Spring has arrived and the first blast of summer hits on Sunday, with temperatures near 30C for several days. We just had the last frost, and now we'll get the first heat wave. Last autumn, I moved to a small town in Northern BC Canada. There was no garden here, but I'm allowed to do what I want with the yard, so I'm ripping up the lawn by hand. I have a heart issue so I can only work so quickly, and some days I'm not able at all. I'm also raising 2 young children with my wife @MediKatie. All available time and energy is going into closing the distance between the top and bottom edges of my second garden:
After that expansion from the top edge, today I expanded upward from the bottom edge:
Looks like about another 8 work days to get it done. Which means about 2 weeks, considering weather, my health, etc. It should look like this:
Meanwhile, I'm planting continuously! I'm hoping that weather returns to normal Spring conditions after the coming heat wave, so I've planted more peas, lettuce, and potatoes.
An earlier row of green peas just broke through the surface, and the carrots are up.
By the end of May, I would like to have the digging and planting finished, and be able to show off lush green growth of several crops.
One minor issue is a local housecat using the garden as a litterbox during the night. It struck again yesterday:
But I deployed some scent-based deterrent around the area, and he didn't come back last night. Hopefully that will be the end of it.
I've got plenty of work already without cleaning up after vandals!
There's a lot of work, but it's good work. And I have my 3 year old son with me, "helping", learning, and asking me to play soccer. I consider myself a lucky man!
DRutter
so that cats do not cause you such problems, it is best to cover the ground until planting. This not only has a positive effect on the animals but also prevents the soil from drying out. If you do not want to fight weeds in the future, I recommend mulching the soil right away. you can use straw, cartons or hay for this purpose, but with the latter you have to be careful not to apply hay.
Cardboard boxes, on the other hand, are great when it comes to attracting earthworms because they are attracted to cellulose ;)
Mulching also means less worry when it comes to watering. the mulch prevents moisture from escaping from the exposed soil and accumulates it at night. Also, it enriches the soil a bit ;)
Oh so that's the secret. I just learned it now. Thanks for sharing! 👍
Lots of good advice, thank you!
Congrats! Your effort has paid off. Expansion or improvement of your garden is very evident. Looks like you will be harvesting in few days.
Congratulations!
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Bait a live catch trap with catnip...cat caught. I like the scent repellers too.
I'm so glad you have such good help on hand! Nothing will ever compare with the memories you are making. When mine was about the same age, we went dinosaur bone hunting; and found a nice one (3.5 cm trilobite) that he still has. These memories are priceless!
I do wish I was close enough to help, my tiller is old and ugly; but so am I....
We could finish the entire back yard in half a day. I like your sod removal first method! Cover next year's expansion with a silver tarp, and there will be no sod to remove. Will save a lot of time next year. I have a friend who mixes several compost heaps on the same tarp he using to kill the grass.
Be blessed my friend!
Thank you for the words of wisdom!
How does the compost method work? I have an old tarp, and I'm building up a compost bin or two.
Sorry, not on here much. Compost heaps work well on plastic to hold moisture. Just be careful when you turn it, to avoid puncturing the tarp The tarp is a good substitute for the plastic, and I'd use it to roll the compost.
I plan to use bio-char in compost tea also, as it really helps the fertility of the soil. Will they allow bio-char in Canada? It will increase soil fertility for a thousand years.
I have sandy loam at the homestead, and it needs a lot of help! Most of my tilling will be to mix in additives to try to make good soil. Mostly counting on the greenhouses for food production, especially initially.
Oh, is THAT where you've been all these afternoons?
LOL
"Discipline trumps intelligence" is an expression I often hear from a Colombian speaker who was raised in Japan.
Your perseverance will bear fruit at the appointed time, and I am sure that you will enjoy it at harvest time and when you eat part of your work with each bite.
I wish you lots o' fun with your son!!! ❤️
Congratulations, your post has been curated by @dsc-r2cornell. You can use the tag #R2cornell. Also, find us on Discord
Felicitaciones, su publicación ha sido votada por @ dsc-r2cornell. Puedes usar el tag #R2cornell. También, nos puedes encontrar en Discord