I wish gardening was easy. I wish that I could just throw some seeds in the ground and then BAM more beans than I know what to do with. But ofcourse it isn't like that. Of the 30 hopeful seedlings I started with I ended up with 9 viable seedlings that could be planted in the garden. To keep those 9 seedling and all the seeds I planted directly in the garden alive it is going to take some work. The biggest obstacle that I have faced is animals...in particular bunnies. I am pretty sure that all of my carrot seeds are gone or at least moved within the garden.
I asked on Twitter how I could keep animals away from our garden and got lots of responses. Natalie suggested using chicken wire to lay over the gardens..almost like a blanket...to prevent animals from digging up seeds. I asked about putting plastic bottled over the seeds and seedlings to protect them and act like little mini green houses. Beth recommended against this as the plastic can leach into the soil and into your seedlings. Instead she recommended putting toilet paper rolls over top of your seeds and seedlings to protect them. Nancy suggested using glass chandelier covers that you can get at a thrift store or at garage sales.
I think another common problem people have with maintaining their garden is water...as in using too much of it. Read the directions on your seed packets to figure out how often you need to water and adjust as necessary based on the weather. It has been ridiculously hot here lately so I would have been watering a bit more often than normally but it has been raining so I have only needed to water once.
I have noticed a few blades of grass peaking up in our garden, most likely blowing over from our neighbour when he mows his lawn. It is important that you maintain a weed free garden to give your seedlings the best chance at growth. Just be careful that what you are fulling up is actually a weed and not a plant that an animal moved around on you!
How do you maintain your garden?
Seriously...our yard grows weeds like a boss but grass....nope it won't do that
Related Posts - Check them out
Seedling Progress
Operation No Ants
Picking Seeds
My latest challenge with my garden is my chickens. We let them "free range" out in the yard during the day and they have recently discovered my lettuce. They don't really eat it, they just like to sit in it and squish it. We put up some chicken fence this week and that seems to be helping, but I see them eyeing it up like they really want to get in.
ReplyDeleteOu biggest challenge wa keeping the kids out of it. We have a tiny yard with lots of shade and ended up opting for a straw bale garden since we could put it where ever the sun was best (which happens to be on a concrete slab). The first few weeks were spent replanting tomato and pepper plants that the boys pulled out daily. We had to totally ditch the pepper seedlings at one point because they just couldn't hold up to the toddler onslaught. Then came something that was eating our basil to shreds. After relocating the tomatoes, replacing the peppers and fencing off the garden from the rest of the yard, we seem to be getting somewhere! We have pretty large cucumber and zucchini plants, carrots are coming up in the ground, our tomatoes actually have fruit and today I saw a single pea pod! I don't have huge expectations for the garden, but we are taking notes for next year.
ReplyDelete@Jenn - I am kind of giggling at the idea of your chickens just maxin and relaxin on your lettuce!
ReplyDelete@Slacker Mom - I have that same problem too! B is constantly trying to climb into the garden or he pulls up the dirt and throws it.
ReplyDeleteTaking notes is a great idea...that way in say 10 years our gardens will be low maintenance and perfect!
I'll give you a few hints from what I remember of my frugal farmer grandfather's methods. He used to keep hair from hair cuts and sprinkle it around the garden edge. The smell of people helps keep animals away. He also used to pee around the garden (not IN the garden!) again for the people smell. I've never used either method, but there you go!
ReplyDeleteThanks for joining the Homesteading Link Up and I hope to see you post again this week! http://farmersdaughterct.com/2012/06/28/homesteading-link-up-and-strawberry-lemonade-jam/