can get really muddy and It's the path to Tim's recently constructed paint booth.

www.dropoutart.com

Eventually the small spaces that I filled with concrete will have gravel/pebbles added for texture and interest. Maybe even glass pebbles?  Hmmm.

for other projects in process 8/11/14-8/17/14 -see additional posts

Part 1 - Building the woodshed

So this week saw the beginning of the woodshed construction.  Much of this was salvaged from our yard including the the railroad ties that used to border a part of the yard and the back section which is part of the old fence that surrounded the pond we removed.

Here is a handy link that got me started on the project: http://www.barefootagrarian.com/?p=123

Materials so far:
 4 pallets in good condition (get 6 if you don't have the fencing!)
 2 railroad ties to raise the pallets off the ground. There are many other options to do this but we used what we had
1 section of re-use fencing
 landscape fabric & cardboard to prevent the grass from growing up underneath
 2x4's or 4x4's - your choice for the corner supports

The pallets  were obtained from the local Habitat for Humanity Re-Store for $2 each.  Surprisingly, finding pallets that were in good condition for free has turned out to be an issue in my area. It is no problem to get broken ones but for this project we wanted ones in sturdy and solid condition. http://www.albanyareahfh.org/ 

Consider checking out the local one in your area!

The back posts re-used the 4x4's end pieces from the original fence with a 2x4 as a support beam and another short section of 4x4 added on.  These already had concrete around them so the hole was dug and they were just dropped in.

The front beams still need to have the Quickcrete poured in for extra stabilization but my husband came up with a creative way to attach the side pallets (see below) so the Quickcrete is a bonus support.

 As you can see, he cut a short section of 2x4, screwed it into the  back corner support and then screwed the pallet onto that.  You can also see (if you look close) the location where the 4x4's were stacked on each other.  









Behind the woodshed I put down 2 small sections of the previous fence which had been the 2 "gates" It is now stacked with some of the Walnut tree wood we salvaged this week from a massive trimming of the 80-100 ft black/english walnut graft that sits on the neighbors side of the front property line.  A large portion of the tree grows over our house and yard because it is south facing.  Next year the wood should be seasoned and ready to use either indoors or in the firepit.
Thank you to ATS Arborist Services in Lebanon  for the great job trimming it and the consultation on the old apple tree. (A one man local business)
 https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ats-Arborist-Services/167348133280494

 

 

Part 2 - The roof - coming soon