Building the 2023 Garden

 

With the new experimental Corn section planted and mulched I am now able to begin the real work. I had only planned on the corn taking one day to finish and it ended up taking three and I felt like I was going to pass out. I am just not up to that much bending and stooping anymore. Still I got all those seeds in by hand and planted closer together than I ever did using one of my old planters and got it in before a nice rian storm that hit last night. I also enclosed the entire block in a cattle panel fence in the hope that for once my corn will not get destroyed by a June wind storm. Part of my theory is that this experiment, if it works will limit weed damage and keep the plants closer together to strengthen them against wind storms. We will see if the seed even sprouts.

 I am now moving on to my water melon, cucumber and other assorted Cu-cubit stuff which I am also doing something new with and using the fence that used to separate the garden from the live stock. Since I am down to only 10 old sheep and expanded the garden for the corn square I thought "why not use the old fence as a trellis?"  So that is what I am working on now that requires an expansion of the hay mulch too. I spent the afternoon piling on the hay mulch. I also started hardening off my water melon, dragon egg cucumbers and lemon cucumber seedlings too. This then frees up one more trellis for more beans.

The other half of the new corn section I have planned for potatoes, which I started on today and probably pumpkins as I always plant them last. I also have enough room left now to add at least another 12 or 14 Tomato plant varieties that I happen to find around to buy even after I plant the starts I already have going. The wife already found a new variety this weekend.  I moved about half a bale of hay for my mulch layer already this afternoon too.  Which I find doing the mulch layer actually the most rewarding job of gardening. It increases the soil and nutrients turns the top parts of the soil into an almost potting mix for next year and kills my weeds for months so I am always excited about putting it out.

Tomorrow I plan on finishing the potatoes and hanging the irrigation hoses. I hope to have the entire garden built within two weeks weather permitting. I just love building the garden the other parts seem more like work until I planted all those corn seeds by hand. That is my new least favorite part :)

Once I get all the planned sections down I still have space and materials for instant planting which just means adding stuff I didn't plan on that I saw while shopping really. There is always a something I just discovered to try.

 I came across the below link over at the Finite World Blog that I wanted to call everyone attention too. 

 

US Hegemony and It's Perils 

 Something to think about.....Here are some of their conclusions

 

I. Political Hegemony—Throwing Its Weight Around

II. Military Hegemony—Wanton Use of Force 

III. Economic Hegemony—Looting and Exploitation

IV. Technological Hegemony—Monopoly and Suppression

V. Cultural Hegemony—Spreading False Narratives

Interesting read.

 

Keep Prepping Everyone!!!