April 2, 2011: East Garden Tour

If you don't like to see photos of plain dirt, go no farther.

I finally finished forming all the new beds in the east garden, have rethought my original planting plans, and have begun planting.

To refresh your memories, or if you haven't seen the old east garden area, this is what it looked like a year ago:

East garden March 2010. All the raised beds were boxed in, and were either 4'x4' or 2'x4' and 12" deep. I found it rather restrictive as to what I could plant and where, and the boxes dried out very quickly. The entire bed was 22' long, which is quite a ways to have to walk around while gardening or harvesting.


The new beds 2011, view from the north end (kennel garden): With new neighbors next door, I couldn't plan on using their fence for growing my vining crops or tomatoes, so I am utilizing that area for my walkway. The new beds run east and west, and range from 7' long to 8' long, with widths of 3' or 4'. There is a smaller bed at each end. The boards, which were showing signs of rotting, are all gone.


The view from the south end of the east garden. Here you can see the kennel garden at the end, where a left turn leads into the north garden. The black pots, along the fence at the end of each garden path, will be joined by one more and hold my jalapeno peppers.


East bed #1 is 5' long x 2' deep. I had originally planned on using this bed for cucumbers, having forgotten I bought a packet of Chinese Red Noodle beans. This would be the perfect spot for them, where they can climb the side of the kennel. Some of the many basil plants I have growing could be planted along the front edge.


East bed #2 is 4' wide x 8' long. It will contain spinach, turnips, chard and beets. A dozen spinach transplants were put in today, hopefully not too early. The little plants have an uphill battle ahead of them to survive the strong winds that are blowing again today. I'm going to cover this bed with some net to try to foil the leaf miner flies that always wreak havoc on these crops.


East bed #3 is also 4' wide x 8' long. It will hold three determinate tomatoes down the center. Heavy 5' metal T-posts are pounded in firmly to hold the oversized tomato cages (2 are in, one to go). Carrots will be planted down both sides of this bed. I have transplanted two parsley plants at the end of the bed, and there will also be some marigolds added later.


East bed #4 is 3' wide x 8' long. It will have bush beans on one side and sweet peppers on the other side. Parsley has been planted at the end of the bed, and marigolds will follow later. I don't know if you can see the bit of green at the bases of a few of the fence posts, but they are lavender clematis.


East bed #5 is 3' wide x 8' long. It has carrots (planted yesterday) under the boards, and will have sweet peppers on the other side. Parsley has been planted at the end of the bed, and marigolds will follow later. Chives are growing next to the fence, and will be left where they are.


East bed #6 is 3' wide x 7' long. It holds all of the Walla Walla sweet onions, planted last month. There are hollyhocks, tulips, Shasta daisies and narcissus back by the fence, that's why the beds are shorter at this end of the garden.


East bed #7 is 3' wide x 7' long. This is where I grow my sticks. LOL, just kidding.....the sticks are marking where the next planting of cabbages and broccoli will go. Today I marked circles where those plants will grow, and planted onion bulbs in between the circles. Room was left at the end for marigolds and a final planting of parsley. The lilac tree in the background has to go. I hate to lose it, but my hardest garden job is trying to keep the suckers out of the vegetable beds. Taking it out will also give the garden a bit more sunlight.


East bed #8, measuring 2' wide x 7' long, is the last bed in the east garden, and holds the peas I planted today. I wasn't going to plant peas this year. I caved. These are sugar snaps, and I'll be building a string trellis for them to climb. There is room for something in the corner, but I haven't yet decided what. Possibly a bush squash, but I'm not sure it will get enough sun. Maybe I'll just move some flowers in there.


Total planting area in the east garden is 178 square feet, plus the pots.....182 sq. ft. total. I'm planning on covering the pathways with wood chips. Eventually. Maybe.


I finished hauling compost, digging, leveling and planting just in time to make a home made pizza for dinner, using sauce and peppers from last year's garden.



24 comments:

  1. Great plan...everything looks so neat to get going. Yum Yum pizza looks awesome. Enjoy!!

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  2. I really like your new layout. Looks much easier to work with. Can't wait to see it in full swing.

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  3. Holy Smokes! You have really been busy! I need about half of your energy! I can't wait to see your garden in full bloom and full of fruits and veggies....

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  4. Well golly sakes alive your garden is very well planned and an inspiration to us all. I got worn out reading all the work. The pizza looks ooh so good. You take ah good rest now!

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  5. My word! Your wonderful east garden is bigger than my entire planting area. I'm so happy and jealous of you at the same time.

