After re-digging out the soil and putting it on the other pile, mid-afternoon today I went over to Path to Freedom, where they had kindly dug up about two cubic feet of the organism-rich soil from their animal enclosure for me. After an animated conversation telling me about their exciting plans (including maybe getting a small goat!), I came back to mix their soil together with the other ingredients I had purchased at the nursery. I had brought a sample of my native soil with me, and they confirmed that, yes, it needed amending so it wouldn't turn to adobe during the summer.
When the house was painted some time ago, the painters left some of their large plastic sheets, as well as a paint bucket, which I had saved. So I put the plastic down and dumped out about two cubic feet of peat moss; a bunch of perlite (I don't remember how much I purchased and there was no marking on the bag); the PTF soil; another two cubic feet of top soil; and some mineral/humus fertilizer. I really thought I bought compost, but I guess not.
The base soil was about level with the bottom of the boards, and my mixture is about an inch and a half to two inches below the top of the eight-inch boards. It will probably settle some more with the rain that's forecast for Friday, and I may need to add a bit more soil, but I'm happy for now!
Next task: figure out how to keep cats and other creatures out of the plot.
6 comments:
When I first read that the soil had been filled in, I thought you had gophers. They can move an amazing amount of soil when digging their tunnels.
Your timing is great for starting a garden though it is great to be able to grow something at any time during the year.
Frank Blog
Hmmmm. Maybe it was gophers! Just kidding--the only non-domestic creatures I've seen back there are skunks.
Now I'm hoping for slightly warmer weather to continue planting. I have one tomato plant in!
Hi Janice, you are amazing! This is incredible. There are no excuses for not being creative where one is and with what one has. I love seeing the pictures. I can picture you right there. But is it still raining Baptismal reminders? Is raining hard up here. How do I sign up as a blogger? Or do I not because I don't have a web page except at church.
Hi Pr Peg,
This garden is a lot of fun, although a little frustrating when I can only work on it during (non-rainy) weekends and for about an hour after work.
You can sign up for a Blogger account, if you wish, by clicking Sign up here where it says No Blogger account? Sign up here. You don't need a Web site. However, you can also post comments just by using the Other or Anonymous options, like you already did.
Hi, I was out blogging and found your site. It certainly got my attention and interest. I was looking for Plants information and even though this isn't a perfect match I enjoyed your site. Thanks for the read!
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