sb country n news-garden update

SB COUNTRY N NEWS-GARDEN UPDATE

almost a year ago we drove into town after a long two day
trip with all our possessions in our two cars
we saved our kids from having to sort through all that stuff
that kids have to sort through when their parents leave this
earth
well
we sorted through it for them
one day they will thank us
for relieving them of that burden

the next day after arriving
i started my garden having signed up for a community garden
that i had visited months before when we were looking to decide
whether to move here or not

i told my boss my wife she i have to find a place to garden
if we move

this is what my bed  above which is about 20 ft x 10 ft in size
looked like

now this bed had sat for awhile
it sits right next to where folks tend to sit and talk
and
where a lot of garden activities occur
like kids educational classes weekly harvest for food kitchens
things like that occur there since there are picnic tables and
a big ole oak tree and the community sink folks use to
wash their vegetables

over time a lot of traffic occured there
some right over that bed
packing it down so that eventually the soil became dry
and hard as a rock in places

enter
togd
to the rescue

after one year and obtaining the plot next to mine
so that i now have approximately 400 square foot of
garden space

here is what it looks like this week after a years work

i over time dug up 4 ft squares that were holes 2ft deep
i then added layers some would call lasagna gardening
that included cardboard newspapers lots of mulch
soil compost so that now the soil is rich
almost like the texas country n soil
almost
im getting there

its different gardening here but actually its the same as
in texas

its drier here as we get only around 13 inches of rain a year
whereas austin got around 34 inches a rain a year

where i garden now it never freezes so thats not really an issue

here we may get fog sometimes that lasts all morning
this sets veggies up for diseases
especially fungal diseases

here we seem to get more aphids than in texas
i guess cuz of the increased fog and moisture

here you can grow beets and carrots all year around

my tomatoes are the best looking plants ive ever had
i remember i had these once at the country n
then a hail storm weedwacked them to smithereens

so overall its easier i think to garden here so far
no oppressive heat and no freezes
it needs to rain more though

one of the things i did is to put up a rustic wood
lattice between the picnic area and my garden bed
this has kept wanderers off the bed
i added string up and across the lattice for vines
to grow
i grow sweet peas in the winter
green beans and malabar spinach in the warmer weather

i added a 1 foot wide and deep trench around my beds
and through the middle of the bed where i walk
it is filled with mulch
this spring after 9 months in the trench
the compost although rough was dark and rich
and full of worms

here is what i have planted
vine green beans of several varieties christmas lima beans
several mystery beans bush green beans
arugula beets carrots basil swiss chard leeks sunflowers
ms bs giant pumpkin zucchini squash three types of cukes
cantaloupe melon okra japanese eggplant and
purple hull peas

the purple hull peas we eat but they also operate
as a cover crop for any bare soil to help enrich the soil

i am growing what will be a dinasaur kale tree
i keep the lower leaves peeled off
we eat them usually unless the chickens talk us out of some
it should or can get up to 5-6 feet tall
well see

oh yes
i buried 8 5gallon buckets with 3/8 inch holes in it
filled it with food scraps and shredded newspapers
added a few compost worms
so
now as of yesterday i have about 4 5gallon buckets full
of pure worm compost
on of the best things to put on your veggies
we dump in paper pieces food scraps not meat weeds
cuttings from the garden pine straw some leaves
this is something i wished i had discovered year ago

so
i am producing most if not all the compost ill use
in the garden from
my worm towers
my 1 foot trenches

i also water conservatively
ive added buried black plastic containers that are 10 inches tall
every 2 ft in my garden
added a shovel of compost and some pine straw
i water my plants once they are established once a week
by filling these pots with water twice
i also will put an organic fertilizer in the pot or pour a liquid
mix of fish emulsion seaweed molasses in there

today i will be burying a 15 ft 2 inch pvc with perforations on the bottom
covered with a drain sleeve
this will be buried along the side of the lattice
you can see the trench for the pvc in one of the above pictures

this is how i will be watering and feeding my plants as they grow
on that lattice

of course there is ms bs little garden in there also by the small bench

this week for supper i harvested some zucchini squash that we used
to make squash pasta with
lots of greens for salad like some cherry tomatoes arugula lettuce
swiss chard basil curly leaf kale dinosaur kale amaryth

