Although most of us gardeners are die-hards and don't let the weather really get in the way of fresh garden veg, this has been a most amazing (and not in a good way) weather year. Ever with our well-amended & drained raised beds, we are not even thinking about touching them until some drier weather is upon us!
By now the Garden would be planted with cabbage, winter squash, beans, corn, potatoes, and various annual flowers. Even though we're not able to plant, we have still been busy teaching various school groups the finer points of the the "3 Sisters" (squash, beans, corn) and their 4th sister, Cleome (spider flower).
Check out our "3 Sisters" page to learn more information.
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
All covered up and ready to plant!
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| compost tops cut cover crops |
Over the next couple weeks, these beds will compost down and settle to about 1/2 of their height right now.
A couple of the beds were seeded with 'Bulls Blood' beets and 'Black Seeded Simpson' lettuce.
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| fresh cedar chips for garden pathways |
The next few weeks will find us planting 'Early Jersey Wakefield' cabbage, 'Boston Marrow' winter squash, 'Bloody Butcher' corn, 'Scarlet Runner' beans, 'Ozette' potatoes, multiplier onions, and a couple 'Large Red' tomato plants.
We are very excited to get growing this year! We have scaled back our plantings to these few choice varieties and with the addition of our new garden bed, we anticipate growing enough produce to donate to a local food bank or other charitable organization.
We are very excited to get growing this year! We have scaled back our plantings to these few choice varieties and with the addition of our new garden bed, we anticipate growing enough produce to donate to a local food bank or other charitable organization.
THANK YOU to our friends at CLACKAMAS LANDSCAPE SUPPLY for donating the compost and cedar chips for our garden!
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Friends in the Garden
We love having guests in the garden and this year is no exception! We have had a couple groups visit already with many more scheduled for May & June. We invite you to visit the Pioneer Garden and take a look at what is "growing on" in our area! (For groups, please contact the Visitor Center to schedule.)
Last week we cut down the cover crops and covered them with a bit of compost to "prime" these beds. (Really, we didn't have enuf compost so this is basically holding down the cuttings so they don't blow away!) This week we will be adding more compost and additional cedar chips to tidy up our garden pathways.
Cover crops should be sown in fall, and cut in spring when 3' tall (or about the time the clover starts to bloom). Lay the cut crop on top of the bed and cover with 4-6" of compost and let sit for 7-10 days. You can then direct seed/add transplants to the beds making sure that there is sufficient compost around the plant roots for growth.
We didn't get nearly enough compost to adequately cover all the garden beds, but will add more this week to make sure all the existing soil and cover crops are completely covered.
We will also be putting down more cedar chips; we have a new pathway where our "pumpkin patch" is located, and will be adding more cedar ships to our existing garden pathways.
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| Cover Crops are ready to be cut! |
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| A layer of compost added on top of the cuttings |
Cover crops should be sown in fall, and cut in spring when 3' tall (or about the time the clover starts to bloom). Lay the cut crop on top of the bed and cover with 4-6" of compost and let sit for 7-10 days. You can then direct seed/add transplants to the beds making sure that there is sufficient compost around the plant roots for growth.
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| Compost added to all the garden beds for happy veggies! |
We will also be putting down more cedar chips; we have a new pathway where our "pumpkin patch" is located, and will be adding more cedar ships to our existing garden pathways.
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Making the Bed
Our "Sheet Mulch" demonstration on Thursday was great! The sun was shining and everyone was in a cheery garden-friendly mood. In case you missed it, here's a recap of the demo:
Note that some variations of this method may be used depending on materials available. The important thing to remember is that the cardboard/newspaper need to be continuous for them to work to suppress growth of whatever is on the sod/soil being covered up. Weeds and grass will find their way through if there are gaps. Also, the top “dressing” of compost should be free of materials with seeds in it or a curious mixture will sprout!
This new bed has only about 1" of compost on top. Since we will be direct-planting into it, next week we will add another 1-2" of compost on top. When we're ready to plant, we will put our pumpkin transplants directly into the bed. When we plant, the underlying straw will be pulled back, additional compost added to the "planting hole", then our transplant will be nestled in for the summer!
There is an existing bed where an apple tree, rhubarb, hollyhock and stachys are planted. We extended this bed out 10' to meet the concrete pathway. This bed gives us an additional 30'sf of planting space!
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| The new Pumpkin Patch |
When putting in a new garden bed, there's no reason to cut sod or turn the soil; create a lasagna-type bed that will grow happy, healthy veggies!
Sheet-Mulching Method:
Creating Garden Beds
Without Digging
Keep bed damp as a wrung out sponge.
* Water between layers as the garden bed is assembled. This step is very important!
1st layer: 1" manure (chicken poo works best)
2nd layer: 1/8-1/4" cardboard or newspaper
3rd layer: 1" more manure
4th layer: 6-8" organic matter (garden mulch, leaves, etc)
5th layer: 4" straw (weed-free material/straw or leaves)
6th layer: 1/2" compost on top
* Water between layers as the garden bed is assembled. This step is very important!
1st layer: 1" manure (chicken poo works best)
2nd layer: 1/8-1/4" cardboard or newspaper
3rd layer: 1" more manure
4th layer: 6-8" organic matter (garden mulch, leaves, etc)
5th layer: 4" straw (weed-free material/straw or leaves)
6th layer: 1/2" compost on top
Note that some variations of this method may be used depending on materials available. The important thing to remember is that the cardboard/newspaper need to be continuous for them to work to suppress growth of whatever is on the sod/soil being covered up. Weeds and grass will find their way through if there are gaps. Also, the top “dressing” of compost should be free of materials with seeds in it or a curious mixture will sprout!
This new bed has only about 1" of compost on top. Since we will be direct-planting into it, next week we will add another 1-2" of compost on top. When we're ready to plant, we will put our pumpkin transplants directly into the bed. When we plant, the underlying straw will be pulled back, additional compost added to the "planting hole", then our transplant will be nestled in for the summer!
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| Perfect day for digging in the dirt! |
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Ready, Set, GROW!
Our Pioneer Garden is maintained and cultivated as a "no-till" garden. These uncontained raised beds allow us to get a jump start in our cool and damp Spring climate. Raised beds warm the soil faster and provide excellent drainage to help veggies thrive.
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| Cover crops being cut down (Spring 2010) |
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Raised Beds, Spring 2010 |
These beds are amended with compost every year; last year cover crops were grown, cut, then covered with a 4-way garden blend. This has created deep luscious beds with great tilth, perfect for growing healthy veggies.
Join us on Thursday, April 7th at 11am in the Garden and let us show you how to create these lovely garden beds. This "Sheet Mulch" method is a simple and easy way to plant over an existing lawn or weedy patch.
No RSVP necessary.
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