Monday, January 25, 2021

GETTING THE GARDEN READY

Woke up to this view from the apartment balcony on Saturday morning!


These are 40+ story buildings.  It was VERY foggy.  2nd Man had to work (from home of course) this weekend.  He was worried about me driving in the fog out near the farm (lots of curvy two lane roads) so I waited for it to burn off and then headed out.  My goal this weekend was to get started on the garden beds.  If we don't plant a Fall garden, I take a break in the Fall/Winter (i.e. neglect them, ha) until closer to Spring.

Our long range weather forecast basically says Winter is over.  We might have a cold snap in mid February but for all intents and purposes, they said we could pack up the parkas and put away the firewood, ha.


Here is an example.  I let the grass that grows in the off season go through a freeze or two so that it will die off and it'll be easier to pull up.  It's a bit messy (and looks worse) but it works well.


It takes work but I use a hard rake to help pull up the grass pretty easily.  Then the hard rake lets me break up the soil and move it around as well.


I got them done and pulled up the vegetable cages that I had left in, oops (told you I took a break from the garden ha).  I also removed all the soaker hoses (I dispose of those, the year of sun and heat breaks them down and they end up leaking if we try to reuse them).  Lastly, I take all the connectors off, clean them and get them ready for this season.


The unused beds get a new covering stapled to them if they need it.


I got all the beds done EXCEPT this one.  Well I did get this one "mostly" done, but then it started raining.  I'll leave it like this until next weekend, no big deal.


Can't really see the rain in this picture but it was pretty steady.  It's also bleak and dreary so I decided to call it a day.  It was about 4:30pm.  Since I got there at 9:30, that's a 7 hour workday, not too bad.

The next steps will be to get some bags of soil/compost to mix up and top off the beds.  I might do that closer to the time I plant just so I don't have to fight weeds/grass sprouting up.

With an earlier than usual ending to Winter, we're thinking we might start our plants earlier than usual.  I think that's where we've run into trouble in recent years.  We were late starting and while they take off and do great, by the time the veggies start developing, it's getting to be the HOT time of year.  We might get our tomato transplants in toward the end of February.  Last year it was April when we got stuff in the ground and it was mostly a bust.

It's only the end of January but blink and it'll be end of February.  I better make sure we are ready.



14 comments:

  1. Your foggy window view looks exactly like mine this morning and I'm only on the 6th floor! And, too, we do have snow on the ground!!
    Have a wonderful Monday!!

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  2. So jealous that you can start your garden stuff so early! We have about 6 inches of snow on the ground with more on the way today. I don't start seeds until the middle of March as winter drags on forever here it seems. But still, seed catalogs and garden plans will see me through for now as they do every year.

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  3. An early start is often the secret to success. I had plants on the rock porch of a brick home that faced west. I could barely keep the pots watered. Then, despite water, the heat just killed them.

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  4. I've put out my tomato plants by the middle of February in years past but you have to be prepared to cover them in case of a frost/freeze. Buckets or large cans work well.

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  5. oh please god don't let my winter even be close to over yet. i need snow!!!

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  6. Doesn't it feel good to look at how tidy the garden looks? If only it would stay that way! I see the fabric you use to cover your beds is the same that I started using. That stuff is practically indestructible.
    I don't start plants anymore. Direct seed works great for everything but tomatoes in NC.

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  7. It is A lot of work in keeping the weeds out but in the long run; it's well worth a it. Your beds are looking great. You deserve a big pat on the back. If you save your potato peelings, celery, onion, finely crushed egg shells, etc. and scatter your scraps like that it will help your garden beds plus you will be more apt to get some earth worms in helping in breaking down them scraps which is a good thing for you garden.
    I have learned from the past that if you bury the soaker hoses under your mulch, the mulch protects the hoses from the heat and sun and they do last a bit longer.
    My husband has repaired soaker hoses in the past. He just cuts off the bad areas and puts on new ends and they are good to go again for awhile.

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  8. Well done. You can have fun planning what to plant/sow knowing the preparation is well underway. Please both of you stay warm, well and safe, Michelle in Wellington, New Zealand.

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  9. Just a reminder; Do Watch out for them wooden snakes. :} (sorry; couldn't resist)

    Seriously tho; Do be Careful, of them nasty spiders when pulling them weeds

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  10. Just a reminder; Do Watch out for them wooden snakes. :} (sorry; couldn't resist)

    Seriously tho; Do be Careful, of them nasty spiders when pulling them weeds

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  11. You are so hard working! I'm impressed by all you accomplish.

    Love,
    Janie

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  12. It's always lovely to see a garden being prepared for spring planting! So hopeful.

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  13. That was some thick fog. From the balcony of your apartment, it would probably feel like walking through a cloud.
    Good idea to get your garden clean-up done ahead of time. You got the hard part done, so now you’re ready for the fun part of planting later.
    I have 2 garden areas. I plant both in the spring/summer but only one in fall/winter. I used to fight the grass in the unplanted one all winter, so this year I tried dumping lots of dead leaves on it. It worked! No more grass and weeds. Now I can just move the leaves to the edges to finish decomposing and then plant.
    I agree with you on planting earlier. I used to plant in mid-March but the past several years, that is almost too late. Spring is now coming earlier, so late or even mid-February sounds like a good time in this area. If we do get a late freeze, I’ll just cover up everything.

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