for our stir fry i harvested amaryth collard kales onions
yes the 1015 sweet onions grow here yes

unless nature has other plans i will have the best tomato crop
ive ever grown

we see lots of veggies in our future here
and
happiness

the organicgreen doctor

sb country n news-my gardens

SB COUNTRY N NEWS-MY THREE GARDENS
i garden in three places now here in sb

the first is our front patio or porch as we call it
in the south

i started out putting a lot of stuff on the porch
but now have whittled plants down to

some herbs
lavender rosemary basil thyme mint oregano

a jalapeno pepper which we use fresh in margaritas
and in cooking
a dinosaur kale
a sweet 100 tomato

a citrus called dwarf satsuma

ive moved everything else to my garden at the community
garden where i have my two plots

at the community garden it was so great to be able to grow
things in the winter and not have to worry about things freezing

i still have some dinosaur kale and curly leaf kale
and beets and sweet peas and carrots and onions and garlic
and lettuce and a strawberry

looking out how well things did this last winter here
i plan to plant more broccoli and more cabbage next winter
i didnt plant cabbage this year since i was limited on space
but now with my two plots i plan on adding those

i will grow the sweet peas again since ms b and my wife she
love to pick and eat them
the lettuce and arugula and spinach and bok choi all do well
here so i will do a better job of doing serial planting of those
using the cut and go method of harvesting
the beets and the carrots can almost be planted all year here

i had a strawberry that was being thrown away by another
gardener so i just stuck it in the ground
it has done well so i plan on planting more of those
plus ms b loves them also

since i got my second plot i amended the soil
well with compost and organic fertilizer and liquid
molasses
as it warms up i will add a thick layer of pine straw on the
beds if the weather gets hot like it did last summer
hot doesnt mean like hotter than hell texas
but
we did have a lot of 90+ days and a few over 100 degree days

the climate here is mediterannean
in austin the average rainfall is 35+- inches a year
here the average rainfall is 13+- inches a year
with it being more -inches in the last few years
as there has been a drought here for several years also

so the veggies that i grew at the texas country n
are about what i can grow here
so i planted

10 tomatoes
almost the same i planted in texas
sweet 100s celebrity early girl black krim brandywine
a black heirloom cherry tomato a mexican heirloom cherry
and a russian one
i know trump will like that one

3 peppers bell jalapeno poblano
bush and pole green beans
basil
malabar spinach

zucchini squash which was hard to grow in texas because of
the squash vine borer
enough that i quit growing them
okra
japanese egg plant
armenian cucumbers
cantelope
ms bs big pumpkin

christmas lima beans
purple hull peas they grew well here last summer
a few leeks that were given to me by another gardener

my one garden plot butts up to the work area for the garden
so i put up a rustic looking structure from ole poles and
twine to remind folks there was a garden bed there
on the structure i planted my pole beans
and my malabar spinach

i also planted some cover crops oats and hairy vetch and some
unknown bean and some unknown pea
folks can crush those and i dont care if they do

in those white pots in front of the beds i planted rosemary
lavender and borage since they would grow too big if
planted in the ground

i try to water at least once a week real deeply only by hand
i dont use a drip system
it makes me come by frequently to keep an eye on the garden
when i plant new transplants or seeds i come by daily to water

as it gets warmer or hotter i change that to twice a week
half of the stuff is watered via buried black 10 inch pots
with holes in the bottom
this provides water deep into the soil so the plants can run
their roots deep also
this allows me to water less often
then
i have a 1 foot trench around both beds and crosswise through
the beds that is filled with mulch
this provides a large moisture holding capacity for the garden

this year i planted a russian tomato ive never heard of
into this trench to see how it will do since
the mulch i put there last summer has decomposed a lot

i also separated a 4 ft square section of my new bed
for ms b
she planted with my help all her stuff
she likes sun gold the yellow cherry tomato
juliette a pear shaped cherry tomato
french green beans
later we will plant carrots when the tomatoes
and beans get larger and provides some shady areas

i also set up her a little bench and she has her
garden tools and her purple watering can there also

the central part of the community garden has a kids section
and a large section for growing food for local food kitchens
a large food harvest including ms bs chicken eggs
are made each week

