GARDEN AND GREENHOUSE UPDATES
Today Iโm going to share with you some garden and greenhouse updates and some general thought about them both. If you remember in my last post I was questioning my garden, the placement, the soil, and itโs overall health.
Well I decided to hop on my buggy and run the dirt roads looking at the gardens in our county. What I realized is my garden looked fantastic compared to most others.
I think I was expecting the plants to be further along because I had started them in my greenhouse and had been nurturing them for months. It felt like Iโd been gardening for so long even before the plants were put in the ground.
We also had an extremely warm spring in Michigan so my plants went out a month earlier than normal and that gave me the feeling things should be producing due to the amount of time theyโd been in the garden. What really hit home was when I commented to other gardeners that I had been picking tomatoes, cucumbers, green beans, lettuce, broccoli, and cauliflower in early June they all gave me a look like I was crazy but itโs true.
Looking at my garden now I realize it is thriving and looks wonderful. So after all that Iโve decided to keep it right where it is and to add a few more permanent things.
We have a horrible rabbit problem this year, probably from such a mild winter and I havenโt heard the coyotes at night (they keep the population down). I say I can use a scoop shovel and pick rabbits up by the dozens any time of the day or night. Theyโre quite friendly with the chickens too. The bunnies will snuggle up to Houdini (our pet turkey) and sleep along side of her.
Those cute adorable bunnies did a number on my bean plants, lettuce, and sweet potatoes. Now I donโt mind sharing but they hadnโt left anything for me to harvest so the bunnies had to be kept out of the garden. I added a three foot row of heavy landscape fabric to the entire perimeter of the garden to use as a walkway and then put in T-posts and chicken wire fence that I landscape pinned to the ground.
Itโs not pretty but it is keeping the critters out and my beans, lettuce, and sweet potatoes have recovered. I made the mistake of putting the heavy duty plastic chicken wire around the garden first only to realize the rabbits would chew holes through it to get into the garden.
So back to Menards I went and purchased the wire chicken fence and up that went. That is working and I donโt recommend using the plastic version to anyone. All in all I had to do the work twice, in the hot humid weather. My plan is to leave the fence posts up year round but take the fencing down for the winter. Iโll let the chickens have access to the garden. They can finish off the produce and turn the soil over for me. Then Iโll add the fencing again come spring.
On my list for hubby has been adding a small deck, platform, porch whatever you want to call it to the greenhouse and he surprised me by making it at our shop and getting it all attached. I even added two potted blueberry plants to the porch. In the spring I was in and out of the door so many times a day Iโd created a muddy hole right outside the door where Iโd step over and over again. Not I have a nice tidy entrance.
Iโve also been wanting a rain barrel. Itโs not convenient but doable to haul water from the house to use in the greenhouse during the seed starting process. So for my birthday hubby made the rain barrel and attached the system to collect water from the roof. Iโm quite amazed at how quickly it fills up, one good rain and itโs full, it holds 55 gallons. We also added a solar powered aerator to the barrel to keep the water algae free, it works perfectly by the way. Iโm quite the happy girl!
Sadly we lost our oldest and best producing peach tree from the heavy winds that accompanied Hurricane Beryl. I had told hubby not a week earlier that Iโd be surprised if the tree lasted through another season. I just had a feeling and sure enough she snapped before it was peach harvest time. I do have two other peach trees on the property so Iโll just have to wait for them to mature enough to be producing.
So as soon as the rain let up a bit I went out with my chainsaw and cut the tree up and hauled it away. I was glad to have my buggy, that was also a birthday present from hubby, it made getting rid of the tree so much easier. Less physical work for me.
I know this post is long but I had a lot of catching up to do. Thanks for listening and have a blessed day everyone!
Everything looks fantastic! You have been busy. 86 here in Jackson this evening!