Wednesday, May 28, 2014

Building a Garden





Really a garden isn't planted it is built in a way. The heavy rains we got the other day kept me out of the garden due to the mud which is typical this time of year. However the weeds that have developed out there are just the ones that are tailor made for quick, rapid growth survival.

These days I really only have three garden weeds. Johnson or crap grass, two forms of morning glory/bind weed and red root pigweed. Let me tell you each type grows like nothing I have seen before too. In just two days time the Pigweed has almost enveloped all the other plants out there.

Luckily the upper garden dried enough I was able to start weeding this afternoon.

My form of weeding is the traditional pulling followed by wheel barrow loads of barn waste. After lambing season is over I have literally tons of urine soaked, smashed old hay, straw, sheep poop and probably some biological matter I don't want to know about piled up and now is the time because like mowing the lawn I am not especially fond of weeding. Unlike mowing the lawn however there is something I can do about this weeding issue.

The top pictures doesn't show it very well but that is the watermelon section of the garden. The part in the sunlight. Behind that in shadow is the corn coming up with one of the mowing crew back there eating like she is suppose to.

In case you're wondering that one is named Sandwich and she is the smallest sheep of the whole flock. So small she isn't even worth butchering although she has grown some this year and may be big enough to breed this next time around.

Anyway back to I hate weeding. So this time of year I weed once and then put a thick layer of barn waste down so I won't have to do it again. The above picture is the first 11 wheel barrow loads of it to cover the area between the raised rows of watermelons.  Tomorrow I will gather up dried grass clippings and cover the rows between the seedlings and that will keep the weeds down (except the M%^$# iffin bindweed) for the rest of the Summer.

I got about 25% of the garden finished today and this evening. Still a long ways to go and many more wheel barrow loads of barn waste but it will be worth it once it is covered. Plus when this stuff rots next year it will just add another layer of fluffy soil to the mix. I have also noticed each year the weeds come down just a little bit more. I have eliminated several other types of weeds over the years doing this as well.




Here's the rest of the cutting crew over by my raised bed of potatoes. About the only way I have been able to grow potatoes around here I might add and much more pleasing to the eye than old black rubber tires..... kymber!!!

That black sheep in the back with her head down is Seven the biggest ewe we own. It's impossible to get a good picture of her because she is always eating. Well if I had three hands I could give her a treat, rub her neck and take a picture at the same, time that might work.




Finally a picture of my rather limited May growth in bee hives. It seems like I should be further along than this but when I check my records I see I have actually grown more this year than last year at this time. Anyway that little hive in the middle is the latest swarm I caught a few weeks ago and the little nuc on the right contains two frames of queen cells I found in that other hive last week. The nuc actually had a new brood orientation flight going on this afternoon.

June should be the heavy swarm month but so far I have not seen even one bee scouting out any of my traps in the last few days. I will say that activity around all the hives seems to be waaaaay up though so swarms can't be far off now.

Keep Prepping Everyone!!!


10 comments:

  1. Dude you can't beat Kymbers rubber tire potato gardens..those things are a work of art. Once you are done weeding your garden, feel free to head to SC and do mine there...it is so weed covered that you can't tell it had been plowed just a couple of weeks ago. However, through all those weeds, my green beans are coming up nicely. Deer got to my sunflowers..i predict this fall one or two will end up in my freezer as payback..

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. juGM - Old tires are like a boil on the back of a playboy centerfold. Just a shame :)

      I bet you will savor every bite of those sunflower eatin deer too :)

      Delete
  2. PP,

    I hate weeds too!!! Every day when out in the garden I try to get rid of weeds.

    Are you expecting a lot of watermelons this year?
    We have tires too for our potatoes. They are actually doing very well this year. Right now there about 4 feet tall and can't wait to harvest them.

    I bet you'll see more of a swarm come mid June.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sandy - I am sure tires work well although I would be a bit dubious of harmful leeching off of some of them. Anyway like I said I am sure they work, I just find em incredibly UGLY. To each their own I guess but I reserve the right to call someone's tires ugly if they call me a wiener. :)

      Delete
  3. Now I remember why we quit trying to have a garden. Besides the animals eating or trampling it every night, it was too much work.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Harry - Aye it's a lot of work I cannot deny that. It maynot actually be worth it even today although I am sure it is more worth it this year than last savings-wise. Next year however, it may be a necessity.

      Delete
  4. PP - you think the tires are ugly but i think that they are a thing of beauty! number one - they're free!!! number two - you give them a good wash with some enviro-friendly soap and a good rinse. number three - they take 10 million years to disintegrate. number four - they keep in moisture so less watering. number five - because they are black, they heat up the dirt and keep it at an even temperature. i could go on and on - but one thing that potatoes love is TIRES!!!! and i love tires. so there, ya wiener!

    your friend,
    kymber

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Heh Rubber-Maid I wish the tires on my vehicles took 10 million years to disintegrate.

      Nuff said.

      Delete
    2. LISTEN YA WIENER....sorry...didn't realize that the caps was on...go read my latest post. it's pretty awesome - bahahahahah! and we had so much fun doing it! and we did it for you!

      your friend,
      kymber

      Delete
    3. You're definitely a hoot to have around RM :)

      Thank you.

      Delete

Leave a comment. We like comments. Sometimes we have even been known to feed Trolls.