they really arent hers but she thinks they are

i volunteer to work in this section one half day a week

eg
i built this structure in the kids section using old mulberry
limbs so the foot long green beans can grow up them
the kids apparently love the long long green beans

recently i planted a long bed of basil on either side
of a long bed of tomatilloes

we also have 8 bins of compost that we maintain
each gardener has access to this compost

so these are two of my gardens
my front porch garden
the community garden

the other is the school garden i will write about later

the organicgreen doctor

sb country n news-theres gonna be more

SB COUNTRY N NEWS-THERES GONNA BE MORE

here where i garden it doesnt freeze
the temps maybe got down in the low 40s some
but not much

so when i do my spring planting i dont have to worry about
my tomatoes freezing like theyve done every year for a long
time when we lived in texas

so now that the days have warmed to the 60s every day
its time to plant our spring summer stuff here
so
i planted what was going to be 5 tomatoes
well you know how it is when you go shop for tomatoes
they all look so good
every year i end up with more tomato plants than i have space for

i said i wasnt going to do that this year
but
i did it anyway

the problem was
my plot i have which is around 20 ft x 10 ft is real crowded now
with all my tomatoes and my peppers and my onions and
my garlic and my kale and my swiss chard and my basil
and my beans
i need more space

so
lucky for me
the person owning the plot next to mine decided to give it up
i was first in line to ask for it

as i went to the garden after all the rains
and after being gone for a few days
those weeds
just exploded
just took over the new plot
another 20 ft x 10 ft plot

so i started hoeing and digging and raking and cuzzing
i eventually removed all the weeds
three wheelbarrow loads
recycling them of course to the hot compost area

so once i cleared off the plot
i realized the soil seemed to be in much better shape
that the first plot i got
so
heres what i did
and
plan to do

i used string to set the borders of my plot
i then dug a 1 foot trench around the border
dumping the soil onto the plot
the trench was then filled up with mulch
then i packed the mulch down into the trench

this mulch trench will act as a moisture sink
that will keep the area surrounding my garden from
being so dry this summer
whenever i water my garden or if it rains
the sink will hold the water

my calculations are that that 60 ft trench can hold
400+ gallons of water

over time the mulch will break down
one day it will be compost that i will just dump
over into the garden
then
i will replace the mulch as i need to

then i subdivided the plot into 4 ft x 8 ft beds
with walkways between the beds
each walkway was dug down 1 ft
the soil was dumped onto the bed
then the trench was filled with mulch
increasing my water retention capacity
and my composting ability

then later i will bury my 5 gallon worm composters
in each of the smaller plot trenches
to have the worms make more compost for me

so this garden bed will self make most of the compost
ill need for the future
its almost compost self sufficient

then
before planting
i added 4 inches of organic compost and a good sprinkling of
organic fertillizer
this was then forked in with a larger 3 ft garden fork with tines
that are over 1 ft long
this was forked about every 4 inches across the beds
this allows the compost and the fertilizer to fall down the holes
providing goodies deep into the soild
then the bed was raked over
and
a good soaking of liquid molasses was added
this increases the bacteria and fungi growth in the soil
for the worms and the plants

then this bed is ready for planting
in this bed will go three tomatoes cherokee purple sweet 100
and sun gold and okra and armenian cukes and canteloupe
and ms bs pumpkin and purple hull peas and christmas lima beans
and bush beans and whatever else i can fill in to the empty spaces

in the other bed we have the 7 tomatoes and 3 peppers and squash
and eggplant and basil and kale and swiss chard and bush beans
and vining green beans and malabar spinach
soon we will harvest the 100+onions and the 50+ garlic

this is about the same amount of stuff that i planted when i was
at the country n in texas

then
i got a garden consult
from miss b
we brought her little bench to the garden
she sat it in
i said
ms b
see that 4 ft square by your bench
thats going to be your garden

we gonna plant a pumpkin for you and tomatoes and beans and
carrots and whatever else youll eat

she smiled as she looked up at me
she knows and understands

we are getting there

the organicgreen doctor

sb country n news-towers for worms

SB COUNTRY N NEWS-TOWERS FOR WORMS

recently i started researching the internet on how to
do worm composting

at the school garden i had taken a storage bin
drilled holes in it
then
made a composter out of it
adding all the greens and browns you need to make a
composter work
we added some worms to the mix
however
the bin was so heavy it was hard to handle
so
i decided to convert it to a worm composter
thus
the worm composter internet search

