New Garden Bed Prepared

New Garden Bed Prepared.
http://www.durgan.org/ShortURL/?SXJII 22 September 2008 New Garden Bed Prepared.

The center bed was enlarged by about 100 square feet. The method: Sod removed, area hand spaded, chunks rototilled, sod put through chipper/shredder to kill grass roots, compost added and mixed, wood chips added and mixed, planted in double cut red annual clover. The bed should be in excellent condition for planting in the Spring of 2009. Total labour time after sod was removed was 4 hours and 10 minutes.
http://www.durgan.org/ShortURL/?GXGKG 21 September 2008 Removing Sod

Very efficient - I imagine the clover is a fast grower and would protect the soil through your coming winter too. Does your garden frost badly?

Fran wrote:Very efficient - I imagine the clover is a fast grower and would protect the soil through your coming winter too. Does your garden frost badly?

Frost is the wrong term. The soil freezes solid for about a foot depth, depending upon the moisture content and severity of the weather before snow cover is present. We also have some thawing some winters, which can be the cause of some plant root damage, through the soil heaving from the weather cycles.

The clover fixes nitrogen, and will be winter killed, and rototilled into the soil in the Spring. Often it is completely frozen off, but it will have done it job depending how much growth takes place before freeze-up.

I love your garden.

But it is such a different climate and way of gardening to what I have here where we were very surprised to get 2 small frosts this winter, really made us wonder what it would be like having frost like yours and snow to top it up.

You must have a very short gardening season,
Thanks for your pictures.
Marion

Excellent work

meriash wrote:I love your garden.

But it is such a different climate and way of gardening to what I have here where we were very surprised to get 2 small frosts this winter, really made us wonder what it would be like having frost like yours and snow to top it up.

You must have a very short gardening season,
Thanks for your pictures.
Marion

Growing frost free days without concern is about 110 days from 1 June to about 15 of September, but of course, many plants can grow in spite of a some frost. Some years I plant about 15 of April and take my chances. If no severe frost is encountered, one can get a great jump on the season, but it can and often does go the other way.

So winter cuts it back and then you dig it in soon as the ground has thawed - interesting.
I dig green manure in while still sappy - winters here in the subtropics are not really so cold. Can't remember when I had a frost in the garden but there has always been the odd frost out on the low flats away from the house. You can create a microclimate in a house garden easily enough here in the subtropics with tanks and trees, shrubbery, water features.

Fran wrote:So winter cuts it back and then you dig it in soon as the ground has thawed - interesting.
I dig green manure in while still sappy - winters here in the subtropics are not really so cold. Can't remember when I had a frost in the garden but there has always been the odd frost out on the low flats away from the house. You can create a microclimate in a house garden easily enough here in the subtropics with tanks and trees, shrubbery, water features.

I find the green manure vegetation only wraps around the rototiller blades, so I prefer to dig it in after the vegetation dies off by frost, or if some survives I whack it off with a string weed wacker. Ploughing under would be ideal, but alas, such a device doesn't exist for the small home gardener.

My beds aren't big enough to worry with anything mechanical. Didn't realize I'd said frost - meant freeze of course. Know a lot of North America freezes LOL