    You were quite the busy beaver, and still had time to MAKE pizza? I wouldn't have had the energy to ORDER pizza. ROFL. Congrats. You deserve all the kudos you get and more! You'll love all that space.

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  6. Thanks everyone, it was a heck of a job, but it's finally done!

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    Sinfonian, I let the bread machine make my pizza dough while I was out hauling and digging in the cow poo. Ran inside to put the dough on an oiled pan, then put it in the fridge to rest until I came back in to make dinner. Patted the dough flat, put on the toppings, and 20 minutes later we were eating. Nothing to it!

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  7. Wow, I am blown away! I feel so lazy and behind on my garden now! I was happy to finally get some weeding done yesterday. Oh, and I might add that pizza looks sooo good- I do miss pizza these days. :(

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  8. Thanks for the tour, Granny! What an amazing amount of work you have done, retooling it.

    And that pizza looks yummy!

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  9. Cynthia, you might be behind on your garden, but lazy? I don't think so!

    I'd hate to have to learn a whole new way of preparing food for my family like you did. You are to be commended. I hope that baby boy is letting you get more sleep now.

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  10. Thanks, Alison. I hope it still looks good a month or two from now!

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  11. Alison, I mean I hope the GARDEN still looks good a month or two from now. I wouldn't want to see what the pizza would look like, LOL!

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  12. The garden looks great Granny! Now that you are all finsihed with your east garden over haul...you can come out here and help me finish getting the plots ready :)

    We had pizza for dinner too! Yours looks great!

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  13. Wow, it all looks fabulous-pizza included! What do you use all the parsley you plant for? I was debating even planting one!

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  14. I love dirt! I wish I could play in some right now, but mine is still snow covered. I like my raised beds for growing some things, but I also like my in ground garden as well. I usually develop 8x4 foot beds with walking paths in between. Similar to your new layout. Your new beds look so neat and tidy. I bet they will not dry out like the raised beds either.

    Now I have a craving for pizza...

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  15. Your garden beds look great, may you have the best gardening season ever.:)

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  16. I actually LOVE the bare dirt look-it gives such promise! It's so neat to go back and see the progress. You've been quite busy.

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  17. Are you already spoken for :o), you are worth your weight in gold..nice neat job ..I'm sure everything is going to come up nicely...get your food closet ready to receive them :o) Great improvement ...Miss Smarty pants :o)

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  18. Robin, I already told you...just get your Italian cooking and I'll be there!

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    Michele, I dry quite a bit of parsley. It dries quickly and retains its color when done in the microwave. I use the dried parsley in soups and stews, meatloaf, stirred into melted butter and tossed with potatoes or noodles. Even though I don't use all I grow, I think the curly parsley is pretty in the garden, so I consider the plants to be "flowers".

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    Rachel, I'm hoping the beds retain more moisture, especially when (if) I get the wood chips on the pathways, which will raise them closer to the tops of the beds. My daughter (the one who manages the big mobile home park) has mountains of chips from the trees they trim each year. I just need someone to load them into the pickup for me. I begged last year, but to deaf ears :-( They are actually more like shreds than chips, but would certainly keep the pathways clean.

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    Mr. H., I hope so! Last year wasn't nearly as good as the previous years. I hope our weather (and a return to cow manure over the leaf/twig compost used last year) returns the garden to vigor.

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    Sue, I'm a dirt lover, too. Most of the time I don't even wear gloves, I like the feel of the earth on my hands.

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    Ginny, I have so much canned stuff from last year, I don't know where I'll put it this year! I resorted to having it in boxes under the beds last fall!

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  19. I can't wait to see how the new beds work for you, they look fantastic and ready to rock and roll!

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  20. Erin, I think I'd just rather go to sleep right now. It's been a long hard day....let the garden rock, Granny's going night-night.

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  21. You get so much done! The beds are looking beautiful, and I can't wait to see them producing as the season rolls on.

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  22. Granny, your garden is beautiful even when it's mostly just dirt right now. I love how you've organized every bed so neatly and effectively - you're definitely an inspiration!

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  23. I so thought about not going with boards in my garden, but the rain we get would wash all my soil away. Last year we had amazing rain storms in the spring. Inches of rain in an hour. My yard is slightly elevated from my neighbors yard on that side. He has black top. I could just see my soil all washing onto his blacktop and not being happy about it. Well both of us wouldn't have been happy. Its good to have a slop though. The rain flows away and I don't get massive puddles.

    Your garden is looking very nice. And you really do have to plant peas. Not the shelling kind (I don't grow those), but snap peas are just so prolific.

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