man
i love youtube videos

as i was searching i hit this link
about worm towers using 5 gallon buckets
and
putting them in your garden

i was intrigued i must say

bascially
you dig a hole in the garden the depth of the bucket
take the bucket and drill holes in it on the sides
and the bottom
i did 3/8 in holes

then
in the hole i dug in the ground
i added shredded newspapers
thats worms candy they love it
plus
i added some compost
then
i dropped the bucket into the hole
then
in the bottom of the bucket
i added more compost and shredded newspapers
then
i wet this down good
worms like it moist like a sponge after you wring it out
then
i added shredded food scraps
like veggies fruit bread rice pasta egg shells preferably crushed
no meat no bones no sauces no oils
then
on the top of the pile
i keep moist shredded newspapers
covered with a thick moist newspaper or cardboard
then
i put a lid on the bucket
in my case
i added a square concrete paver over the bucket
to keep in moisture
to shut out light
to keep out varmints
then
all i do is add clippings from the garden
removed plants as long as they arent diseased
as i go along
then
when the worms get this all composted up
it will take several weeks
the worm compost that is left is used to fertilize the garden
plus
the worms go out into the garden to dig around
loosening up the soil
fertilizing it as they go
then return back into the worm tower
the buried 5 gallon bucket
for more food

so i added 4 of these spaced 4 ft apart down the middle
of my garden which is about 20 ft x 10 ft

so now
we recycle all our food scraps in the buckets
or
donate them to the schools worm composter

is this the ultimate food recycling idea or what

thank you mother nature

the organicgreen doctor

sb country n news-layered up

SB COUNTRY N NEWS-LAYERED UP

the picture below is where i started back in june for my
garden here
it was dry devoid of plant material
i added compost and organic fertilizer
then planted my veggies knowing i was late planting
things by about two months
i knew that before the fall winter garden i needed to improve
that life of the soil

the life is compost organic fertilizer plant material
like leaves mulch did i ever add mulch
i added a lot of trash barrels full of mulch
lots of cardboard and newspapers
all in layers of course

what i did
is what i did in my gardens in texas
i dug out 4 ft square blocks
down to about a ft and a half
hitting a lot of hard soil
i even had to use a rock bar to break it up

then
i added a layer of cardboard from side to side
a layer of about 10 sheets of newspapers
a layer of the soil i had dug out of the hole
a layer of compost some from the local garden where
my garden spot is
it has worms and lots of bacteria and germs that are needed
to make the soil better
i also added a good sprinkling of an organic fertilizer
to add more nitrogen in the bed
i then soaked that in with a liquid mixture of molasses
seaweed fish emulsion easily found at most nurseries
then
i watered this all in well with a water hose

then
i repeated these layers unit i got to the top of the hole
where i added garden soil and compost mixed together
added a dusting of an organic fertilizer that also had
microbes in it that plants like

i then covered that all up with a layer of mulch
to let it sit for a few weeks
ripen if you will

i did these 4 ft squares like this all over the garden until i had all the garden
all layered up

this week when i went to plant
a lot of this stuff all mixed together had composted down
in fact i think the whole bed will eventually settle down about 4-6 inches

now
my soil is starting to look a lot like my soil
at the country n in texas

i was able to use just my hands to plant my garden this time
a measure of rich fertile soil

i chose things that we like to eat
and
that we can usually eat on all winter long

broccoli swiss chard kale carrots lettuce spinach beets
sweet peas onions garlic

this is about what i planted when i lived in texas
except here i dont have to worry about it freezing
i really dont have to do much now
but water it regularly

on the beds where i planted seeds
i try to usually water them once or twice a day
so they dont dry out

i decided to not use a drip system on this garden

since i live two miles away
this makes me have to go by the garden to keep it watered
gotta keep that shadow in the garden
you know

so
we are hoping
that like in texas
that we have a bountiful winter garden again

the organicgreen doctor

sb country n news-microgreens

SB COUNTRY N NEWS-microgreens

we moved from our 10 acres
with its 900+ square foot raised garden
with the richest soil ive ever had

now we have a 200 square foot garden space
so
i have to find other ways to grow some of what i
want to grow

