What have you done today in the Garden?

well, I think that either is part of the life cycle. chips all over for mulch or burnt wood for the potash in the soil... hmmmm, depends on your needs. Mother nature provides both at times throughout the growing cycle of life. Burning weeds and junk gets rid of weed seeds.

 

It was a busy day in the garden. Plot-wise...it wasn't a large area, but we both worked hard on it. All we actually did was to clear plots and plant a couple of things. It took us the better part of a day though. We would have stayed longer, but had a meeting to go to.


Never mind, it is a beginning. Tomorrow or so, we will begin replacing the soil in the greenhouse.

 

It was not what I did in the garden. It was what I did in a customer's yard. I picked up sticks and cut up branches. All of these I put into a lawn paper bag that decomposes.

 

Odif, I also had plans. I intended to set out onion sets. Too cold. Too drab. Maybe tomorrow?
Cayuga, let us know which is less harmful to the atmosphere when you learn. We're not allowed to burn where I live.

 

Well, today was another wonderful work day in the lottie...and I've got the aches and pains to prove it. It was a tad rainy, overcast and windy, but I was not to be deterred. The Bride stayed home today to do some reading, wash her hair and a load of washing. When her hair was dry, we had a chat on the fone, and I just advised her to stay home...warm and comfy.

It was misting rain...you know the type--the kind that soaks you and you don't realize it till it's too late. Lucky I had my old wax along with me.

Anyway. Today I pruned the fruit trees and the rest of the Buddleja. Removed more Clematis plants, cleaned the plot under the plum tree, cleaned half of another plot up front, schoffeled in front of the bee hives and made the plot that will receive the sprouts ready, the greenhouse had its soil removed and new soil put in the trenches. I also cleaned the little mini bed in front of the garden house. Last year's primula's are beginning to bloom and look sorta cute.


Greenhouse with new soil:


One of the Butterfly bushes:


Finally the new bed cleared for the sorout plants:


What a day!

 

Cayuga, burn, compost, or both? We do both. The larger limbs that come down, we put in the burn pile, and burn very carefully--no wind, lots of green grass in the pasture so the dry stuff doesn't ignite, and an adequate water supply to put out anything we get worried about. Then the ash is put on the vegetable beds. We don't know if the ash is needed, but we do have to put it somewhere!
Smaller limbs go into the compost pile--they add space for air to circulate in the pile, and eventually break down.
We have thought about buying a chipper, but the wood going into it must be green, and we have dead limbs coming down. It seems each gardener has to decide what is best for them.

 

Thanks folks for weighing in the the ecology of burning vs chipping. The jury is still out here.

Today I helped a fellow Community Garden member cut up two trees that had fallen into our garden, knocking down our double fence. In no more than 3 days, DEER had found their way into the garden! Do you believe that!!?? Fortunately nothing is up yet for them to eat, but it was imperative that we resurrect the fence. Deer are such creatures of habit, best to deter them right away.

Since i was already out at the vegie plot, I got the rest of the garlic planted, the peas & spinach planted & the shallots in.

Yesterday I had dug up an iris bed to thin them out. Today I got about 1/10th of them replanted. Conveniently, we are having a gentle rain now.

Anybody want iris tubers?

 

We had 139mm, over 5 inches of rain a couple of days ago. So I could only work in the polytunnel. Yesterday, I turned a lot of compost and planted out lettuces.

 

Toni, what is Patchoulli?

Didn't do much today: we had snow! Again!
Did collect some wood chip mulch from an acquaintance & spread it under the Blueberries at home for weed control. I'll go back for more when the weather is more conducive.

Our community garden had a meeting (first one in EONS). It was a very productive meeting, but as a side note, I managed to score an additional small plot!!!!! Can you see me grinning from ear to ear? No one else wanted it. It is considered weed infested and very very wet. Well, raised beds will help that & now I have the room to grow blueberries, perennials , maybe some raspberries!! Ah ha! Berry gardening here I come!

 

You use it in your soap making?
Am I remembering rightly that you make soap?