a few weeks ago
my sons fiancees mom
when we were visiting them in the la area
said
hey
i know you like to garden
so i found these planters on the side of the street

around here
if you dont want something
just put it on the side of the street
it will be gone real quick

usually my wife she is known for
as she drives down the road
to suddenly pull over
get out
open the trunk
into the trunk the stuff goes

looking around our condo i see some of those things
being put to good use
like this old desk chair we saved from the dumpsters
picture not included

now this one rectangular plantar box
i knew when i saw it
what i was going to use it for

yep
microgreens

every year i planted my lettuce and my spinach in my garden
by mixing all the seeds of various lettuce mixes
spinach beets swiss chard together
then i put them in an old spice shaker

after filling the new road find plantar box with real good
organic potting soil with compost fertilizer plant bacteria and fungi
remember
plant a $5 plant in a $50 hole
i then sprinkled out of the spice jar this mixture onto 1/3 of
the surface
leaving the other 2/3 for two more plantings 2 weeks apart

finally
this week i did my first harvest of the first 1/3
then planted my last 1/3 with this seed mix
so from the first planting to the last planting a month has gone by
i should have this lettuce etc mix available all winter long
until it gets too hot this spring

this method is called
cut and come again
i simply harvest the 1/3 with my scissors about a couple inches
above the soil level
its enough greens for the two of us for a week or so

thanks to ls for the planter

then
while in the austin area for our final alzheimers texas walk this weekend
we went to this farmers market on sunday
near san antonio

now
when i go to the farmers market
i tell my wife she
dont rush me please
i wander down the line talking to the farmers
we speak the same language

i wondered past this lady from reverse pioneers who was
selling this microgreen stuff
all i thought it was that grass stuff that people eat and drink
the juice from
dont like that stuff
but
on my second round i looked a little closer
stopped to talk to her
she said
its sunflower sprouts

taste some
i did
it was good
i reached down for some more
they were even better
so
we bought a package of them
ate them in this phenomenal salad
ok most of the sunflower seedlings were eaten by us
before they made it to the salad

i looked at my wife she
you know
youve been growing them for years
underneath your bird feeders
i just weedeated them down
cursing the whole time

i wish i had picked them now

so
after the heat next spring shuts down the lettuce production
i plan to do serial sunflower plantings like i did with the lettuce
to use them in our salad mixes

you are never too old to learn are you

the organicgreen doctor

dear ms b-im practicing

DEAR MS B-IM PRACTICING

ms b
when you look at those pictures
dont be jealous
im just practicing
for when you get in elementary school
and
i can volunteer at your school garden

several weeks ago when it was found that we
were moving here
the teacher messaged me
to see if i could help in her school garden

now this person knows a lot about gardening
doing a lot more at her home
than she can do at school
but
she cant do it by herself
so
she needed some help
someone who could help her get her school garden
back in shape

now
i try to be a helper helper
not taking over the whole program
but providing my advice based on my experiences
as an organic gardener
and
my exposure to helping with school gardens

i never try to take over the whole thing
i just try to help them in areas they need help
whether its supplies or advice
advice you know is cheap

so
i started volunteering once a week for an hour and a half
at the school where my two nephews attended
where my daughter in law attended
helping the teacher out

she is the teacher that years ago
inspired my wife to go into teaching
my wife she would come visit
and
would volunteer in the school
she fell in love with teaching
after being there
her inspiration coming from the teacher

so my initial job was to clear the weeds out of these
beds
oh my oh my
thats all i could say
theyll never get all that grass out of those beds
they might as well just start mowing it like the lawn

however
i was given a few kids who raised their hands
who wanted to help in the garden
i made them give me an imaginary quarter to help
they seemed to enjoy that

now ms b i could just visualize you
digging around in that bed
getting dirty and pulling weeds

so these kids
i let them climb into the bed
with diggers in hand
they talked and picked and dug
i thought theyll never get all this stuff pulled up

well i was wrong
their method worked

at the end of the day
this is what the beds looked like
all grass free
for now at least
ready to plant whatever seeds or plants that fit
into their program

ive noticed in my experience in planting gardens with kids
they tend to eat whatever they plant
if they get involved

so at the end of the day
i must say
a job well done

think ill practice again next week

the organicgreen doctor